❄
❄
❝ Don’t worry it’s
insidetime
❄
only Christmas, it’ll be gone in a few days ❞
❄
the National Newspaper for Prisoners
A MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL OUR READERS!
Circulation 42,000 (monthly) / ISSN 1743-7342 / www.insidetime.org / Issue No. 102 / December 2007
Rough justice Five years after the BBC Rough Justice programme first began investigating the case of Barri White and Keith Hyatt they have now had their convictions quashed by the Court of Appeal. Here Louise Shorter laments the axing of the programme after 27 years of public service broadcasting and says it is a dark day for society and the BBC.
Keith Hyatt
Barri White
S
even years ago, Barri White and Keith Hyatt’s lives began to fall apart. A night out which began with a family party would end in murder and ultimately, for Barri White, a life sentence. Barri White had spent an evening in December 2000 with his girlfriend Rachel Manning. The couple had parted company in the small hours of Sunday morning and, Barri said, he’d gone alone to his friend Keith’s house nearby. But Rachel Manning failed to arrive home that night and when her body was found in woodland two days later, Barri quickly became a suspect. Keith too was in the frame, as he agreed Barri had been at his house at the time the police believed Rachel Manning had been strangled to death. The case went to trial in 2002 and Barri White was given life with a 15-year tariff. Keith Hyatt was found guilty of perverting the course of justice and got 5 years. Keith and Barri’s families wrote to the BBC’s Rough Justice programme soon after to ask for help. Two and a half years later, enough new evidence had been gathered to broadcast a documentary on BBC 1. Now, five years after Rough Justice first became involved, the case was back at the Court of Appeal. For two days the new evidence was examined and argued over. The defence team was
confident but the prosecution fought on. The Judges indicated they would give their decision at 3pm on day two and when they began to read their judgment the packed courtroom was completely silent. As the words “the convictions are unsafe” rung out, the tension exploded into sobs of relief from family and friends of both men. Barri White is set to face a retrial in the New Year. In the meantime he was given bail and now is experiencing freedom for the first time in more than five years. The actual reasons why the Judges decided this was a miscarriage of justice can’t be gone into, as reporting restrictions were imposed until the time of the new trial. But we are allowed to tell the world that it was thanks to Rough Justice beginning its investigations that Barri and Keith have proved their first trial created a miscarriage. But for Rough Justice this success was bittersweet. Now in its 27th year,the case of Barri White becomes the 17th conviction quashed because of investigations carried out by the programme. Rough Justice changed people’s lives, yet in November the BBC announced it has been axed. The programme is universally acknowledged as true public sector broadcasting yet its demise is simply because, in this age of celebrity obsession, it’s deemed too expensive. For all those ordinary people lost in our overcrowded jails, convicted of crimes they did not commit, desperate for help and a public voice, it is a dark day. For society and the BBC it is also just as dark.
The award winning rock singer Amy Winehouse was reported to be ‘emotionally broken’ after visiting her husband Blake Fielder-Civil at Pentonville and on being told he faces Christmas in prison. Her condition deteriorated and she has now cancelled her British tour. She told reporters “I can’t give my all on stage without my husband Blake. I’m sorry but I don’t want to do the shows half-heartedly”. At the opening night of her now cancelled 17-date concert tour, fans booed her off stage in Birmingham after she gave ‘a shambolic performance’. At the Brixton Academy she was spotted on stage sniffing a scarf after taking a packet out of her bra and sprinkling the contents over it.
Louise Shorter was a producer and director for BBC Rough Justice for 10 years.
Antonio Maria Costa, head of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime spoke out about the cocaine habits of Amy Winehouse and other British celebrities. He said the drug trade posed a severe risk to young people in Britain where cocaine use has doubled among 16-24 year olds in the last 10 years.
Petition the BBC to save Rough Justice page 27
CRIMINAL DEFENCE SPECIALISTS SPECIALIST FRAUD PANEL MEMBERS • • • •
Battling the boos…
CM
CARTER MOORE solicitors
Serious and complex Crown Court Cases Court Of Appeal Cases Applications to the Criminal Cases Review Commission Confiscation and Proceeds of Crime Act Proceedings
Please Contact Jeremy Moore - Carter Moore Solicitors 1 2 St J o h n St r e e t M a n c h e s t e r M 3 4 D X 0 1 6 1 8 3 5 3 0 0 0 Now Joined by Lynn Williams
• • • • • • •
PRISON LAW SPECIALISTS NORTH WEST ADVOCACY SPECIALISTS
New "IPP" and Extended Sentences (CJA 2003) ALL Lifer Hearings and Paper Reviews Recall Reviews and Hearings / Parole Reviews and Refusals Cat A Reviews and all Categorisation Tariff/ Minimum Term Reviews Independent Adjudications and Prison Discipline Judicial Review and Human Rights Cases Nationwide Coverage on General Prison Law
2
Mailbag
If you would like to contribute to Mailbag, please send your letters to ‘Mailbag’, Inside Time, PO Box 251, Hedge End, Hampshire SO30 4XJ.
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
Decline in usefulness to Scottish Prisoners
Illegal room searches
............................................................................................................
.....................................................
a voice for prisoners since 1990
JOHN HIGGINS - HMP EDINBURGH
ALISTAIR GOLDIE - WEST YORKSHIRE
the national newspaper for prisoners published by Inside Time Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of New Bridge, a charity founded in 1956 to create links between the offender and the community.
In your October issue you report a decrease in the number of complaints made by prisoners to the Scottish Prisons Complaints Commissioner (Vaughan Barrett). Sadly, this is not surprising. The present incumbent has been in post for a number of years and this has seen a dramatic decline in the PCC's usefulness to Scottish prisoners.
I would like Inside Time to assist with a problem I’m having regarding room searches in a Probation Hostel.
insidetime
Registered Office: 27a Medway Street, London SW1P 2BD
Board of Directors Trevor Grove - Former Editor Sunday Telegraph, Journalist, Writer and serving Magistrate. Eric McGraw - Former Director of New Bridge (1986 - 2002) and started Inside Time in 1990. Tony Pearson CBE - Former Deputy Director General of the Prison Service. John D Roberts - Former Company Chairman and Managing Director employing ex-offenders. Alistair H.E.Smith B.Sc F.C.A. - Chartered Accountant, Trustee and Treasurer of the New Bridge Foundation. Chris Thomas - Chief Executive, New Bridge Foundation
The Editorial Team
The initial Commissioner made a real difference - he produced scrupulously fair reports and greatly reduced the waiting time. Complaints now take so long to elicit a response as to make the PCC almost an irrelevance for many prisoners. I made two complaints on major issues and when I had no response for two years, raised the matter with the Commissioner for Administration and this then produced a result. One of my complaints had concerned the long delays in response from the PCC. My next complaints were made 18 months ago and had no response, so I decided to take the matter to Judicial Review. My solicitor wrote to the PCC intimating this and, surprise, surprise, the PCC phoned me that day. They read me a letter which purported to have been sent to me in May 2007 - which I did not receive. By coincidence, I was informed of a similar letter the last time, and it was also asserted that I had told them to drop it when they had phoned. All this was simply untrue so, for that reason, I now confirm everything in writing. The really sad thing is that governors are well aware of this problem and, in consequence, we now get many more responses telling us to take the complaint to the PCC - which they well know will take so much time as to be virtually useless. The PCC was the greatest step forward in 50 years and it is sad to see this initiative fail.
Reinforcing stereotypes .............................................................................................................. STEVE ORCHARD - HEAD OF OPERATIONS, HMP NOTTINGHAM
Rachel Billington Novelist and Journalist
Eric McGraw Author and Managing Editor
John Bowers Writer and former prisoner
John Roberts Operations Director and Company Secretary
Correspondence Inside Time, P.O.Box 251,
Hedge End, Hampshire SO30 4XJ. 01489 795945 01489 786495
[email protected] www.insidetime.org
If you wish to reproduce or publish any of the content from any issue of Inside Time, you should first contact us and obtain our written permission. Full terms & conditions can be found on www.insidetime.org
Subscribe Inside Time is distributed free of charge throughout the UK prison estate. It is available to other readers via a postal subscription service. ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION CHARGES £25.00 (inc vat) Companies, organisations and individuals with taxable earnings. £15.00 (inc vat) Registered Charities, volunteers and individuals without taxable earnings. For postal addresses outside of the UK please add £10 to the appropriate subscription rate to cover the additional postage costs. To subscribe call us or go to www.insidetime.org, pay by cheque/postal order or credit card over the telephone.
I write as an admirer of Inside Time as I believe it fulfils a useful role for prisoners, the public and prison service staff. I also believe that it should contain some light-hearted entertainment along with serious issues. Finally, I am not fanatically ‘PC’ or lacking a sense of humour. However, I do think the November issue went too far in the ‘Jailbreak’ section in which eleven ‘jokes’ were printed under the heading ‘Victorian views perhaps!’ Nine of these eleven jokes were sexist in the extreme and should not, in my opinion, have been printed in your newspaper. These nine examples of prejudice would obviously not have been acceptable if their target had been people with disabilities or people from a BME background. Similarly, I do not think they were acceptable in that they tended to reinforce negative and inaccurate stereotypical perceptions of women as unintelligent, overly talkative, ‘nagging’, deceptive and inferior. Given that some prisoners' offending behaviour stems from their inappropriate attitude towards women, and that the Prison Service, despite some improvements, still remains probably overall ‘institutionally sexist’ in its staff culture, I suggest that you give greater thought in future before publishing such pieces.
I was under the impression that all room searches have to be carried out whilst you are present, and that you have to sign a form saying that you have had a room search. Probation staff at the hostel have entered my room on two occasions whilst I have not been there and searched it - they have taken some of my belongings and even went into my bags and searched through my personal property and paperwork, removing items from my room. I know in prison that you have to be present when you are having a room/cell search and you have to sign a form. Can you therefore tell me if they have carried out illegal room searches and theft from my room by removing items without my permission or authorization? How do I know they have not planted anything? If it is found that they have been doing illegal room searches, what legal action can I take against the Probation Service/Hostel?
➜ David Millett, Assistant Staff Officer to the Director of Probation writes: The searches of Mr Goldie’s room were not illegal. The searches were conducted in accordance with the rules, which Mr Goldie signed when he returned to the hostel on 11th July this year. He had previously been a resident there when his room would have been searched, in his absence. It is true that the room he occupies has been searched twice in his absence. The practice in West Yorkshire is for residents’ rooms to be searched both with and without the presence of the resident. The search is always undertaken by two members of staff and if the resident is not present then he is informed afterwards. He also mentions objects being removed. This is also correct. His room was searched on 15th July as Mr Goldie had a TV but no licence. He said he was using it for playing games. The Hostel management wanted to reassure themselves that the TV was not connected to the TV socket. They found no causes for concern other than the presence of a cable capable of being used to connect the TV to the TV socket. As it had no other observable use it was removed. Mr Goldie was informed of this and was told it would be returned to him when he left the hostel.
RODMAN PEARCE SOLICITORS
FIGHTING YOUR CAUSE! Experienced representation in Criminal Defence, Prison Law and Immigration Matters • All Criminal Courts Proceedings and Appeals • Parole Hearings • Licence Recalls • Judicial Reviews • Recategorisation • Confiscation Orders • Adjudications • Lifer Panel Representations • Human Rights Appeals • Miscarriage of Justice • Appeals Against Deportation
-Nationwide Servicecontact
Barry Akilo or Christine Ayanbadejo
01582 424234 or write to: Rodman Pearce Solicitors 54 Wellington Street Luton Bedfordshire LU1 2QH
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
✪ Star Letter of the Month ......................................................... Congratulations to Carl Moses who wins our £25 cash prize for this month’s Star Letter.
‘Challenging prisoners’ ................................................... CARL MOSES - HMP BIRMINGHAM I wonder how many Inside Time readers have experienced failure at the hands of Her Majesty’s Prison Service? As we know, the mission statement is …‘Her Majesty’s Prison Service serves the public by detaining in custody those committed by the courts. Our duty is to look after them with humanity and to help them lead law abiding and useful lives in custody and after release’.
If you would like to contribute to Mailbag, please send your letters to ‘Mailbag’, Inside Time, PO Box 251, Hedge End, Hampshire SO30 4XJ.
It has been my experience only the first part is true, ‘detain in custody’, the second part of this ‘duty of care’ is questionable. The third part I am absolutely incensed about. The ‘New Winson Green’ boasts a host of ‘purposeful activities’, available if you want to take a step towards breaking the cycle of offending … trade based courses, education, NVQs, drugs, housing, the list goes on. However this list of opportunities is greatly reduced if you are on remand or, as many will be aware, if security knocks you back. I’ve been in and out of this prison most of my adult life. I’m viewed as one of the more ‘experienced’ prisoners and also one of the more ‘challenging’. I suppose it’s an easier option to just bang me up behind the door. You could say I was institutionalised, although no wonder since every time I come here all I can expect is bang up. I don’t want to be too hard on myself, as I still have hopes and aspirations, however they are not being realized. Surely there are people like me who feel the same? In fact I know there are, because whenever I come here it seems to be the same people in the same situation. When we associate together we then become the ‘hardcore element’ … labelled and stigmatised. Surely the reason the prison population is so full to bursting is because the system is simply not dealing with all those ‘challenging’ prisoners?
Visiting order exchange .............................................................................................................. THOMAS HODGE - HMP WAKEFIELD Can Inside Time tell me how a prisoner at Wakefield can exchange accumulated Visiting Orders or Ordinary Letters for PIN phone credits?
➜ The Prison Service writes: HMP Wakefield’s policy allows prisoners on Standard IEP who have accumulated Visiting Orders to exchange these for PIN phone credits. The exchange rate is eight VO’s for £2-00 PIN phone credit with a maximum of 48 VO’s for £12-00 credit. However, Enhanced prisoners can also exchange Ordinary letters (OL’s) for PIN phone credits. Wakefield’s exchange rate for this is ten OL’s for £2-00 credit - up to a maximum of 60 OL’s for £12-00 credit. The limitation to this, however, is that not all prisons operate the same policy. Some only exchange VO’s, whilst some offer no exchange. In Mr Hodge’s case, Wakefield would take into account the policy in operation at any of his previous establishments and permit the exchange at Wakefield subject to the previous establishment’s conditions. For example, where a previous prison had no exchange policy, then any request to use the VO’s accumulated at that establishment would not be authorised to exchange to PIN credits at Wakefield. I understand Mr Hodge has a number of outstanding VO’s over a period of six years. Wakefield has confirmed they will exchange them for him subject to the guidance given above.
Why the disparity? .....................................................
Mailbag
3
Contents
PHILIP SMITH - HMP KENNET I’m serving nine years under the old rules. Can Inside Time clarify why the disparity in time allowed for home leave for prisoners sentenced after April 2005, and why prisoners on automatic release are allowed five days home leave while prisoners subject to Parole are only allowed one day?
➜ The Prison Service writes: Prisoners convicted of offences committed on or after 4 April 2005, who receive a determinate sentence of 12 months or more, are subject to the release provisions of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 (CJA03). CJA03 prisoners are released at the halfway point of sentence and are subject to licence conditions until their Sentence and Licence Expiry Date. All prisoners convicted of offences committed before 4 April 2005, who receive a sentence of 4 years or more continue to be subject to the parole process under the release provisions of the Criminal Justice Act 1991 (CJA91). The decision to grant different levels of Resettlement Overnight Release (ROR) to CJA91 and CJA03 was not an oversight and was introduced for a specific reason. The ROR eligibility date for prisoners with automatic release dates takes into account the fact that the eventual release date is known at the point of sentencing. But the release date for those subject to a parole decision is not known until a positive parole decision is made by the Parole Board. Indeed eventual release date may actually fall some years after the Parole Eligibility Date. The Parole Board is an executive non-departmental body. To change the policy and allow CJA91 prisoners to be treated in the same way as CJA03 prisoners would imply release at the halfway point is automatic and would suggest the Prison Service is attempting to pre-empt the Parole Board’s decision. Finally, it is important to note that prisoners, except those in the excluded group, will be eligible for Resettlement Day Release (RDR) either 24 months before their release date, or once they have served half the custodial period less the relevant remand time.
Mailbag ........................ pages 2-9 A letter to BBC Radio 4 ... page 4 A law unto themselves ... page 7
Newsround ............. pages 10-15 Parole Board: 40 years old ............................................... page 10
Terrorists in British jails . page 12 Longford Lecture ............. page 13
Month by month .......... page 16 Comment ............... pages 17-24
The Truth About Rehabilitation ................................................. page 23
Inside Health ............ page 25 Legal Comment .. pages 26-28 Legal Advice ........... pages 29-31
Carol Selema - Briefing and Casework Unit
insidetime
Book reviews ......... pages 32-33
Is now available online for your family and friends
Jailbreak ................. pages 34-35
www.insidetime.org
Poetry .............................. page 36
Deborah Marchington - High Security Briefing & Casework
St evens S o l i c i t o rs Stoke-on-Trent - Stafford - Wolverhampton Specialising in Criminal Defence & Prison Law For advice and representation on
• • • • • •
Adjudications Life Panel Tribunals Parole Hearings Recall to custody Categorisation Tariff Review
Contact: Carl Buckley or M i c h e l l e P a t e r s o n Stevens Solicitors Bank Court, Bank Passage STAFFORD ST16 2JR Tel 01785 250908
AGENCY WORK UNDERTAKEN
24hr EMERGENCY HELPLINE 07659 111000
MILLERCHIP MURRAY
Guney Clark & Ryan
S O L I C I TO R S
Solicitors
SPECIALISTS IN CRIMINAL DEFENCE WORK AND PRISON LAW in particular
CRIMINAL LAW & PRISONERS’ RIGHTS SPECIALISTS
ADJUDICATIONS LIFER PAROLE ORAL HEARINGS RECALL HEARINGS &
ALL ASPECTS OF PRISON LAW Contact Sarah Holland at Millerchip Murray Solicitors The Quadrant Business Centre 3 The Quadrant Coventry CV1 2DY 02476 243615 serving the midlands
For urgent assistance with:Lifer Parole Hearings Adjudications Re-Categorisation Applications Appeal of Recall to Custody
Contact Ciara McElvogue 60 Green Lanes LONDON N16 9NH
0207 275 7788
24hour Emergency Helpline
4
Mailbag
allowed to buy from local companies and a question is raised as to the legitimacy of one particular supplier. Also, why does the provision at HMP Wayland differ to other prisons in England and Wales?
➜ The Prison Service writes:
Catalogue services ..................................................... MARK DAVIES - HMP CHANNINGS WOOD Are prisoners allowed to buy from any companies covered by MOPS (Mail Order Protection Service)? Aramark provides the catalogue service here at HMP Channings Wood. Current catalogue providers are Argos (Additions, Direct Footwear), Gema Records and Sports Shoes Unlimited. These are very expensive and the reason given for prisoners being unable to buy from M&M Direct is that Aramark do not deal with them. Is this true, or is it a local Aramark issue? Why is there a difference between one contractor’s prices and another (e.g. Aramark and ESS) when prices are meant to be set centrally? Are there any other companies who will be competing for the prison canteen contracts to provide cheaper and better services?
➜ The Prison Service writes: The list of available catalogues is agreed between the prison and the contractor administering the catalogue provision (in this case Aramark). The utilised catalogues will be in line with the approved catalogue suppliers that the contractor has deemed reliable and goods will be approved by Security Policy Group and the prison. Prices for provision covered by the national contracts are set centrally by Procurement Unit in conjunction with Policy Unit; therefore prices for those prisons whose prison retail or canteen provision is covered by other agreements may differ from those covered by the national contracts. The re-tender of existing contracts will seek to ensure that new contracts are awarded to the supplier(s) that offers the most economically advantageous tender in terms of cost and service delivery. The new contracts will also introduce a consistent pricing range across the prison estate.
..................................................... A JOHNSON - HMP WAYLAND … I seek clarification on the Prison Service stance relating to prisoners purchasing goods from companies such as M&M Sports and Cob Records. Prisoners here at Wayland are currently
Ross SR Samuel Solicitors Criminal Defence, Immigration and Prison Law Specialists
The prison retail provision at HMP Wayland is undertaken in-house, therefore the approved companies from which prisoners are allowed to purchase may differ from those companies utilised under a contracted out provision, as the latter will be dependent on the contractor providing the service and their approved list of suppliers. The current list of catalogues available at HMP Wayland is as follows: • Adcocks (music, CDs, Play station/Game Cube games) • Gema Records (music, CDs, Play station/Game Cube games (both new and second hand), memory cards (both new and second hand) • Waterstones (books) • Art Express (art materials) • Hobbies (Dereham) Ltd (hobbies and craft items) • Freemans (general) • Argos (general) • Azhar Academy (religious items) The Incentive and Earned Privileges (IEP) committee at HMP Wayland decides upon the catalogues that should be available. The availability of catalogues is discussed and decided at each quarterly IEP committee meeting. Prisoners have representatives who attend these meetings and can propose new/ changes to the catalogues. If a new catalogue is suggested, the feasibility of using the catalogue is looked into. This involves the type of goods stocked and whether these goods are already available from other catalogues that are operated at HMP Wayland, and the delivery procedures and stock availability. HMP Wayland did formerly use a local sportswear shop, which was owned by an officer and his wife. The shop was run by the officer’s wife and the process was as follows; the catalogue was provided for the wings, orders were placed by post, goods were delivered and invoices provided and refunds dealt with. The company and the ordering process were reviewed by Internal Audit who found there were no issues surrounding a conflict of interest. The matter had also been investigated by the Fraud Section in 2000/01 who had reported their findings to Senior Management and details were recorded in the establishment’s conflict of interests register. Management control would have been considered sufficient if the arrangements continued. The shop closed last year and is, therefore, no longer used by the establishment. Response from HMP Wayland states that the IEP committee are satisfied with the current provision of catalogues at the establishment. T.Osmani & Co. is a leading East London quality accredited legal aid law firm delivering a dedicated criminal appeals only service. We can assist you with applications to the Criminal Cases Review Commission and to the Court of Appeal.
• Appeals against conviction • Licence Parole & ROTL Issues • Mandatory Lifer & Tariff Settings • Recategorisation & categorisation reviews • Lifer Reviews • Request/Complaints • Recall to Custody • Ajudications • Judicial Review • Immigration Apeals
Find out if you qualify for free help - contact T.Osmani & Co. ,121 Woodlands Avenue, London E11 3RB
[email protected] “When life knocks you down you have two choices- stay down or get up.” Tom Krause
For Immediate Visit, Clear Advice and Effective Representationwrite or call: Pedro or Deborah at:
89 The Parade, Kingshurst Birmingham B37 6BB
Samuel Ross Solicitors 253 Camberwell New Road London SE5 0TH
0207 701 4664
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
If you would like to contribute to Mailbag, please send your letters to ‘Mailbag’, Inside Time, PO Box 251, Hedge End, Hampshire SO30 4XJ.
Phillip Haycock Solicitors 0121 788 1234 For assistance on prison disputes including recalls and adjudications, contact Phillip Haycock or Julie Tuite LEGAL AID GENERALLY AVAILABLE
A letter to BBC Radio 4 .......................................................................................................... STANLEY BEST - CHAIRMAN, BRITISH LEGAL ASSOCIATION Inside Time readers might like to note the content of a letter I sent recently to John Humphreys at the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: ‘As a practising barrister whose work at Parole Board reviews and on prison law are a significant element of my work, I listened with interest to the interview relating to deaths in custody. I was surprised not to hear any mention of self-harming prisoners, nor to the descriptions applied unofficially, I imagine, by the Home Office to the mentally ill and self-harming groups respectively as ‘sale or return’ and ‘shared misery’. I cannot now recall from whence I gained this information, although I was assured that the descriptions are freely used. I recall my late client prisoner X, a slightly built man whom I saw in conference with my instructing solicitor at Leicester Royal Infirmary where he was an in-patient after his latest and final episode of self-harm. He was handcuffed by one arm to the bed - shades of Ann Widdecombe's pregnant prisoner - although guarded by two burly prison officers. They were not to be blamed, as they followed Home Office orders. My client had stabbed himself in the stomach so effectively that, after earlier damage, it was impossible to repair his wounds and he was returned to prison where he died. He was full of praise for the kindness of the staff at the prison Health Centre. Following the customary Home Office practice with self-harming prisoners, he had been moved from one prison to another every six months - hence ‘shared misery’. At his last prison, the woman governor took special interest in him, noting his progress and, being a woman of compassionate nature, sought special permission from the Home Office to retain him in her prison when his six months was up. This was granted and she weaned him from self-harming, but then she was transferred and the self-harming restarted, leading to his death. Unconventional maybe, but why, you may ask, was prisoner X not transferred with the woman governor to whose ‘treatment’ he had responded so well? He might then have been able to undertake successfully the prison coursework which could have persuaded the Parole Board to conclude ultimately that he was fit for release. Due to the fact that he was moved from one prison to another every six months, prisoner X was never able to undertake coursework; giving hope of release. That hope, coupled with the influence of the woman governor, might have served to rehabilitate this man and to have sent him out alive from prison rather than in a coffin. The late Sir Winston Churchill once said something to the effect that the way we treat prisoners is a measure of our civilisation. He was in this, as in much else, correct. Both those diagnosed mentally ill offenders and the self-harmers, arguably also mentally ill, need to be dealt with in institutions which will contain them (to prevent escape and further offending), but which allow for proper medical/psychiatric treatment. One hopes that you will find an opportunity of returning to the general subject shortly. This government, as the last, will continue to ignore it without constant reminders’.
➜ Please note On an unrelated matter, Mr Best received a message recently from Mr Garry Powell in HMP Lindholme. Unfortunately the message was not entirely clear, owing to interference on the line, so perhaps Garry Powell could call Stanley Best again, giving his prison number and confirming his location. If you would like to contribute to Mailbag, please send your letters (concise and clearly marked) to ‘Mailbag’, Inside Time, PO Box 251, Hedge End, Hampshire SO30 4XJ. To avoid any possible misunderstanding, if you have a query and for whatever reason do not wish your letter to be published, or yourself to be identified, please make this clear. We advise that wherever possible, when sending original documents such as legal papers, you send photocopies as we are unable to accept liability if they are lost. We may need to forward your letter and /or documents to Prison Service HQ or another appropriate body for comment or advice, therefore only send information you are willing to have forwarded on your behalf.
Julian Young & Co Specialist Solicitors for
CRIMINAL DEFENCE and all aspects of
PRISON LAW Nationwide Service For a prompt friendly response Contact Judy Ramjeet at: JULIAN YOUNG & CO 57 Duke Street Mayfair London W1K 5NR
0 2 0 7 4 9 3 2 2 11
Atticus Solicitors Specialising in Criminal Defence & Prison Law Offering a Nationwide Service
· · · · · ·
Adjudications Lifer Panel Representations Parole Hearings Licence Recall Recategorisation Tariff Review
Contact Rob Holt, Andrew Bennett or Iain Haley Leeds House, 79a High Street, Newcastle-u-Lyme, Staffordshire ST5 1PS
01782 629840 24hour Pager 07659 129973
- Agency work undertaken -
Mailbag
If you would like to contribute to Mailbag, please send your letters to ‘Mailbag’, Inside Time, PO Box 251, Hedge End, Hampshire SO30 4XJ.
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
Access to wing files
Unlawful practice
Views on Parenting
.....................................................
.............................................................................................
HOWARD WOODIN - HMP NOTTINGHAM
HEALTH AND LIFE SCIENCES - LEICESTER
..................................................... ANDY SENIOR - HMP GARTREE Can Inside Time provide me with information/ advice relating to the right of prisoners to view their 2052 wing file. I don’t necessarily mean under the Freedom of Information Act but merely as a general request. I would also like to know what paperwork the Prison Service is obliged to disclose under the Freedom of Information Act and if the £10 charge would cover all paperwork. Advice on this issue would be very useful in arming me with the necessary facts to present to my personal officer.
➜ The Prison Service writes: Mr Senior asks about a prisoner's right to see their 2052 wing file and if the £10 fee covers everything that is held on a prisoner under the Freedom of Information Act. A prisoner may put in a request at their prison to view their wing file, but this is at the discretion of the prison staff. If a prisoner requires a full copy of the file they will need to request it from the Open Government Unit and pay a fee of £10. A prisoner may request any information held about them under the Freedom of Information Act by submitting a request to the OGU and paying a £10 fee. Any prisoner requiring a copy of their prison records should write to: Open Government Unit, DPA Subject Access request, Branston Registry, Building 16, S&T Site, Burton on Trent DE14 3EG. I hope the foregoing clarifies the rules surrounding a prisoner's right to access information held about him/her. I should, however, point out that I have not gone into specific details of Mr Senior's case as the Briefing and Casework Unit no longer deal with personal issues or complaints received from a prisoner through Inside Time. These issues should be taken up locally at the prison.
Anouska Herman - Briefing & Casework Unit
insidetime Is now available online for your family and friends
www.insidetime.org
5
Here at HMP Nottingham, staff are instructed to receive legal outgoing mail from prisoners unsealed, then take the contents out of the envelope, flick through it, then replace in the envelope, seal and put their name and rank on reverse of envelope. I consider this to be unlawful and a clear breach of Prison Rule 39, therefore would appreciate clarification from Prison Service HQ on the correct procedure.
➜ The Prison Service writes: I can confirm that Mr Woodin is correct in referring to such a practice as a breach of Prison Rule 39, which gives prisoners and their legal advisers or the courts the right to correspond with each other in confidence. In practice this means that correspondence sent or received under Prison Rule 39 cannot be opened, read or stopped by prison staff except in special circumstances. This is an existing policy which has been incorporated into the new PSO 4411 - Prisoner Communications: Correspondence published in September of this year. Guidance on the detailed handling arrangements for Prison Rule 39 correspondence are set out in Annex A of this PSO. Under paragraph 5 of Annex A, prisoners should be made aware that correspondence addressed to their legal advisers or the courts can be handed in sealed for dispatch provided that they are properly marked Prison Rule 39 (YOI Rule 17) and the prisoner’s name is written on the back of the envelope. Such a letter may be opened only if there is reason to believe it contains illicit content or enclosure(s) or that it may not be addressed to a legitimate legal adviser, and only in the presence of the prisoner concerned. Decisions to open any Rule 39 mail, whether incoming or outgoing, must be made on a case by case basis and not as part of a ‘blanket’ policy. I have made enquiries with HMP Nottingham in response to Mr Woodin’s complaint and this has been investigated at senior manager level within the prison. I have been informed that the practices Mr Woodin described above were not formally authorised but were being carried out by some members of staff who were unfortunately unaware of correct procedures. I have been assured that immediate and comprehensive measures have now been taken to implement the correct procedures, including a Governor’s Order confirming these and briefings to all residential and mail room staff.
A Parfitt - Offender Policy & Rights Unit
SOMERS & BLAKE -SOLICITORS49B Boston Road Hanwell London W7 3SH About to start your Parole process and in need of some help? Just had a knockback? Been recalled to Prison? About to appear before an independant adjudicator and facing added days? Have you just failed to get the catagory you wanted?
IF ANY OF THE ABOVE APPLY TO YOU - YOU MUST ACT NOW! We can visit you, advise you and provide the representation you need. We are the experts in these fields of Prison law and have successfully helped many inmates. Don’t delay - contact us today Emma Dolan or Gerry Blake 0208 567 7025
In the August issue of Inside Time we asked serving prisoners to tell us their views about having children. We received a number of letters, which showed how this issue impacts on both men and women and we are very grateful to those of you who took the time to write and tell us your feelings. Many of those who responded felt that the absence of children in prisoners’ lives was a concern for both them, as well as their partners, and a number of reasons were given for this. For some prisoners, having children meant that they could ‘settle down’ and get their life ‘back on track’ once released from prison. For this reason becoming a parent was seen by some as a way to ensure that they did not re-offend, as one male prisoner explains: ‘for me I felt it would bring some pride back into my life and give me a son or daughter with whom I could build a new life and stay on the straight and narrow’. Not being able to become a parent (either for the first time or to add to their families) whilst imprisoned was also worrying because it meant a possible breakdown of relationships with partners and children. It also suggested that their connections with ‘the outside’ are weakened. Not being able to fulfil their wish to be a parent also highlighted, for some, the passing of time and an increased awareness of aging that would inevitably have an effect on future childbearing. Whether or not serving prisoners should have the ‘right’ to have children was a contentious issue and views were divided on this. One male respondent offers the following view, which was shared by a number of others: ‘I believe that people (prisoners) should not complain about not having children whilst in prison …we have done things that have led us to custody, so to complain about this is wrong.’ Some felt, however, that prisoners should be given the right to procreate, especially given the positive impact it was felt it might have for some individuals. This research highlights that there are conflicting views about this issue. Prisoners serving long term or repeat sentences are particularly aware of the difficulties and complex emotions in parenting or becoming a parent whilst in prison, which for some is clearly an impossibility. Current prison policy does not permit prisoners to create ‘new life’ but does try to encourage prisoners with existing families to maintain links during imprisonment, such as family themed visits and the Storybook Dads initiative. The research team would welcome more responses from prisoners about this, and plan to continue writing on this issue. If you wish to tell us your thoughts, please send your letters to: Nicky Hudson and Victoria Knight, Health and Life Sciences, Freepost MID20741 Leicester LE2 2ZE.
Mailbag
6
The nightmare of release .....................................................
If you would like to contribute to Mailbag, please send your letters to ‘Mailbag’, Inside Time, PO Box 251, Hedge End, Hampshire SO30 4XJ.
The innocent have nothing to fear .............................................................................................................
You featured an article in your September issue by Professor Ray Bull, a polygraph expert and chair of the British Psychological Society’s working party on polygraph deception detection who, in my view, rubbished lie detector tests without giving the issue proper balance and who missed what I see as a key point. It is not so much the truthfulness or accuracy of the actual test, as that is frequently going to be variable, but whether someone is willing to take the polygraph test in the first place.
I’ve just been released from serving a 4-year sentence. I got out on August 24th with no licence or supervision as I had served it all in jail. So I walked out through those big steel gates with just my discharge grant. Because I’ve let my family down over and over again I couldn’t live there. So I was homeless … the big NFA. My discharge grant went on a few days Bed and Breakfast and the rest of my money was for food. After five days in a B&B, I was out on the streets. I’d just done all that time in jail and look at the situation I was in! I couldn’t get help from probation or indeed anyone, as I wasn’t on licence. I tried hostels, halfway bedsits … the lot. I was told I’d go on a list for a bedsit. I started to get very depressed, so ended up relapsing. I had done brilliantly in jail. No drugs, training courses; the lot. Now I was back on the streets living rough and back on drugs. I ended up doing crime to pay for drugs and to get a bed for the night. I was taking it all day by day and it was an absolute nightmare. I ended up being out of jail for just two weeks. Now I’m back inside on remand. I’ve got two charges and I know I’ll get more jail. Surely lads who are due for release should get some help? I was told that because I wasn’t on licence or probation I couldn’t get any help. It’s absolutely shocking. I’m now 37 and in jail for another birthday and another Christmas. Surely the system has got to be looked at; being homeless the day you get out is the worst start anyone could want.
insidetime Is now available online for your family and friends
www.insidetime.org
The guilty will resist doing so because of the real possibility of being exposed as liars - the innocent person has no fear, as there is nothing to be exposed. Professor Bull’s conclusion, that polygraphic lie detection accuracy is not high and the belief that people who ‘pass’ a polygraph test are, therefore, cleared of suspicion is a false belief, flies in the face of seventy years of their use as part of crime detection. The Home Office will be using them on sex offenders as part of its management of offenders as set out in a Bill that came into force earlier this year. In April, I took a lie-detector test here at Full Sutton and passed. After my test lots of prisoners, many of them high profile and who continue to maintain their innocence, were offered the test at no cost and not one agreed - even though they knew that passing would give them publicity of a supportive nature and be a huge boost to their respective campaigns. My advice to anyone who is truly innocent is to take the test; you have nothing to fear. As for the guilty ... carry on finding excuses why you shouldn’t do the test because in doing so, you are effectively admitting ‘I am guilty but can’t face being exposed’.
➜ Jeremy Barrett, Polygraph Security Services, writes:
Jeremy Bamber refers to Professor Ray Bull as a ‘polygraph expert’. I think he is, in fact, an academic and, as far as I know, not a trained polygraph examiner. The learned Professor, as chair of a working party, concluded that the “accuracy of polygraphs is not high and that the rate of incorrect decisions is too significant to ignore”. I do not know what they mean by the rate of incorrect decisions and cannot therefore comment on whether it is too significant to ignore. “Scientific laboratory studies” are not real life situations. “Field studies” might count if they were considering actual events and real polygraph tests. Colin Stagg, who was one of my clients, took a polygraph test some 14 years ago, which showed that he had not killed Rachel Nickell on Wimbledon Common. In the intervening years, many people have expressed their opinion that I had reached the wrong result but funnily enough, now the Police have proved for themselves that Stagg is innocent, I have not had any of the doubters contact me to say “OK, you were right”. After more than a quarter of a century of testing, I know it is accurate.
➜ In next month’s issue, investigative journalist Bob Woffinden will highlight the case of Jeremy Bamber, who was convicted of murder in October 1986 but has always vehemently protested his innocence.
R. C. HALL Taylor Bracewell S o l i c i t o r s
Specialists in: Prison Law and Crime We can also assist you in all other areas of law.
Amanda Holmes Solicitor
01302 640381
Please contact us to discuss your requirements: Taylor Bracewell Solicitors 17-23 Thorne Road Doncaster South Yorkshire DN1 2RP
01302 341414
Pam Coxon Solicitor
01302 640418
www.taylorbracewell.co.uk
Provisions for disabled ..................................................... R SHAND - HMP GUYS MARSH
JEREMY BAMBER - HMP FULL SUTTON
MARK MILLER - HMP HOLME HOUSE
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
SOLICITORS SPECIALISTS IN CRIMINAL DEFENCE AND PRISON LAW
JUST HAD A KNOCK BACK? FAILED TO GET THE CATEGORY YOU WANTED? For a prompt response and proactive advice and assistance, articulate and vigorous representation in all aspects of Prison Law including: • Licence Recall • Transfers • Parole Application/Hearing • Appeals • Categorisation • Adjudications • Court of Appeal Cases • Confiscation and Proceeds of Crime • All Lifer Hearings and Paper Reviews • Judicial Review and Human Rights Cases Contact: Rosemary or Martyns at
R.C. HALL SOLICITORS Gibson House 800 High Road Tottenham London N17 0DH
TEL:020 8801 2345 FAX: 020 8801 2555
I am a disabled wheelchair user and have written from numerous prisons (9) regarding information from the Home Office on exactly what provisions should be made for disabled prisoners because in my view, PSO2855/ DDA199S is simply not working. I am not getting the recommended access facility for disabled prisoners, which is far removed from helping me to progress or even to get rehabilitation. Since coming to prison in 2002, I have not had an opportunity do any courses or even get to a prison that caters for disabled prisoners - so I need some help from the Home Office. Every prison I have been in says they can cater for my needs, yet five or six months down the road they move me on. It is not helping me. It is not doing me any favours. Please ask the Prison Service for some answers.
➜ The Prison Service writes: It is Prison Service policy, in line with developing legislation, that disabled prisoners are not discriminated against in any aspect of prison life and that equality of opportunity in accessing all parts of prison life, and in particular to address their offending behaviour and be resettled, is offered to all prisoners. The Disability and Discrimination Acts (DDA) 1995 and 2005 apply to service providers, including the Prison Service for example in its provision of offending behaviour, education, work, drug treatment programmes etc, and requires access (both physical and in the broadest sense) to be ensured to services and for reasonable adjustments to be made. In addition, the Prison Service must review all policies which impact on disabled prisoners and eliminate harassment. It must also promote equality of opportunity and positive attitudes towards people with disabilities. Mr Shand can make a complaint about his particular concerns using the internal complaints procedure. If he is dissatisfied with the response he receives, he can write to the independent Prisons and Probation Ombudsman to ask him to review his case.
S Hossain - Briefing & Casework Unit
PAUL WATKINS - HMP CHANNINGS WOOD I refere to the contribution from Eamonn Anderson in your October issue (Assumption and Speculation), in which he argues that the ‘zero tolerance’ policy adopted by the probation service is to protect its image. It is great to see that I am not the only person who thinks they need to justify their decisions when they recall someone back to prison for non-criminal offences. It seems they can write whatever they like about someone and never get reprimanded over the lies they write. I myself have been recalled twice for non-criminal offences.
Mailbag
If you would like to contribute to Mailbag, please send your letters to ‘Mailbag’, Inside Time, PO Box 251, Hedge End, Hampshire SO30 4XJ.
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
Probation officers are a law unto themselves
..................................................... LIAM BLACKMORE - HMP DARTMOOR … I’m 24 years old, have been in prison nine times, and basically have been a rogue since as far back as I can remember. Becoming bored of prison life, and the majority of the company I keep, I’ve created myself an opportunity. I’ve been in touch with an extreme cleaning company
Now the author of the report has been made my offender manager during my sentence. I have tried to get this situation changed but with no success. I put in for HDC three times and needless to say had all the addresses deemed ‘unsuitable’. I am afraid to rock the boat further for fear of when I get out at Christmas, this individual will dream something up to have me put back inside on recall. Doubtless there must be many more just like me; frightened to rock the boat for fear of reprisals.
JOHN BARNETT - HMP WYMOTT …. Can I congratulate Eamonn Anderson for the excellent article relating to the probation service’s powers of recall, and well done Inside Time for publishing it! I have long advocated that the recall system, whereby probation officers have the power of recall, is wide open to abuse.
Ask probation to help you with getting accommodation and they will say ‘we don’t do that’. But it states in the Licence that you must reside at an address approved by your supervising officer! The other point they seem to delight in writing on recall papers is to be ‘well behaved’. So who decides what well behaved is?
Here we go round in circles again!
left the Judge no option but to impose a custodial sentence, and I got 18 months.
.....................................................
Probation officers believe they are a law unto themselves. A judge has already been quoted as saying that probation abuses their power to recall a person back to prison. It would appear they would rather recall them than help them with their problems.
I challenge the head of Probation/NOMS to respond on recalls and questions over the conduct of their officers around the UK. They would probably respond by saying: ‘If you wish to make a complaint about Probation then you must write to the Senior Probation officer and if you are still not happy, contact the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman’.
7
based in South East London. Being a fullyfledged Welshman, I’m having a difficult time trying to obtain fixed accommodation in the London area prior to my release. Although I’ve been offered a job with pay of £20,000 per year, probation are unwilling to allow me to switch unless I’ve got fixed accommodation ready prior to my release date. This is ludicrous! Aren’t probation meant to be the ones helping and guiding prisoners into employment and stable accommodation upon release? Surely they must be able to help in some way or another – even the prisons are useless in the housing department, only dealing with people in local areas and leaving the rest of us to fend for ourselves. The system in which we find ourselves is shambolic. If anyone from the London SE27 postcode and
SCOTTISH PRISONERS
surrounding area knows of affordable accommodation or has any ideas which could help, please feel free to get in contact - advice would also be gratefully received. Write to: Liam Blackmore PJ6963, HMP Dartmoor, Princetown, Yelverton, Devon PL20 6RR.
..................................................... PETER PUTTERILL - HMP STOCKEN … With regard to various articles featured in Inside Time during the past four months about pre-sentence reports and probation as a whole, I would not trust them as far as I could spit! My barrister said probation had spared no horses in condemning me. He also said he had never in his entire life seen a more hostile and prejudicial report, but more seriously it contained no recommendations or suggestions for any community penalty, which
Probation officers need to be made accountable. One way to do this is to challenge the recall. Many of the recall dossiers I have seen quote Rule 5 (vi) of the Licence conditions as having been contravened. Rule 5 (vi) states … ‘should be well behaved and not do anything which could undermine the purpose of your supervision, nor commit any offence’. If you have been recalled quoting this Rule as the reason, you have the power to challenge this. In 2000, the European Court of Human Rights declared in the case of Hashman and Harrup v UK that this wording was inadequate and not precise, and was therefore in contravention of the rule of law in that it was not clear or precise. To say that a person should be ‘well behaved’ was not precise in that a person could not know what was considered ‘good behaviour’. Under Article 10 of the Human Rights Act 1998 in which the above case is stated says: ‘well behaved breaches Article 10 in that it had not been defined with precision, it was not clear to the applicants what they had to refrain from in the future’.
PROBLEMS WITH THE PRISON? YOU NEED
The Johnson Partnership Judicial Review Parole Board Life Tribunals Security Category Independent Urine Tests Disciplinary Proceedings European Convention on Human Rights Slopping Out Recall to Custody Sheriff and High Court Trials Appeals (including Backdating) Prison & Young Offenders Institutions (Scotland) Rules 1994 • Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission • We can also visit prisoners in England & Wales
SCOTTISH
LEGAL AID
Contact: Fraser Currie Robertson & Ross 7 Causeyside Street, Paisley PA1 1UW Tel
0141 887 7971
E-mail
[email protected]
Specialist Prison law and Criminal Defence Solicitors
Licence Recall
Categorization
Adjudications
Transfers
Lifer Panels
HDC
Parole Applications Immediate advice and assistance from one of the largest criminal law firms in the country, available 24/7. Contact our Prison Law Department on: (0115)941 9141 at any time or write to us at FREEPOST NEA15948,NOTTINGHAM NG1 1BR Regulated by the Solicitors’ Regulation Authority
www.banksy.co.uk
• • • • • • • • • • • •
KEEP FIGHTING FOR
YOUR RIGHTS • Human rights • Parole • Transfer • I.E.P • Re-categorisation • Adjudications • Tariff • Recall • J.R. • Appeals • Prison Law • Medical mistakes 62a The Avenue Southampton SO17 1XS 3-5 South Street, Havant PO9 1BU The DC Centre, Speedwell Street London SE8 4AT
Tel. 023 9248 3322
SPECIALISTS IN PRISON LAW
8
Mailbag
If you would like to contribute to Mailbag, please send your letters to ‘Mailbag’, Inside Time, PO Box 251, Hedge End, Hampshire SO30 4XJ.
Justifying use of batons ................................................................................. GERARD MCGRATH - HMP WOLDS On October 22nd I listened with a mounting sense of incredulity and anger as Colin Moses, (pictured) Chairman of the Prison Officers Association, sought to explain and justify to BBC Radio 4 listeners why staff in Young Offender Institutions should be equipped with batons. Apparently the POA have made representations to the Ministry of Justice that staff in YOIs be allowed to carry and ‘when necessary’ use batons on offenders below the age of 18. As matters stand, POA staff can only fracture the skulls of those over 18 when their interpersonal and conflict management skills fail them. To justify the issue of batons, Mr Moses cited what he described as the increasing number of assaults on his members by young offenders in sundry YOIs. Martin Narey, former Director General of the Prison Service, contradicted the statistical evidence Mr Moses quoted and was decidedly against the use of batons on those who are legally and in fact children. Mr Narey, now Chief Executive of Barnardo’s, also stated that many of those held in YOIs suffer from some form of mental illness/disorder.
I am of an age, and I daresay other readers may also be of an age, that we remember all too vividly the unmitigated violence perpetrated by staff on those children who were sent to Detention Centres and Borstals in years gone by. I venture to suggest that many, such as myself, now labelled ‘recidivists’, experienced the austere, draconian and brutal regimes of Detention Centres in general and certain Borstals. My point is simply that institutionalised state violence did nothing to rehabilitate young offenders in the 60s, 70s and 80s. I do not imply that Mr Moses advocates a return to the use of violence akin to that employed by his colleagues of yesteryear, but I regard it as unacceptable that he wishes to arm his members with batons for use against YOIs in a supposedly more enlightened age. I hasten to add that it is equally unacceptable that staff, however few in number, are assaulted in performing their duties. Perhaps the time that would be spent in training staff as to the ‘appropriate use’ of batons might be better employed in further conflict management skills, enhancing interpersonal relationship skills etc. Mr Moses might well wish to portray his members as ‘professional and skilled’ but the truth is that few prison officers are well schooled in all senses of the term. Managing the volatile YO is self-evidently fraught with difficulties, but resorting to arming staff with batons is no answer and for Mr Moses to ‘spin’ his advocacy of so arming his members as a ‘deterrent’ ill becomes one who holds his position.
A course that works
..............................................................................................................
.....................................................
KENNY SCOTT - HMP WEALSTUN
D MORGAN - HMP HULL
Approximately a year ago, I wrote an article featured in Inside Time divulging the latest information concerning scientific research conducted on the herbal remedies St John’s Wort and Gingko Biloba and their therapeutic benefits, especially in relation to the treatment of mild to medium depression, anxiety, and short term memory and concentration.
I would like to take this opportunity to applaud the prison service for finally getting something right. I have been in and out of prison for the past 15 years, something I’m certainly not proud of, and have done endless courses; ETS, PASRO etc, yet not one has had any appreciable impact on me, until now.
I would like to add at this stage that I have been extremely busy in our prison library consulting numerous books on the subject of vitamins, minerals and supplements, which are crucial and important for good mental health. All of the books I read confirmed that Vitamin B complex and the minerals zinc, calcium and magnesium were crucial for good mental health and in the treatment of mild depression, anxiety, nerves and insomnia. And, lets face it folks, prison is definitely a soul destroying and clinically depressing environment at times, as we all know. Furthermore, the nutritional value contained in the average prison diet is scandalous. So having a daily multi-vitamin at lunchtime wouldn’t do you any harm either. Views expressed in Inside Time are those of the authors and not necessarily representative of those held by Inside Time or New Bridge.
PRISON LAW SPECIALISTS in
mary monson solicitors Serving England & Wales over four decades
..................................................... DAVID FERGUSON - HMP WHITEMOOR As ever, the response to the request for used stamps from prisoners has been exceptional. Currently the Celia Hammond Animal Trust (CHAT featured below) is desperate for funds as they are trying to save as many stray cats as possible from the 2012 Olympic site in London; this despite unnecessary opposition and obstruction from the Olympic Committee. In view of this, please don’t forget to save and send me all your used stamps from the Christmas post. It also helps CHAT if stamps are left on reasonably sized pieces of envelope, as they get paid per kilo. Please keep up the good work - your kind consideration is invaluable.
Here at HMP Hull we are doing a course that might just help us sort ourselves out. The course is scaffolding, which requires a lot of effort and is very demanding, however at the end of it we become fully qualified scaffolders. Prison staff involved in the course are trying to line up job interviews for us upon release and our instructor, John Cole, who runs his own training company, has put a lot of time and effort into making us scaffolders. My point is that we need more courses like this that will help us to get jobs and stay out of jail, not the cognitive thinking courses such as ETS that the Parole Board and Probation think work, because they don’t! Anyway, I would like to thank everyone who is running the scaffolding course because I know that the lads who are on it are enjoying it and they in turn know it is going to make a big difference.
Racial integration ..................................................... SAKIR BHATTI - HMP LEEDS I would like to briefly highlight how racially integrated the staff here at HMP Leeds have become since the tragic death in 2004 of Shahid Aziz (pictured), and how supportive those staff have been. The situation has changed quite considerably this past three years, and we now have Asian and Afro-Caribbean officers as well as numerous staff sharing different faiths; therefore I’d just like to say how appreciated their efforts are, the work they do, and their positive approach towards stamping out the scourge of racism.
Specialists in Serious Crime with a track record of success in:
Parole Reviews Licence Recalls Categorisation Transfers Adjudications HDC
Murder /Attempted Murder Drug Importation & all Drugs Offences Robbery / Armed Robbery Commercial Burglary Blackmail All serious offences
ALL PRISONS IN SOUTH EAST ENGLAND
We are approachable and professional and always fight for our clients. We do the work to get the results
Mackesys Solicitors 207 New Cross Road LONDON SE 14 5UH
Keep those used stamps coming!
Where the young are concerned, a baton in the hands of certain staff does not bear thinking about.
Supplements for mental health
MACKESYS SOLICITORS
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
Contact Jozef Kotrie-Monson Mary Monson Solicitors, 87 Chorley Rd, Manchester M27 4AA
0161 794 0088 (24/7 service)
0207 639 0888
Clients accepted throughout the country
Vi d e o L i n k F a c i l i t i e s Av a i l a b l e
We speak: Po-Polsku, ýesky, Slovensky, ɉo-Ɋɭɫɫɤɢ, Also Guajarati, Urdu, Hindi, Español, Français
‘A convicted prisoner retains all civil rights which have not been taken away expressly, or by necessary implication’ Lord Wilberforce, Raymond v Honey (1983)
Prison Law Specialists Judicial Reviews • Parole Refusals • Mandatory and Automatic Lifer Reviews Discretionary and HMP Lifer Reviews • Tariff Reviews • Recalls Categorization • Extended Sentences • Adjudications
Human Rights and Other Prison Issues Contact: Geoff Rushton, Head of Prison Law for immediate and confidential advice 2 n d F l o o r, B r i d g e S t r e e t C h a m b e r s . 7 2 B r i d g e St re e t , M a n c h e s t e r M 3 2 R J
24 Hours - 0
1 6 1 8 3 3 1 6 0 0 -7
Days
Mailbag
If you would like to contribute to Mailbag, please send your letters to ‘Mailbag’, Inside Time, PO Box 251, Hedge End, Hampshire SO30 4XJ.
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
Political incorrectness ........................................................................ BRIAN HOSIE - HMP GLENOCHIL A wise man once observed that ‘insanity is rare in individuals but in peoples, parties and ages it is the rule’. For those of you who have read Orwell’s anti-Utopian novel ‘Nineteen Eighty Four’ you might recall the unfortunate Parsons, who was dragged into the Ministry of Love for shouting “Down with Big Brother” in his sleep. Parsons’ charge of political unorthodoxy can be likened to contemporary political incorrectness or heresy. This Big Brother is alive and thriving in the UK today and I am evidence of it. Being a lifer, I served twenty-three years and six months and had been released just over eight years. On 16th November 2006, I was in a friend’s house when he asked me to phone
him an ambulance, not for the first time and with the usual outcome - nothing was wrong with him. Having been drinking that day, it seems I became involved in a silly altercation with one of the paramedics, who happened to be English, and as I left my friend’s house a cop car chanced to be passing and the paramedic flagged them down. It seems I had ruffled this English paramedic’s feathers and he, in a tantrum, flagged down the passing patrol car. To be honest, I recall very little of the incident. Two of Glasgow’s ‘finest’ arrived at my door about twenty minutes later and I was arrested. No violence; no dishonesty; no damage to property. I was basically charged with a tarted-up ‘Aggravated Racial Breach of the Peace’. No fiery crosses, nooses or white hoods in evidence. For me to be charged with such nonsense is tantamount to accusing Martin Luther King of being the Imperial Wizard in the Ku Klux Klan, as my credentials as a staunch Unionist are well
9
documented. In the real world, what Scotsman, Irishman or Welshman has not voiced anti-English sentiments, mostly in jest? The same might also be said of the English towards their Celtic brothers and sisters. For a Scotsman to quarrel with the English is as common as my Jack Russell terrier chasing rabbits. Anyway, at court I am given a draconian sentence of a few months because of my record (last conviction thirty years ago). However, the Parole Board decide to rubber-stamp the recommendation of the layman prison warder (lifer liaison officer) that my case be reviewed again at another auto-da-fe in two years time. To add further insult to injury, my house has been repossessed and all my worldly goods thrown into the street or stolen. This is the house I moved into a year after getting out of prison where initially I slept on the floor in a sleeping bag with newspapers covering my windows acting as blinds: all I had built up in seven years is gone, for what, a verbal peccadillo?
Voluntary courses
Additional days
..............................................................................................................
..............................................................................................................
NAME SUPPLIED - HMP LITTLEHEY
J BROUGHAM - HMP HAVERIGG
Is it true that courses in prison are done on a completely voluntary basis? The courses I refer to are the Sex Offenders Treatment Programme and Essential Thinking Skills, better known as SOTP and ETS. If the answer is that these courses are indeed voluntary, why is it that some prisons are allowed to make the completion of the SOTP a condition of parole?
Prior to and including 1998, I received extra days from Governors at different establishments. At HMP Risley in 1999, after a period of good behaviour, I received 50% back and was informed by the Governor that after yet another period of good behaviour I would receive the rest back (6 months).
If I put in an appeal which until heard disallows me from being placed on any of these courses, why is it permitted for a psychologist’s department to say that by appealing against sentence I am ‘refusing to address my offending behaviour’?
I absconded for 8 years, however on returning to prison (same sentence) I have behaved therefore applied for the remaining 50% back; only to be informed that the law has changed and I will not get any more due to already receiving 50%. As it was Governors who awarded the days, not outside adjudicators, surely the remainder of the added days should be fully remitted for consistent good behaviour?
➜ The Prison Service writes:
To take your correspondent’s queries in turn: Accredited Offending Behaviour Programmes are voluntary in the sense that you cannot be forced to undertake them and you have the right to refuse. Of course there are consequences to any decision you take in prison about what you do or don’t do with your time. There is a booklet called “Accredited Offending Behaviour Programmes: A guide to Consent” that you can get from the Treatment Manager or their representative which explains this in more detail. I’d also advise that you talk about your concerns with the Treatment Manager who can help you think through the benefits of doing treatment or not. The Parole Board set the conditions for parole, not the Prison Service. The Parole Board are independent of the Prison Service. The Parole Board has confirmed in correspondence that they do award parole to sexual offenders who haven’t completed SOTP. If someone is appealing against their sentence, but not their conviction, they would normally be suitable for SOTP, unless they are likely to be released in the near future. Treatment staff may therefore need to talk to you about the progress of your appeal and the likely hearing date. Prisoners who are appealing against their conviction are usually not eligible for SOTP because they do not admit the offence for which they were convicted.
Martin Stephens - Head, Policy and Administration, Offending Behaviour Programmes Unit
, PRISON LAW & CRIMINAL APPEAL SOLICIT ORS CRIMINAL LAW AND PRISON LAW SPECIALISTS
EXPERIENCED, FRIENDLY & APPROACHABLE FIRM OF SOLICITORS YOU CAN TRUST TO FIGHT FOR YOUR RIGHTS
W e provide legal protection for Prisoners' Rights
W e can provide you with legal advice, assistance and ef fective representation in the following matters:
,Disciplinary adjudications, MDT'S Unauthorised possessions etc ,Licence Revocation and Recall to Custody (prompt intervention & effective review with the Parole Board) Parole Applications/Appeals
, ,Oral Hearings with the Parole Board (entire process) ,Recall and Adjudications: Advice and Representation ,Re-categorisation and Cat A Reviews ,Tariff Reviews and Minimum term Representations ,Care proceedings ,Contact with Children: (Allocation to Mother and Baby unit) ,Criminal, Magistrate & Crown Court cases/VHCC'S, ,CCRC Cases (assistance with review applications)
➜ The Prison Service writes: PSO 2000 ‘The Prison Discipline Manual - Adjudications’ is clear on this point. Paragraph 8.20 states: ‘For additional days imposed by a Governor or Controller prior to 2 October 2000, and those imposed by an Independent Adjudicator since 7 October 2002, any remission, whether approved on one or over several occasions, should be limited to a maximum of 50% of the additional days imposed for each offence. The remitting Governor or Controller may, in the most exceptional circumstances, remit more than 50%’. Any prisoner who believes his case is exceptional, so that more then 50% should be remitted, should apply to the Governor explaining his reasons. Readers should note that it would not be appropriate to address individual prisoner’s particular complaints and queries through correspondence with Inside Time, as there are established procedures for prisoners to resolve matters otherwise. If Mr Brougham is unhappy about how his request for remission was handled, he can complain through the prison’s internal system. If he remains unhappy with the response he receives, he can ask the independent Prisons and Probation Ombudsman to look into his case. The Ombudsman has unfettered access to Prison Service staff and records and can take an impartial and objective view of Mr Brougham’s treatment.
APPLEBY HOPE & MATTHEWS SOLICITORS
We specialise in:-
• Recall • Parole Applications • Licence Conditions • Criminal Defence • Adjudications • Judicial Reviews • Lifer Panels ALP/DLP • Cat ‘A’ Reviews • Categorisation & Transfers • HDC • Tariff Reviews • Lifer Issues
Contact Miss Kate Procter - Prison Law Adviser
N AT I O N W I D E S E R V I C E
Appleby Hope & Matthews
Write or call Chris Isichei or Cosmas Emeti
Abiloye & Co Solicitors
35 High Street Normanby Middlesbrough Teesside TS6 0LE
21-23 The Broadway, Stratford, London E15 4BQ
01642 440444
0 2 0
8 5 3 4
9 1 4 4
24 Hrs Mobile: 07944 624 607 OR 077 3714 6733
FOR AN IMMEDIATE RESPONSE AND PROFESSIONAL ASSISTANCE
[email protected]
Service throughout the North of England
A LB LAW Professional Specialist Lawyers SENTENCE T OO LONG? WRONGLY CONVICTED? ALB Law are specialists in shortening sentences and securing the release of the wrongly convicted. • Specialist knowledge of the law • • Barrister with 20 years experience • • All aspects of crime • including murder, rape/serious sexual assaults, drug related cases and serious fraud
We are passionate about getting justice, justice being our priority.
24 hours a day 01704 500771 We work to win A L B L AW 21a Hoghton Street Southport PR9 0NS A r t h u r L B l a c k h u r s t - Solicitor Advocate Non Legal Aid Work Only Regulated by the Law Society www.alblaw.co.uk e-mail:
[email protected]
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
Newsround
10
Parole Board: 40 years old Parole was first introduced by the Criminal Justice Act 1967 as part of a package of measures promoting the rehabilitation of prisoners. These reforms were intended, according to the then Home Secretary, Roy Jenkins, ‘to keep out of prison those who need not be there’. In 1975 Roy Jenkins announced more generous criteria for parole and in 1977, for the first time, more than half of the Board’s recommendations led to parole being granted. The constitutional position of the Parole Board continues to involve from an advisory committee concerned with early release to a court making risk assessments about the level of danger an indeterminate prisoner poses, as well as those on licence who have been recalled. Presenting the Parole Board’s Annual Report for the last 12 months, its Chairman Sir Duncan Nichol said: ‘The last 12 months have been turbulent for the Board and the next 12 months promise ever more change as we seek to establish our place in the Ministry of Justice.’
The workload in 2006/07 246
25,436 Cases handled during the year. Up by a third on the previous year.
2,505 Oral hearings up by a third on the previous year.
7,857 Determinate sentence cases considered by paper panels. Up by 4% on the previous year.
Determinate sentence prisoners recalled from parole following an allegation of a further offence. Down from 302 the previous year. This is out of an average of 4,285 such prisoners on parole.
15% Life sentence cases considered by oral hearings where life licence was granted. Down from 23% on the previous year and the lowest rate for 7 years.
97
14,669 Recall cases up by 58% on the previous year.
35.8% DCR cases where parole was granted. Down from 49.4% on the previous year.
Prisoners on life licence recalled following allegations of further offences. This is out of a total of 1,622 life sentence prisoners released on licence.
Source: The Parole Board Annual report 2006-07
Tory call to sell off inner-city prisons Prisons on prime inner-city land should be sold and profits used to build more modern institutions elsewhere, say the Tories. Nick Herbert, the shadow justice secretary, said the sale of Victorian jails could net the government £350m to help build new specialist units. The Tory suggestion is another sign they are trying to seize the political agenda. The moves are likely to be controversial and raise the prospect of planning rows over the dozens of small prisons which would have to be built in communities across Britain.
HENRY HYAMS S
O
L
I
C
I
T
O
R
S
7 South Parade, Leeds. LS1 5QE 0113 2432288
Prison Law Team Categorisation Parole Recall Adjudications Appeals/CCRC Lifers Judicial Review Contact: K Cowans, R Seal or K Barrow
Cameron tackles rape convictions Tory leader David Cameron has unveiled a series of measures to tackle Britain’s poor record for rape convictions. Just one in 20 cases reported to the police results in a guilty verdict down from one in three in 1977 - according to research commissioned by the Conservatives. That compares with 10 out of 20 in Italy and 12 out of 20 in Ireland. Cameron told the Conservative Women’s Organisation conference that a Tory government would ensure proper funding for rape crisis centres, place more emphasis on sexual consent during sex education lessens in schools and review the sentences given to convicted rapists. Critics have warned, however, that a desire to drive up conviction rates could lead to miscarriages of justice. On the same day David Cameron announced his initiative, Gemma Gregory was given a 12-month suspended jail sentence for perjury by a judge in Plymouth after she was found guilty of accusing eight innocent men of rape. Dr Mohamed El Sharkawy, a Muslim member of the Prison Service Chaplaincy at HMP The Mount, pictured with Attorney General Baroness Scotland after scooping Britain’s top justice award for his work to bring down re-offending. Dr El Sharkawy was awarded the Justice Awards Shield 2007 for a course he devised at The Mount which encourages offenders to accept the damage done to victims of their crimes, and to work towards reconciliation with their own families. The Justice Shield recognises the most outstanding contribution to justice in England and Wales by Criminal Justice System staff or volunteers - from police to Youth Offending Teams to victim and witness support organisations.
Tackling resettlement needs Older prisoners at HMP Stafford are set to benefit from a joint project between the prison and national charity Age Concern, which will provide a range of activities for mature prisoners and help address their resettlement needs.An agreement was signed in August, which will involve Age Concern workers coming into the prison to run a range of activities for over-50s, such as independent living skills; an exercise programme; creative writing workshops; a horticulture group and a book club. A part-time overall project coordinator has been recruited who started in November. The idea to team up with Age Concern is the brainchild of Stafford’s Principal Officer Brian Bell, who works on the VPU. Brian said: “A lot of people get depressed in prison because they’re elderly and feel isolated. This project will help them to work in a group with others of a similar age. At the last count, Brian said, around 10% of prisoners at Stafford were aged over-60 (71 out of a population of 680).
Stephensons Crime - Special Cases Department We have dedicated and specialised prison law and appeal teams who can assist with a variety of issues including: • Indeterminate / Life Sentence issues • Lifer, ESP & IPP Panels • Recalls & Oral Hearings • Adjudications (North West region) • Parole Representations • Extensive Judicial Review experience • Criminal Cases Review Commission • Appeals against Conviction & Sentence Initial enquiries to Mike Pemberton 10-14 Library Street Wigan WN1 1NN 01942 777777 www.stephensons.co.uk Members of Criminal Appeal Lawyers Association Manchester Prison Law Practitioner Group
Stephensons legal services the way you want them
Newsround
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
11
Longest serving prisoner dies
Queen’s speech (an extract)
Britain’s longest serving prisoner died on 19 November after spending 55 years in jail for murdering three young girls. John Straffen died in the healthcare centre of Frankland top-security prison where he had been detained for several weeks because of ill health. Straffen, 77, is believed to have died of natural causes. Police visited the jail after his death and are satisfied that there were no suspicious circumstances.
“My Lords and Members of the House of Commons. Legislation to reform the Criminal Justice System will continue to be taken forward, with the aim of protecting the public and reducing re-offending. My Government will produce a draft Bill on citizenship. My Government will seek a consensus on changes to the law on terrorism so that the police and other agencies have the powers they need to protect the public, whilst preserving essential rights and liberties. …I pray that the blessing of Almighty God may rest upon your counsels.”
What Her Majesty wanted to say… ‘My Government has already produced 24 Criminal Justice Bills and 3,400 new offences in 10 years - equivalent to making two things illegal every day that Parliament has sat since 1997. This is an extraordinary record of legislative incontinence.’
In October 1951 he was charged with the murders of two girls but was judged unfit to plead. He was sent to Broadmoor top-security mental hospital in the same month. Six months later he escaped for four hours while on cleaning duties but in that time Linda Bowyer, 5, disappeared while riding her bicycle. Her body was discovered in a nearby wood - she had been strangled. He denied the murder but was found guilty and sentenced to death. Although the sentence meant he would hang, Straffen avoided the gallows. Sir David Maxwell-Fyfe, then Home Secretary, commuted the sentence to life imprisonment because Straffen was assessed to have a mental age of 10.
Bribe doubled The Government has almost doubled to £1,500 the ‘bribe’ offered to foreign national prisoners to persuade them to return home and ease prison overcrowding. Prisoners from outside the European Economic Area will be able to apply for help with education, training, housing and resettlement of up to £1,500 if they apply by December and are out of Britain by January 2008. The improved package of help is being offered as the Government attempts to meet a target of removing 4,000 foreign prisoners by the end of the year. Ministers were forced to offer the initial incentive package as a way to create urgently needed spaces in jails. It was also hoped that foreign prisoners who must consent to serve sentences in their home countries would be persuaded to return if offered a resettlement deal. TIMESONLINE said their website had been swamped by members of the public who were appalled by the news. John Blackley, Austin, Texas wrote ... ‘Come to the USA where I live and commit a crime. I guarantee you will not be offered a bribe to go home. You will be banged up until your plane's ready to leave. Don't have a country that's willing to take you? No problem, you'll stay locked up until that little problem's resolved - however long that takes. But then the USA didn't sign up for the Human (Criminals) Rights Act’.
FACING A CONFISCATION ORDER? We have provided expert reports and advisory services for 17 years, during which period we have given our expert opinion on evidence concerning the financial aspects of criminal activities, including: ZDrugs Trafficking Z False Accounting ZMortgage Fraud Z Money Laundering ZTax Evasion Z Benefit Fraud
Legal Aid funding is usually a v a i l a b l e v i a y o u r s o l i c i t o r. For friendly and expert advice contact: Clive Adkins, Claire Edwards or Jo Dowdy
Kilby Fox Forensics
4 Pavillion Drive N IIFA 600 Pavillion Court Court Northampton Northampton NN4 7SL 01604 662670
[email protected]
PPG
TV presenter Jon Snow (left) and St Giles Trust staff members Dwayne Romain, Colin Lambert, Wendy Akoue-Rowley, Dave Jolie, Clive McDonald and Chief Executive Rob Owen at the prestigious Andy Ludlow Awards where ex-offender charity St Giles Trust won for the second time in three years - making it the first charity to have scooped the £10,000 award twice. The award is for its ‘Straight to Work’ project, set up in May 2006, which employs ex-offenders to provide a ‘meet at the gates’ service for newly-released prisoners to help them with housing and resettlement support. Support offered includes escorting ex-prisoners to pre-arranged housing, helping them with benefits, and also help with more general resettlement issues such as employment, training and re-establishing contact with family. Chief Executive Rob Owen told Inside Time: "Straight to Work has had a huge impact on the lives of both the clients it has helped and the ex-offenders who work on the project. “Coming out of prison is a crucial time and if basics such as somewhere to live and an income aren't in place, the risk of re-offending is very high. By employing people with direct experience of these issues to provide intensive support to others, we can offer a high quality service which really helps people resettle and provides stable employment for ex-offenders."
Startup
A candidate making his presentation to the Startup judging panel in the chapel at HMP Ford.
Startup, a charity whose purpose is to provide support to the many prisoners who leave prison determined to set up in business to support themselves and their families, is expanding fast. From initially working in the south east, projects are now springing up at an exciting rate in prisons throughout the south and southwest and in the midlands. Projects in women’s prisons is the latest extension to the service.
With Government figures showing that re-offending costs our economy £11 billion per year, and with more than 2 in 3 released prisoners back in prison within 2 years, there is clearly a need for something different. Startup support takes the form of advice, grants and, most importantly, mentoring. More than 250 ex-offenders have been advised over the last two years and there are over 60 successful supported businesses up and running. They are currently on target for this to reach 150 by the end of 2008 and 350 in 2009. Inside Time will be following the success of Startup and regularly reporting on the progress.
Business Adviser for Ex-offenders Startuponline
criminal law
Our name says it all No conveyancing, no divorce just Criminal & Prison Law Contact Lee Gurd or one of his team now for immediate help and advice PPG C r i m i n a l L a w Suite 2, Rushmoor Business Centre Kingsmead Farnborough Hants tel: 01252 362626 e mail :
[email protected]
Supporting Enterprise
We wish to recruit an additional Business Adviser. He or she will be based in our office in Petersfield but will visit male and female prisoners, initially in prison. They will support them in developing their business plans prior to their presenting their ideas at a Startup Prisoner Entrepreneurship day. This is an exciting and worthwhile position for someone with business analysis skills who has the energy, sensitivity and communication skills to help our prospective clients develop effective and viable business plans. Strong IT competence is essential. Initially he or she will work mainly in the South East and South West. We are an equal opportunities employer. The salary offered is circa. £25,000. The position is funded for 3 years but we hope to extend this. For more information please visit our Website: startuponline.org.uk In the first place please send details of your qualifications for the job to Mari Simpson, at Startup,Cedar Court, 5 College Street, Petersfield, Hampshire, GU31 4AE Tel: 01730 268 300 Startuponline is a Company Limited by Guarantee. Registered Charity No 1115952
12
Newsround
☺ NEWS IN BRIEF
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
Terrorists in British jails
Prisoners’ Families & Friends Service Celebrate 40 years
The number of terrorist prisoners held in jails in England and Wales is estimated to rise more than tenfold in the next nine years. An internal Whitehall document says the number of terrorist prisoners is projected to soar to 1,600 by 2016-17.
In its campaign to improve standards in hygiene, the NHS introduce a new card swipe system for patients.
Report by John Roberts Over a hundred people gathered in a smart conference room in Southwark, south London, to celebrate and mark the 40th anniversary of the Prisoners’ Families & Friends Service (PFFS). The organisation, originally called Prisoners’ Wives Service, was founded back in 1967 when the prison population had just hit the dizzy heights of 35,000.
The document, based on figures and analysis provided by a number of Whitehall departments and agencies, said that 1,300 of the 1,600 would be classed as maximum security Category A prisoners. Currently there are 131 terrorist prisoners in jails in England and Wales, of which 113 are classified as Category A.
The way the organisation has developed since its humble beginnings is a credit to all those who have worked so hard both in the early days and in more recent times. They still offer invaluable befriending and support to the wives of prisoners but have now extended this to include all the family members of a prisoner. And, whilst they are still based in London with a team of volunteers providing home visits and two (Southwark and Hackney) ‘drop in’ centres, they now also offer a telephone (Freephone) support on a national basis – ‘the first of its kind’ they proudly told Inside Time.
As George Bush imposes sanctions on Iran, its President continues to deny that his country posses any nuclear weapons. Phil Wheatley, Director-General of the Prison Service, told the Home Affairs Select Committee that if there were a very large increase that took the service beyond its Category A capacity, additional accommodation would be found. “We would have to make more Category A prisons or convert existing prisons, giving them additional security”, he said.
At Her Majesty’s 60th Wedding Anniversary the Archbishop of Canterbury said the Royal family were firm believers in marriage … most of them had done it twice …
There are eight high security jails in England and Wales, with convicted terrorists likely to be held in five of them and terror suspects mainly in Belmarsh in London.
Another innovative aspect to the range of services offered was the Court Service. This involves one or two PFFS volunteers in each of the London courts keeping a watchful eye on the families who are there at the hearings. When they spot somebody who is likely to need support, they make themselves known to them. Such a proactive method of working and surely far more effective than just a poster on the wall which very few would notice during such stressful times. There was a great deal of talk about the various holidays and trips that PFFS had organised, giving holidays and breaks to the families of many prisoners who, without their help, would just not have been able to get away from their day to day struggles. Aaron, currently finishing his sentence at HMP Latchmere House, was allowed to join his family at the centre for the celebrations and personally thanked everyone for their help. His daughter, Ebony, also said how much it had meant to her family. Both are pictured above. Prisoners’ Families and Friends Service 20 Trinity Street London SE1 1DB.Tel 020 7403 4091 Freephone Helpline 0808 808 3444 www.prisonersfamiliesandfriends.org.uk
Police complaints on the increase
One in ten men think that Chlamydia is a flower, Foreign Secretary David Miliband thinks it’s a country in the Middle East.
Mohammed Abulkahar, who was shot in the chest by police during a raid on his home in Forest Gate London in 2006, told the Home Affairs Select Committee that he had received no warning from the police when they stormed into his house. He only knew that they were police officers when he arrived at hospital. Mr Abulkahar told the Committee that neither he nor his brother had received, to this day, an apology from the police following the misjudged raid.
Almost half of the complaints against police are allegations of rudeness or neglect, according to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC). The annual figures showed a 10% increase in allegations against forces in England and Wales. Overall, the watchdog recorded 28,998 cases during 2006-07, 2,700 up on the previous year. Complaints have almost doubled since the IPCC began work in 2004, but that rise is largely down to legislative changes which have made it easier for more people to complain about a wider range of issues. The IPCC said almost half of all complaints were resolved locally by the force but 30% were sent on for further investigation. Of those formally investigated, nearly nine out of 10 were found to be unsubstantiated and one in ten substantiated - a slight improvement on the previous year.
Specialist Prison Law Advice and Representation... • Prison Discipline • Parole Hearings • Adjudications • Lifer Panels • Drug Issues • Recalls to Prison • Categorisation • Judicial Review • Prisoners’ Rights
EXPERTISE IN PRISONERS’ IMMIGRATION ISSUES... • Deportation • Asylum
• Family Life • Immigration Detention
PRISONER FUNDER D I R E C TO RY 2 0 0 8 The latest issue of this directory will be available in prison libraries from mid December 2007. Three copies are being sent to the librarian in all of the prisons in England and Wales with the request that it be made available as a reference book to any prisoner who wishes to see it.
0208 772 4901
If you are looking for additional funding support for purposes connected with your resettlement contact your librarian.
07930 750125
P r o d u c e d b y T h e H a r d m a n Tr u s t
RAJA & CO SOLICITORS 10 Upper Tooting Road Tooting Bec London SW17 7PG
Newsround
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
Serbia’s secret shame
13
Cruel and Unusual Punishment? On Sept. 27, the U.S. Supreme Court stopped a Texas execution two days after agreeing to hear arguments about whether lethal injection falls under the Constitution's ban on cruel and unusual punishment. The toxic serum is meant to be pain-free, but there is some doubt about the drug's numbing anaesthetic. While the court hears the case, 12 of the 37 states that use lethal injection have halted executions so far.
Shocking images of distress, malnourishment and extreme neglect of disabled inmates in Serbia’s institutions have been dismissed by that country’s prime minister as ‘dark propaganda’.
EXECUTIONS BY LETHAL INJECTION State-by-state breakdown of the 929 executions by lethal injection since 1976
An investigation by the charity Mental Disability Rights International documents the callous treatment of some 17,000 patients in Serbian institutions. It photographed children and adults tied down in their beds. It’s claimed some were confined to a single crib for YEARS at a time. Children who’ve spent years confined to little beds appear to simply stop growing. The journalists were granted unfettered access. But when they visited, the children had been unfettered too. The charity claims that just six hours later, they’d been tied up again. Understaffing is mostly to blame for all this; there are far too few nurses and too many disabled people to care for, so they’re just in storage, warehoused, forgotten. “It is not acceptable to write off the population of those institutions; to leave the 15-17,000 people behind, to allow inhuman and degrading treatment and torture to go on. It must be stopped. These are fundamental obligations of international law and immediate action is needed”, said Eric Rosenthal, Director, Mental Disability Rights International.
Total executions by year
80 60 40
Other methods
20
There is a stigma attached to disability in Eastern Europe, particularly mental illness. And Serbia, it seems, is no exception. This is its secret shame.
Longford Lecture
100
Lethal injection has become the preferred method of execution
2007 (through Sept. 25) 1 Other methods 41 Lethal injections
0 1976
‘80
‘85
‘90
‘95
2000
‘05
Source: Death Penalty Information Centre
President McAleese of Ireland, pictured addressing a packed audience at the 2007 Longford Lecture 'Changing History', paid tribute to the memory of Lord Longford ‘who earned the enduring affection of the plain people of Ireland for they recognised in him a greatness of heart for Ireland and a greatness of heart for humanity’.
Photo courtesy of The Independent
She added: “Not only did Lord Longford and I share a lifelong interest in prisoners but, as a founding member over twenty-five years ago of the Irish Commission for Prisoners Overseas, I am particularly delighted that Prisoners Abroad has won this year's Longford Prize. “Six years on from his death, we have all been pleasantly surprised to see how much momentum and traction the peace process has gathered, especially since the return of devolved government earlier this year. These are things that would have brought relief and pride to the man in whose name we are gathered; for he was a man of deep faith in the capacity of the human person to change for the better; he was a man who believed in the transcendent power of forgiveness and was not in the least embarrassed to contemplate a world energised and refreshed by the healing power of love or to be demonised as naïve for such a belief. “The man of humour, the man whose ego could take any amount of hammering without a loss of humanity, compassion or grace; the man comfortable in his own wisdom and being”. see Month by Month page 16
SOLICITOR NOTICE BOARD
PHYSICAL AND SEXUAL ABUSE AT HMP MANCHESTER 1980 - 2000 We act for two inmates who were physically and sexually abused during this time span by an officer of a particular church army captain the name of which we have withheld for obvious reasons. If you have any information or have suffered any for of abuse at this establishment during this period please contact: Geoff Rushton Cunninghams Solicitors 2nd Floor Bridge Street Chambers 72 Bridge Street Manchester M3 2RJ 0161 833 1600 CONFIDENTIALITY ASSURED
LB & CO. SOLICITORS
KAIM TODNER LLP
Specialists in Criminal Defence and Prison Law
SOLICITORS Kaim Todner LLP is one of the largest criminal firms in England. We have extensive experience and knowledge in the field of Criminal and Prison Law and have a reputation for aggressive and pro-active defence.
We can assist you on all aspects of Prison Law including:
• Adjudication • Licence Recall • Parole • Categorization • Transfer • HDC • Appeals • Judicial Review • plus all Immigration matters, including Deportation For Immediate assistance please contact Mr Tunde Olaleye
LB & Co. Solicitors 9 1 A W h i t e c h a p e l H i g h St r e e t London E1 7RA Te l : 0 2 0 7 6 5 5 4 9 4 1 Fax: 020 7655 4942
07939 528 691 (emergency)
WE CAN PROVIDE LEGAL REPRESENTATION AT PAROLE HEARINGS AND BEFORE THE INDEPENDENT ADJUDICATOR
Contact: Ben Conroy or Chris Cuddihee on 0
WE SPECIALISE IN:
X X X X X X
Prisoners Rights Public Law & Judicial Review Criminal Defence Serious Fraud Mental Health Law Actions against the Police
20 7708 0700 Herbert Morrison House 195 Walworth Road London SE17 1RW e:
[email protected] www.kaimtodner.com
Newsround
14
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
Putting on pounds ‘doubles prostate cancer death risk’
The new rules for defeating cancer Being even slightly overweight can increase the risk of a range of common cancers including breast, bowel and pancreatic, a landmark study has found.
The risk of dying from prostate cancer is doubled if the sufferer is carrying too much weight, according to research.
The largest review of links between diet and cancer, incorporating more than 7,000 studies, concludes that there is convincing evidence that excess body fat can cause at least six different types of the disease. The researchers give warning that everyone should be at the lower end of the healthy weight range. Their recommendations include avoiding processed meats such as ham, bacon, salami or any other meat preserved by smoking curing or salting; only consuming small amounts of red meat; moderate consumption of alcohol; and avoiding junk food and sweet drinks.
The 10 commandments
Do • Stay lean • Exercise daily • Eat greens, grains, legumes • Breast-feed your baby
Don’t • Eat bacon, ham, processed meat • Eat much red meat • Eat fast foods • Eat much salt • Drink sweet drinks • Drink much alcohol The World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) report emphasises the benefits of exercise, for its direct effects on some cancers, and because it helps to prevent becoming overweight or obese. It made ten recommendations, which do not, except in one case, conflict with advice given for the avoidance of other common causes of death, such as heart disease.
Excess weight blamed for one in 20 cases of cancer in women Women who are overweight are at a greater risk of contracting a wide range of cancers, a study has shown. The authors calculate that 6,000 cancers a year – 5 per cent of all cancers in women – can be attributed to being overweight or obese. This is the largest study of the cancer risk for women, funded by Cancer Research UK. It involved 1.2 million women who were aged between 50 and 64 when they joined the study between 1996 and 2001, and who were monitored for an average of more than five years. The study does not address reasons for the link, but a strong possibility is that extra fat generates greater quantities of the hormones that feed cancer. Excess body fat is not simply padding but active tissue producing hormones, so someone who has more of it runs a higher risk of cancer than a person of normal weight. In addition, overweight people are less likely to have healthy lifestyles. A healthy diet and regular exercise are acknowledged as factors that lower the risk of all cancers.
Doctors compared the chances of survival of 788 patients against their body mass index – the measure of obesity that takes into account weight and height. Within five years of diagnosis, the prostate cancer death rate for men with a normal BMI - 25 or under - was less than 7 per cent against 13 per cent for men with a BMI over 25. Cancer campaigners said the findings were of ‘great concern’ in the light of the growing obesity crisis. Every year nearly 35,000 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer in Britain and 10,000 men die from it. It is the most common cancer diagnosed in men, with at least one person dying from the disease every hour. Many more are thought to have the disease without realising it. Overall, men who were moderately fat – with a BMI of between 25 and 30 – were 1.5 times more likely to die from their cancer than those with a ‘normal’ BMI of 25. Obese men, those with a BMI higher than 30, were 1.6 times more likely to die from their disease.
250,000
Too fat to work
claim £600m in benefits for stress-related illness
Almost two thousand people who are too fat to work have been paid a total of £4.4 million in benefit.
50,000 alcoholics shared £85m not to work
Other payments went to fifty sufferers of acne and ten incapacitated by leprosy.
8,100 stayed off work suffering from dizziness and giddiness
Billions of pounds is being paid in benefits to people claiming to be unable to work because they suffer from depression, stress, fatigue and unknown or unspecified diseases. The full list of ailments of the 2.7 million people claiming £7.4 billion in incapacity benefits, obtained by using Freedom of Information laws, will fuel suspicion that it is being used to keep them off the official jobless total. It will also fuel the debate over whether British workers could have been hired for more of the one million new jobs taken by migrants since 1997.
HOWARDS SOLICITORS LIMITED
2,000 claim £4.4m because they are too obese to work
£7.4bn Is in total shared among
SEB Solicitors Prison Law Specialist
Criminal Law Specialist s • Adjudication and Prison Discipline • • Paroles • • Lifer Panels • • Categorisations • • Transfers • • Licence Recall • • Reviews • • Appeals Against Conviction & Sentence • • Confiscation & Proceeds of Crime Act Hearings • • Criminal Case and Review Commission •
Nationwide Coverage All Types of Criminal Cases Undertaken
Call or Write Crime Team Specialists In House Higher Court Advocates
0161 872 9999 Howards Solicitors Empress Business Centre, 380 Chester Road, Manchester M16 9EA
2.7m
Source: Department of Work and Pensions
Has your right been ignored, Act now! We are a specialist Criminal and Prison Law practice based in East London. We are willing to fight the Prison Service system for you and can provide effective advice and assistance in the following areas:
Licences recalls -Sentence Calculation Recategorisation & allocation HDC conditions & breaches Lifer reviews - Tariff reduction Parole - Criminal appeals and CCRC Adjudications - Human rights issues MDT and Independent urine tests Judicial reviews Criminal Defence - Appeal and CCRC Transfer to other prisons
Please contact Ms Shewli Begum or Mr Tuoyo Eruwa at SEB Solicitors, 328b Bethnal Green Road, London E2 OAG 0207 729 9042 or 0207 033 9697 We shall be pleased to visit you as soon as we hear from you
INSIDE? YOU NEED A FRIEND ON THE OUTSIDE... At Keith Park Solicitors we have many years experience representing our clients, not only before sentencing but also once they are in custody. There are many ways we can help you with advice and representation once you are on the ‘inside’. Our team of Legal experts will be your friends on the outside. We specialise in: OUTSIDE ADJUDICATIONS. Have you committed an offence whilst in custody? We can provide representation for you in front of the adjudicator. PAROLE BOARD HEARINGS. We can supply written representations and attending oral hearings. CATEGORISATION. If you want us to assist by way of written representations – we can help.
PRISON RECALL. Have you been recalled and do you think the decision is justified? We can prepare written submissions and appear on your behalf before the parole board. PRISON COMPLAINTS AND REFERRALS TO THE PRISON OMBUDSMAN. If you feel you are treated badly in prison, you can make a complaint. We can help you through the procedure.
Call us on freephone: 0800 374388 (24 hours).
CRIMINAL DEFENCE LAWYERS
Keith Park Solicitors Claughton House, 39 Barrow Street, St Helens WA 10 1RX E:
[email protected]
Newsround
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
☺ NEWS IN BRIEF
According to legend anyone who looks at the unmasked face of King Tutankhamen will perish. So here it is again.
The world's 12 weirdest cases 1. In 2004, Timothy Dumouchel, from Fond du Lac, Wisconsin sued a television company for making his wife fat and transforming his children into “lazy channel surfers”. He said: “I believe the reason I smoke and drink every day and my wife is overweight is because we watched the TV everyday for the last four years”. The case kept at least two of America’s then 1,058,662 lawyers occupied for a while, but did not go to the Supreme Court. 2. In 2005, a Brazilian woman sued her partner for failing to give her orgasms. The 31-year old woman from Jundiai asserted in her case that her 38-year old partner routinely ended sexual intercourse after he reached an orgasm. After a promising start the action ended in something of an anticlimax for the claimant when her case was rejected.
A disgruntled Peter Crouch shows his disappointment at England’s exit out of the Euro-2008 competition.
None of the 9,000 illegal workers in Britain are now working in sensitive Whitehall locations, said a spokesman for the Houses of Parliament.
After the floods recede near her home there are tell-tale signs that Heather Mills may have gone on a long walk to escape the media.
3. In 2004, a German lawyer, Dr Juergen Graefe, acted for an elderly pensioner from St Augustin, near Bonn, who was sent a tax demand for €287 million, even though the woman’s income was only €17,000. Dr Graefe fixed the problem with one standard letter to the authorities, but as German law entitles him to calculate his fee based on the amount of the reduction he obtained, his fee came to €440,234 (£308,000). It will be met by the state. There is no evidence that he pushed his luck by writing a thank-you letter. 4. In 1972, at Wakefield Crown Court in Yorkshire, Reginald Sedgwick was prosecuted for stealing Cleckheaton railway station. The defendant, a demolition contractor, was alleged to have destroyed the disused stone building and cleared the site of 24 tons of track with dishonest intentions. He admitted the deed, explained that it was done for an untraced third party, and his lawyer demolished the prosecution’s case, securing an acquittal. 5. In 2005, the Massachusetts Appeals Court was asked to rule on when a sexual technique was dangerous. Early one morning, a man and woman in a long-term relationship were engaged in consensual intercourse. During the passionate event, and, without the man’s consent, the woman suddenly manoeuvred herself in a way that caused him to suffer a penile fracture. Emergency surgery was required. The court ruled that while “reckless” sexual conduct may be actionable, “merely negligent” conduct was not. It dismissed the man’s case.
COMPENSATION FOR VICTIMS OF CHILDHOOD ABUSE We specialise in helping adults who were abused as children in the care system. If you suffered abuse in care and want our team to help you achieve justice call David Greenwood or Michael Thomas confidentially on 0800 542 3586 or write to:-
6. In 2005, Marina Bai, a Russian astrologer, sued NASA for £165 million for “disrupting the balance of the universe”. She claimed that the space agency’s Deep Impact space probe, which was due to hit a comet later that year to harvest material from the explosion, was a “terrorist act”. A Moscow court accepted Russian jurisdiction to hear the claim but it was eventually rejected. 7. In 2007, a court in India was asked to decide whether a vibrating condom is a contraceptive or a sex toy. The condoms contain a batteryoperated device, and, for the avoidance of doubt, are marketed as “Crezendo”. Opponents argue it’s a sex toy and thus unlawful in India, whereas the manufacturer says it’s a contraceptive and promotional of public health. 8. In 2006, a young man from Jiaxing, near Shanghai, found himself in legal trouble after failing to take advice before putting his soul up for sale on an online auction site. The posting was eventually removed by the auctioneer and the seller was told that the advert would be reinstated only if he could produce written permission to sell his soul from “a higher authority”. 9. In 2004, Frank D’Alessandro, a court official in New York, sued the city for serious injuries that he sustained when a toilet he was sitting on exploded leaving him in a pile of porcelain. He claimed $5 million compensation. Reflecting on the demanding physical therapy in which he must now engage every morning before work, D’Alessandro declared: “It’s a pain in the ass to do all this stuff.” 10. A Las Vegas law prohibiting strippers from fondling customers during lap dances was ruled by the Nevada Supreme Court in 2006 to be valid. The issue was whether the local law was unconstitutionally vague and
therefore unenforceable. The law states that “no attendant or server shall fondle or caress any patron” with intent to arouse him. Lawyers discussed at length whether grinding (of dancers’ bottoms into men’s laps) amounted to a fondle or caress, and whether the brushing of breast into patrons’ faces was prohibited conduct. The local law was declared valid because the court thought enforcers would be able to know a fondle or caress if they saw one. 11. In 1964, the Exchequer Court of Canada was asked to decide whether the expenses of running a “call girl” business in Vancouver were deductible from gross income for the purposes of income tax. The madam and seven call girls were all convicted and imprisoned. And then taxed. Claims for tax deductions in respect of the ordinary parts of the business, such as phone bills, were allowed. Other types of expenses were disallowed because the business couldn’t prove them with receipts, including $2000 for liquor for local officials and $1000 paid to "certain men possessed of physical strength and some guile, which they exercised when set to extricate a girl from difficulties". 12. In a notorious case heard by Baron Huddleston in November 1884, Captain Thomas Dudley and Edwin Stephens were prosecuted for the murder of a cabin boy, Richard Parker. When the yacht they were sailing from Southampton to Sydney capsized, they found themselves on a dinghy 1,600 miles from shore. After 20 days adrift, they killed Parker, eating his liver and drinking his blood to survive. They were rescued four days later by a German vessel and were convicted of murder at Exeter Assizes, although their death sentences were later commuted to six months imprisonment without hard labour. Their defence of “necessity” was rejected.
OLLIERS S O LI C ITO R S Parole We will advise you throughout the process and will inform you if the decision is challengeable by way of judicial review
Lifers Representation for discretionary and mandatory lifers Automatic Life sentence and I.P.P. inmates and Tariff Review
Recatagorisation Video Link faciliti es now Licence Conditions availab le Confused? We will advise you
Cat A to Cat D
Recalls Prompt representation for Determinate Sentence and Life Sentence Recalls.
North W est Adjudications
Advice given on all aspects of Prison Law Contact Jeremy Pinson: Olliers Solicitors Castlefield Chambers 11 Duke S treet Manchester M3 4NF
0 1 6 1 T h e G r a i n s t o r e , Wo o l pa c k s Ya r d , Wa k e f i e l d W F 1 2 S G
15
8 3 4
Criminal Defence Service
1 5 1 5
FED UP WITH THE SYSTEM? WE’LL FIGHT IT FOR YOU!
16
Diary
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
Month by Month Rachel Billington
Photo courtesy of The Independent
Martha Blom-Cooper, John Walters (Prisoners Abroad), Marina Cantacuzino (The Forgiveness Project), Mary McAleese (lecturer and President of Ireland), Dr. McAleese, Joe Baden (Open Book), Jason Grant. alternative to the endless cycles of violence and crime which Cantacuzino calls ‘the hallmarks of our time.’ The project has a moving photographic exhibition called The F Word, which travels the country bringing personal images of those who can manage to forgive. It also works with personal stories and workshops in prisons, including High Down, Blantyre House and Grendon Underwood.
Photo courtesy of The Independent
Mary McAleese, President of Ireland, giving the 2007 Longford Lecture. It is always moving for me to go to the annual Longford Lecture, organised by the trust set up in memory of my father, Frank Longford, politician, author and penal reformer. This year the speaker on November 23rd was the President of Ireland, Mary McAleese (see page 13). An audience of six hundred and seventy heard her refer admiringly to my father as an ‘Irish patriot’ before launching into a fascinating analysis of Ireland’s changing history and present positive situation. Preceding the President’s lecture, Jon Snow presented the important Longford Awards. This year the principle winner is Prisoners Abroad, represented on the evening by its Chairman, John Walters, and its director, Pauline Crowe. This is the only charity to support British prisoners
abroad and their families in the UK. It also helps released prisoners returning to the UK, which is more than our government do. At the moment there are over 2,000 men and women held in prisons round the world, many in horrific conditions. Prisoners Abroad is currently working in 70 countries. In some of the prisons inmates have to rent a space if they want to sleep. The Longford Trust also gave awards to two runners-up. The Forgiveness Project was founded four years ago with money from the late Anita Roddick. Its patron is the great Archbishop Tutu. Under its director, Marina Cantacuzino, Forgiveness works to promote conflict resolution and restorative justice as an
Award winning Prison Law, Criminal Law, Family Law, Mental Health and Human Rights Specialists.
Open Book is run by ex-offender Joe Baden. I first met Joe in Wandsworth prison when we were both being interviewed for the Wandsworth radio station. He had with him Jason Grant, also an ex-offender and now on the Open Book scheme. The project offers access to higher education for ex-offenders, ex-drug addicts and alcoholics. Baden works out of an office at Goldsmiths College, which is part of London University, and has so far helped sixty young people to get over their problems, sign up for programmes in subjects such as sociology, psychology, art history, youth and community work, history and politics. One of Baden’s greatest challenges is making sure his students don’t lose confidence and drop out of the scheme. By a nice coincidence, Jason Grant is also a recipient of one of the Longford Trust’s scholarship awards. 'The Longford Awards' judges also decided to make a Lifetime Award to Sir Louis Blom-Cooper QC in recognition of his work over many
We can look again
Firm partner Michael Kennedy is Mental Health lawyer of the Year Highly experienced teams offering friendly and professional service Prompt response to your enquiries. Clear explanation without jargon. Representation throughout Yorkshire and the North of England.
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT TONY QUINLAN ON
01924 882000 Head Office: 19 Cheapside, Wakefield, WF1 2TF. Offices also in Bradford and Leeds
......................................................................
Last month I went along to the Novas Gallery in Camden to view an impressive show of art created by women in prison or ex-offenders. The paintings, posters, drawings, objects and framed poetry were all intensely dramatic and well observed. (Incidentally, I wish some of those women poets would send in work for Inside Time’s poetry page, which is attracting almost entirely men’s poetry.) The show was called Mind, Body and Soul, Girls Behind Bars and was curated by Eve McDougall (pictured).
ERNEST & CO. SOLICITORS Criminal and Prison Law Practice
Switalski’s Solicitors is a growing firm based in the north of England with a large team of legal experts ready to help you. Our dedicated Prison Law Department can help you with Adjudications, Appeals, Categorisation, Lifers, Parole, Recall, Transfers and Representation at Oral Hearings. We also provide family law assistance for inmates and representation at Police interviews within prison.
decades in defence of prisoners, justice and human rights. His award was collected by his daughter, Martha Blom-Cooper.'
We offer nationwide advice and representation in the following areas:
The Criminal Cases Review Commission is the independent public body which investigates possible miscarriages of justice in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. For an information pack and application form, please phone us on 0121 633 1800 or write to Criminal Cases Review Commission, Alpha Tower, Suffolk Street Queensway, Birmingham B1 1TT. www.ccrc.gov.uk
• • • • • • • • • •
Disiplinary Adjudication Licence Revocation and Recall to Custody Lifer Panel Tribunal Parole Applications & Appeal Recall to Custody/ Advice and Representation Categorisation Tariff Review CCR Cases Judicial Reviews & Human Rights applications Immigration Appeals against Removal/Deportation
We also offer advice on Personal Injury matters (Personal Injury cases are on a ‘No-win No-Fee’ basis)
Contact Ernest or Cosmas
Ernest & Co Solicitors 14 Stoke Newington High Street LONDON N16 7PL
TEL: 020 7254 2244 FAX: 020 7254 2212
24/7 EMERGENCY SERVICE 07931 753 559
Comment
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org I talked to Eve at the gallery and later read the book she has written about her story, A Wicked Fist (Wild Goose Publications. The Iona Community.) She has surmounted an exceptionally difficult early life, beginning with time spent in a Scottish prison at the age of fifteen after breaking the window of a baker’s shop and followed by marriage to an abusive husband. Coming south to escape her past, she successfully built a new life. Now she tries to help others who find themselves facing bad times, working since 1999 with the charity Clean Break which runs a London-based arts education and training programme. Eve is also, or perhaps I should say firstly, an artist in her own right and many of the most dramatic paintings and skilful art objects in the show were created by her. I can imagine that she must be an inspiration to many women who feel their days will always be filled with darkness. ......................................................................
Depression attacks for all sorts of reasons. It’s a very sad fact that Christmas is the time when many feel its effects particularly severely. Recently, I came across a clever and original book that analyses the feelings of someone suffering from clinical depression and then suggests ways of coping. It is called I Had a Black Dog – the name that Winston Churchill, no less, gave to his own bouts of depression. In the book, written and illustrated by Matthew Johnstone, himself a sufferer, the
dog has become a real animal and, in a series of cartoon illustrations, Johnstone shows how Black Dog’s presence can destroy a man’s ability to live a normal life, let alone a happy one. The book, although serious in purpose, is also very funny and, finally, uplifting as the Black Dog is controlled and, if not banished altogether, is diminished to an unremarkable little pet on a leash. Stephen Fry, who has his own problem with depression writes, ‘I Had a Black Dog says with wit, insight, economy and complete understanding what other books take 300 pages to say. Brilliant and indispensable.’ It’s certainly going to be one of my Christmas presents.
Payment aside, and of course money is an important incentive, Emrick cited the satisfaction of a job well done and, just as important, ‘an opportunity for reflection.’
I Had a Black Dog by Matthew Johnstone Published by Robinson Publishing. Price £6.99
47810326529864732704827509 YOU’RE NOT JUST A NUMBER! 32687810326529864732704821
Solicitors MY MELDRUM YOUNG
Jonathan King writes ... life. I truly believe in making the most of any situation you find yourself experiencing and, whilst obviously preferring to be free, I discovered numerous terrific benefits from being inside. Many of the nicest inmates were shunned by others - they had indeed committed terrible crimes and often had an intimidating attitude which, I quickly saw, was usually a protective shell for people who had never been treated like human beings.
...................................................................... Fine Cell Work goes from strength to strength, their needlework, cushions, quilts and rugs becoming ever more beautiful and professional. Last week I listened to their director, Katie Emrick, being interviewed on Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour. It was good to hear their work being recognised in the mainstream as well as amongst the lucky elite. Emrick commented, ‘Perfection is not usually what’s expected in prison’, and it is this very high standard of work that makes the company special. Three hundred men and women are now employed, being paid a decent rate for hours that sometimes rise to forty per week. The extraordinary thing is that these top stitchers have no previous experience, so it’s also great credit to their teachers, all volunteers and, on occasions, drawn from among the prisoners themselves.
Experts in Prison Law all over the UK
Here to help you throughout your sentence • Tariff Settings • Parole Refusal
• IPP’s
• Adjudications • Cat A Reviews
• Lifer Reviews
17
Cherishing friendships I loved December when I was inside. Most readers will find this strange as it brings with it increased sadness being separated from loved ones, but since my birthday is on the 6th with Christmas 19 days later, followed by New Year’s Eve, I used to get hundreds of cards which decorated my cell for two months; a glorious sea of colour covering every inch of wall and door and, frequently, ceiling. Many of these came from fellow inmates. I remember one year, when I was editing the HMP Maidstone magazine ‘The Insider’ with my friend Peter Lewis, he got over 200 signatures on a birthday card, the entire population of Thanet wing and many others - the print shop was integrated then and I had developed many friends on other wings. I sent hundreds of cards myself, usually using them as propaganda for my own case and for others unjustly treated. Unable to afford the postage from my prison wages, I got them printed to my design by friends outside and mailed to cabinet ministers, MPs, editors, columnists, governors and other inmates from outside, sending a list of names and addresses to a loyal supporter who manufactured, stamped and posted them. The media and the Prison Service were astonished. Another loophole utilised. I’m working with someone who spent months in prison in Leeds in the 1960s and he was amazed when I told him that my years inside were some of the best of my
They were often unable to read or write, and had built up their bodies to give them physical bulk. They scowled and snarled and snapped. But being locked up with people 24/7 means you get to know the genuine characters. Since my rule was to allow anyone and everyone to chat and ask questions and get into conversations, I found that often these outcasts were decent people with tragic flaws, or victims of bad luck. Having spent most of my life mixing with the media, I decided that the inmates of Her Majesty’s prison estate are often much more moral than journalists. Indeed, I think after nearly 63 years of experience I would list the media, the police and the legal system as containing the least moral people I have ever met. Judges, lawyers, coppers, hacks … very dodgy the lot of them. I’ve seen more hardcore porn on the computer screens of the tabloids (for research purposes only, of course) than anywhere else. I’ve seen bending of evidence and convictions of innocent men and women by corrupt behaviour so often over the past seven years that it has destroyed any faith I once had in the judicial system. Yet lifers who are locked up for dreadful crimes are often interesting, warm, brave, decent and kind in many ways. I never met one totally bad person during my time in Belmarsh, Maidstone and Elmley. Quite a few I didn’t like - that’s natural - but often those who had done the worst things also had splendid talents or characteristics; and could be very entertaining company. So might I suggest that, instead of allowing yourself to get depressed this season because you cannot share it in person with your loved ones, you cherish the friendship or, should I say, fellowship that prison enables? See you in 2008.
• Categorisation • Judicial Reviews • Recalls • Oral Hearings • LIFE SENTENCE APPEALS
Link o e d s Vi ilitie c a F
• CROWN COURT CASES
Special Advice Hotline Service for Adjudication and Parole Issues Call Us Now!!! Contact: David Reynolds - Solicitor MY Solicitors
6 Broad Road Sale Cheshire
Goodwin Stevens Solicitors Serving prisoners in the North of England CRIMINAL DEFENCE SPECIALISTS with a guaranteed speedy response
Just been recalled to prison? Have you been re-categorised? Parole Process beginning? Not happy with your treatment? · Categorisation · Transfers · Parole Reviews · Adjudication · Licence recall · H.D.C. · M.D.T. For friendly, helpful advice contact
M33 2AL
0161 969 6415 OFFICES ALSO IN HERTFORD, ST ALBANS, LUTON, ENFIELD, STEVENAGE & WATFORD
CRIMINAL & PRISON LAW EXPERTS Serving the South East
All aspects of prison law covered Please contact Catherine Bond 16 Mill Street, Maidstone, Kent, ME15 6XT Tel: 01622 678341
[email protected]
Rachael Mounsey - Prison Law Joanne Lata - other criminal matters Experts in your interest
5 Carlton Street, Halifax, HX1 2AL
01422 300101
www.gullands.com
18
Insidetime November 2007 www.insidetime.org
Lifestyle
Cell bed yoga
���
쐅
씉
Some of you say there are big snags to practising yoga and meditation in your cell ...
The room’s too small / You’ve got the lower bunk bed / You’re banged up three in a cell So here is a solution: do
it on your bed!
Try this sequence, practised in a single cell in HMP Spring Hill, which will stretch your body and lift your spirits. It’s a great way to ease a back that’s tired after lying too long on a sagging mattress. Hold each pose for five breaths (at least). Inhale deeply and naturally through the nose and exhale deeply and naturally through the nose each time. Everything that you do on one side, repeat on the other. It can be done with a bunk bed above you. Enjoy and feel how much space there is in your body when you open your joints ... Namaste!
���
Kneel and sink your bottom onto your heels and the head onto the mattress.
���
Curl on one side with your knees bent up against the wall. To twist the upper spine, pin down both shoulders, and stretch out the opposite arm.
쐈 After yoga, sit on the edge of your bed, bend over and relax completely (as you breathe!)
Kneel on your heels, widen your knees, stretch forward and sink down. Breathe.
���
To open your shoulder blades wrap your forearms around each other and lift your elbows.
씊
쐉
THE PRISON PHOENIX TRUST
START HERE
���
Squeeze your knee over your chest and try to straighten the other leg.
���
Loosen the wrist and ankle joints by rotating the hands and feet for five slow breaths.
���
Pin the pelvis to the mattress and lift the upper body, keeping the shoulders away from the ears (not easy!)
���
On all fours, tuck the tail bone under, suck up the belly and bring the chin to the chest as you exhale. Then reverse the pose by inhaling, hollowing the back (dropping the belly down) and looking up.
���
Stretch the hamstrings with one knee bent and one leg straight. Then try it with both legs straight.
Release tense shoulders behind you like this! Don’t forget to breathe while doing it.
씈 THE PRISON PHOENIX TRUST Head doing you in? Stressed out? Can’t sleep? Use your pillow to release aching shoulders by placing it length-ways so it fits between the neck and the hips. Place another support under your head.
Namaste You will be surprised at the power in your legs and feet as you lift the hips high.
If you can reach your ankles! Lift up your heels, head, knees and chest. If not, hold your trouser cuffs.
And afterwards ... sit on books and your pillow for 5 to 20 minutes enjoying the silence with your breath.
The sacred in me bows down to the sacred in you
Simple yoga and meditation practice, working with silence and the breath, might just transform your life in more ways than you think...
Interested? Write to The Prison Phoenix Trust P.O.Box 328, Oxford, OX2 7HF We’d love to hear from you anytime and have several free books, which could help you build and maintain a daily practice.
Comment
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org here is now such a tendency to describe all ‘challenging’ life events as stress that I wonder where stress starts, where it ends and how it's defined? As yet, I have come across no agreed definition or been able to make sense of this new-age phenomenon called ‘stress’ which has taken off as the explanation for all life's adversities and consistently appears in need of attention from counsellors and therapists. We are all seemingly being persuaded that our reactions to calamities and life's pressures require their ‘expert’ intervention. Suggesting that we should apply the good old British ‘stiff upper lip’ when faced with that which offers no immediate solution to life's problems not only seems to fall on deaf ears but is considered anathema to the counselling profession, who tend to believe their own hype that they, and only they, know what is best for everyone else.
T
This insidious profession has gone so far down the road of convincing people there must be something wrong with them if they find difficulty in coping it's a wonder we are not all lying down and simply giving up on life. For sure, when we are told that we have stress, and in most cases it's a selfdiagnosis for which there exists no biological, neurological or pathological tests, we readily believe that we have a bona fide medical condition and thus render unto ourselves a victim-like status. Instead of a person of resilience and fortitude, we become the ‘poor me’ victim, the weakling, the loser. We have lost the will to cope and, in a minority of cases, the will to live, and all due to the seductive but dangerous explanation and concept of the condition called ‘stress’. Where on earth would our present generation be now if they had been unable to cope? We might have given up the fight and simply invited Hitler to our shores and been prepared by an army of counsellors. I see the younger generation of today being so scared to death of coping with life there now seem to be counsellors, therapists and social workers at every turn; which might explain why young men who no longer have energy expanding and challenging regimes available to them, like National Service, find their own regimes for the discharge of aggression on our streets. Even football, which was once a civilised pursuit, now has its violent images as fans battle it out with other fans and the culture of ‘macho man’ reigns supreme. We have been fed with so much garbage about being unable to cope, and the stress explanation, it is arguable that young men do actually find a way of coping through violence.
DOVES SOLICITORS Fed up with knock backs? Act now!
Parole Criminal cases Re-categorisation ROTL MDTs Adjudications
Lifer Charles Hanson considers the ‘stress industry’ has harmed and disabled millions of people The stress industry has harmed and disabled millions of people by telling them they must be vigilant and ‘on their guard’ for negative emotions and psychological signs of tension or fear, and in doing so have defined these signs as stress which will endanger their lives. This has the effect of feeding people alive to their own demons, turning them into hypochondriacs, afraid of their own feelings and reactions to reality, and fearful that these feelings are a threat to their survival. The result is that the so-called ‘experts’ have reduced normal people, with normal reactions, into spineless, joyless, selfobsessed, self-indulgent, emotionally incompetent neurotics. What these ‘experts’ ignore is the biological mechanism which is hugely important to survival in both humans and animals, for without it nature would simply abolish us all. The fight-orflight response is an arousing survival mechanism that functions as a type of burglar alarm. It is designed to spur the threatened individual into action to face the perils of life and think up solutions; but in the ‘stress industry’ this important response has been confused with its biological opposite - resignation. Resignation, or ‘learned helplessness’, is extremely important to a prey animal about to be torn to pieces by a predator, for the response floods the brain with opiate-like substances to deaden the pain and impending slaughter. It also shuts off the immune system which is no longer required. In situations where a horrifying death is not imminent, resignation is maladaptive - it works against the possibility
of survival and is known to lead to disease and death in both humans and animals, and yet the stress experts are telling us that these dangers to health are caused by an over active fight-or-flight response rather than helpless resignation. Such misinformation is dangerous. Unlike medical research, which is focused and has objectives, the stress industry unable to agree on a definition conjures up all manner of explanations and objectives; none of which as a feature for cure would render the experts as redundant. Ongoing counselling and the re-living of trauma and adversity, with continual sick notes from GPs, ensures that therapists and pharmaceutical companies continue to prosper at the cost of a ridiculously bogus diagnosis which is not, after all, a bona fide medical condition. Every ideology spawns an industry, and stress management has spawned one that functions more like a church and this is part of the problem that critics of the so-called stress experts face in trying to defeat it by reason alone. The stress industry is not just a commercial congress, and a very lucrative one at that, it has a pastoral role, doctrines, confessionals and high moral ground. It has committed followers bent on protecting and helping. They set themselves up as guardians of public health. Unfortunately their beliefs and practices, disseminated through every outlet of the media, mislead ordinary people into parting with money in order to be
saved or cured by devices, techniques, products and services. The stress ‘church’ frightens people into thinking that they are suffering from a deadly disease that it cannot or will not accurately define. It places no limit on this chilling threat to health, backing up its claims with so-called laboratory research. Research that because of imprecision and its funding may be totally unscientific, misleading, biased, bogus or even fraudulent. To be fair, the stress industry claims to be able to manage stress rather than cure it, for to cure it would rob the church of its benefice, and besides the only real cure is to die. The counselling industry and stress therapy have become so ridiculous that even producers of TV shows now have to beware of failing to provide counselling services and helplines for the public after upsetting events on screen. ‘Pop Idol’ went so far as to hire counsellors to help unsuccessful wannabes deal with rejection, disappointment and unkind comments from judges. In the year following the World Trade Centre attacks in 2001, some 9,000 counsellors and therapists descended on New York survivors, three for every person who died. Yet a study of those who witnessed the horrors of September 11 found that stress counselling had not helped and had in effect been a waste of money (George Bonnano, Professor of Psychology, Columbia University, New York). His advice to those survivors who do want to prolong the counselling model is a short sharp jolt – ‘get a life'. But human emotions are not wrong: they are important. Rather than being artificially smothered or tranquillised they need to be understood and moderated by experience. Whether we act out our feelings of weakness or strength is, one might argue, largely up to us. It depends on what we are willing to experience. The stress management ideology seeks to protect us from emotional pain, fear, grief, tension and anxiety. Many more people are therefore unwilling to experience unpleasant emotions. They expect someone to cure their pain and fear without delay, and who better to turn to than a stress counsellor, or at least someone who will confirm that their concerns are valid; which must be the most disabling feat of all.
Charles Hanson is currently resident in HMP Blantyre House
CLARKE KIERNAN SOLICITORS
FIGHTING FOR THE RIGHTS OF INDIVIDUALS IN THE SOUTH EAST
We can give specialist advice and assistance on all aspects of prison law including:
• • • • •
The fallacy of stress
19
• • • • •
Appeals Licence recall HDC Transfers Human Rights Immigration
For more information please contact: Chris Jideofo on 0 2 0 7 2 3 2 5 1 0 0 or write to: Prison Law Department, 209 Old Kent Road, London SE1 5NA
WE ARE A RESPECTED ‘LEGAL 500’ FIRM FRANCHISED BY THE LEGAL SERVICES COMMISSION AND OUR DEDICATED AND EXPERIENCED TEAM IS AVAILABLE TO HELP YOU IN ANY AREA OF LITIGATION PRISON LAW DEPARTMENT Catherine McCarthy
CIVIL DEPARTMENT Gemma Clennell
FAMILY DEPARTMENT Amanda Marshall
All aspects of criminal law, including Appeals/CCRC/Confiscation Orders.
Assault, personal injury and any other civil claims against the Police or Prison Service.
All aspects of matrimonial and child care law, including proceedings involving Local Authority or individuals in relation to children, all aspects of domestic work, both for Applicant and Respondent, all aspects of financial proceedings between married or formerly married parties and non-married parties between each other and in relation to children
All aspects of prison law, including adjudications,parole, DLP, categorisation, Judicial Review
Employment and discrimination claims, especially on behalf of Prison Officers.
2-4 Bradford Street Tonbridge Kent TN9 1DU Tel: 01732 360999
20
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
Comment
ractically every week, a news item features the murder of another child, innocent or otherwise, through ‘gang related activity’. The tabloids salivate with increasingly sensationalist banner headlines. Current affairs programme commissioners rush to invite Community Race Relations ‘experts’ to debate and discuss the issue. Disenfranchisement; disillusionment; under funding; social exclusion; social deprivation; inequality of opportunity; lack of opportunity are all offered as contributory factors for the social demise. Unfortunately I am, as yet, unable to establish a causal link between these contributory factors and the purchase of an Ingram Mac 10 machine pistol in order to re-address these social imbalances. Nevertheless, this destructive momentum can be stopped, although it will require complete acceptance of personal responsibility without casting around for someone else to blame. And, more importantly, it will require an unswerving determination to improve oneself from within.
P
Before taking this step, it is necessary to review those that we have already taken and understand why we took them. The parents of first generation Afro-Caribbean children born in the UK came here to improve their economic situation and to give their children the opportunities which they never had ‘back home’. Our parents did not come to England with the intention of selling kilos of cocaine; that much is abundantly clear. Although their reception was less than hospitable, it can be explained with reference to historical context. Mark Kurlansky wrote: ‘The acts of political leaders are the result of - and society's osmotic absorption of - the ideas of intellectuals. Throughout the 17th century, policies of warfare, colonialism and slavery were expanded throughout Europe. However, no other country was as successful as England in rationalizing these acts through intellectual justifications.' Slavery throughout the 17th Century was unarguably racist because it embraced the philosophy that Africans should be enslaved because they were inherently and morally inferior. Thomas Jefferson, author of the Declaration of Independence and second President of the United States of America, personally owned slaves and justified this anomaly by stating in his Notes on Virginia that he believed ‘while all men were created equal, black men were less than equal'. Today, despite the abolition of slavery and its associated practices, the wealth and political influence that the trade had garnered over centuries could not be easily erased from the list of imperialist conquests or from the minds of those who believed that Britannia still ruled the waves. Despite such a duplicitous reception, the Windrush generation did not waver or riot; they
The tools of domination
Today, we live in a global society in which the value of a child's life is given less regard than the price of a barrel of crude oil. A society in which news and information is regularly being manipulated and distorted to accord with powerful vested interests. This picture of community destruction is far greater and more complex than you or I can possibly imagine but, again, we are not casting around for others to blame. Yet in order to begin to understand the physical and mental destruction of our community and of our societies, we need to put an end to the violence and begin the process of discovering who we are.
We are an intelligent and beautiful body of people.We have attended prestigious academic institutions. The opportunities are here for us to take advantage of; embrace them as though your life depended on it. The Afro-Caribbean community in the United Kingdom is moving like an out of control freight train towards its final, irrevocable destination; self-destruction through loss of personal identity, says John Samuels
maintained their dignity and self-respect. They recognized and accepted their responsibilities to their families as first and foremost. They endured many racist physical attacks and suffered innumerable discriminatory practices, the likes of which we would today baulk at. Yet today we have turned on each other like the uncivilised savages that we were described as many decades ago. Paulo Freire encapsulates this behavioural dynamic in his book Pedagogy of the Oppressed by citing the work of Frantz Fanon: ‘The colonized man will first manifest this aggressiveness which has been deposited in his bones against his own people. This is the period when the niggers beat each other up, and the police and the magistrates do not know which way to turn when faced with the astonishing waves of crime ... whilst the settler has the right the livelong day to strike the native, to insult him
PROBLEM? WE CAN HANDLE IT!
and to make him crawl to them, you will see the native reaching for his knife at the slightest hostile or aggressive glance cast on him by another native; for the last resort of the native is to defend his personality vis a vis his brother.' Why then did those immigrants who disembarked in their droves not behave in the way their children and grandchildren do today? Ultimately, it was because they knew who they were. We are an intelligent and beautiful body of people. We have attended prestigious academic institutions. The opportunities are here for us to take advantage of; embrace them as though your life depended on it. The shift in attitude will require acceptance of the fact that, as a generation, we have been ‘destroyed’ and reduced to mere objects through a
Parole Hearings, Judicial Reviews, Recalls, Adjudications, & Categorisation reviews We are Criminal and Prison Law Specialists The latest video link interview facilities are available to speed up the processes and avoid delay in having your concerns addressed. or call
020 8518 3999 For a prompt service throughout the midlands and the south of England
There has been too much blood shed within our communities and there remain too many festering wounds. The subsequent steps can only be taken and accomplished in accordance with true Christian doctrine. It was Martin Luther King who wrote in his book Strength to Love that ‘returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. Hate multiplies hate, violence multiplies violence, and toughness multiplies toughness in a spiral of descending destruction ... Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into a friend. We never get rid of an enemy by meeting hate with hate; we get rid of an enemy by getting rid of enmity. By its very nature, hate destroys and tears down; by its very nature, love creates and builds up. Love transforms with redemptive power.' Perhaps its time to begin anew. John Samuels is currently resident in HMP Wandsworth
HiAce Solicitors The Legal Rights Bureau
Coomber Rich
Yard House, May Place, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 7NX 0 1 2 5 6 8 1 2 2 0 2
For proactive and dedicated advice and assistance in all aspects of prison law and Criminal matters including:• Licence Recall • Categorisation and Transfer • Parole Board Hearings • Adjudications • Tariff Representation • ALP/DLP/HDC/MDT/VDT/ROTL • Complaints about Maltreatment • Human Rights • Appeals • Criminal Cases Review • Judicial Review • Immigration including Deportations Contact Herbert Anyiam at HiAce Solicitors 24 Barclay Road, Croydon CR0 1JN
[email protected]
020 8686 3777
Access to Justice
We guarantee a prompt response, friendly advice and thoroughly reliable representation from an experienced team.
Write to Mark Bailey Bailey Nicholson Grayson Solicitors 5th Floor Montrose House, 412 - 416 Eastern Avenue, Gants Hill, Ilford Essex IG2 6NQ
process of propaganda, management and manipulation. These are the tools of domination, the favoured choice of a select and powerful elite that has grown exponentially in power and influence from the moment Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Regan stepped into the political breach.
• Criminal Defence • Criminal Appeals • Police Interviews • MDT/VDT • Licence Recall/Revocation • Categorisation • Parole • Adjudications • Life Panel Representations • Judicial Reviews Contact Caroline Howell
Coomber Rich Solicitors
Comment
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
ASBOs: Politically appointed badges Billy Little considers the government’s ‘catch-all’ solution to anti-social behaviour by young people has been a dismal failure
guise of social responsibility. However, for young people the matter of social responsibility is made all the more difficult when you consider that they have to be a certain age before they can get the same minimum wage as the person they work with or, failing that, they have to be a certain age in order to become eligible for benefits. Such problems are neither new nor likely to be resolved overnight, but when you look at things from a young person’s perspective, getting a foothold on the ladder of life is not something they do with any degree of certainty nor with much in the way of support. Consider that the opportunities and institutions that many of us once took for granted when leaving school are now, in many instances, considered obsolete or inaccessible to the younger generation. Those traditional youth transition points that guide them into adulthood - in education, family, housing, employment, welfare, training and criminal justice system - have over
Criminalizing or even banging people up is the easy part, the challenge for the future is how to solve the existing problems within society as a whole. the past two decades become subjected to target-driven efficiency schemes and restructured to the detriment of society. As a consequence of these changes, youth transition into adulthood has become a riskier process for all young people, with those considered as already being disadvantaged more prone to social exclusion.
C
hildren’s Secretary Ed Balls commented recently … “It’s a failure every time a young person gets an ASBO. It’s necessary, but it’s not right … I want to live in a society that puts ASBOs behind us.” The problem with this sentiment is that whilst it may be a politically sound move to accept responsibility that the, much foretold, concept of the ASBO was doomed from the start, in many instances the irrevocable damage may have already been done. Up and down the country, children and young people have been assigned with unnecessary politically appointed badges that have, in some instances, been
re-appropriated to signify some twisted sense of social status within peer groups. Hardly the intention that policy-makers had predicted when they first promoted this Blairite talisman of social exclusion. Essentially, Blair’s ‘catch-all’ solution to perceived anti-social behaviour has failed dismally. The only real influence it has had on children and young people has been to serve as a mechanism of social classification - inclusion or exclusion. In the creation of thousands of new laws throughout his Prime Ministerial tenure, Tony Blair created a legal minefield for everyone in society in an attempt to physically enforce Orwellianism under the
Shortly after the opening comment from Ed Balls was released to the media, a government source added that Mr Balls was not proposing a policy change, merely reflecting that … ‘It’s a shift in tone. It’s going back to emphasizing the causes of crime as well as being tough on crime itself’. However, such a change ‘in tone’ would require some degree of assistance from the media into how crime is reported to the public. After all, it has been the monotonous “hang ‘em and flog ‘em” tone that many tabloid newspapers use so well that has created a climate of fear in places where relatively no crime exists. To all intents and purposes, the political
21
rhetoric surrounding ASBOs, in conjunction with the media’s ability to sensationalize even the most trivial of storylines, has managed to create a frustrated generation who are trapped in a vicious cycle of ‘seeing is believing’ - see a ‘group’ of teenagers, assume that they’re a ‘gang’ and up to no good, phone the police, intervention, and et voila, ASBO. Sadly, a change in tone will do little in the short term to change the minds of the more indoctrinated members of the public who now see themselves as self appointed, phone at the ready, saviours of their community. More young people will continue to be criminalized merely for being young people. Shami Chakrabarti, director of civil rights campaign organization Liberty, recently said: “ASBOs had become the Blairite totem; allowing children to be gratuitously named and shamed and imprisoned rather than cared for with both love and boundaries. Like moving youth justice into the children’s department, it’s a really important development … but it will take more to turn the super tanker around”. As Tony Blair has demonstrated, criminalizing or even banging people up is the easy part, the challenge for the future is how to solve the existing problems within society as a whole, rather than viewing them as being caused by a small group of individuals that some over-zealous Home Office sponsored ‘magic eight ball’ (that’s psychologist to you and me) with a degree can remedy once they have been hounded out of house and home and imprisoned. Billy Little is currently resident in HMP Whitemoor
Uncertain Future? Nowhere to go? Accommodation, support and training for prison leavers wanting to resettle crime-free. 15 projects across England (including drug rehabilitation centres and women’s projects) Ask your Probation Officer, Resettlement Officer or Chaplain about
The Langley House Trust or call us on (01993)774075
45 years experience of resettlement A Registered Social Landlord No. H4250 A Registered Charity No. 290059.
ASHLEY SMITH & CO
Morris & Warren
J BON Solicitors
CRIMINAL DEFENCE LAWYERS
Solicitors
We are Experts in the following:
WE SPECIALISE IN APPEALS AND MISCARRIAGES OF JUSTICE
We are a friendly and supportive firm of solicitors specialising in
WE ALSO DEAL WITH ALL ASPECTS OF PRISON LAW
Prison Law and Criminal Defence
FOR AN IMMEDIATE RESPONSE AND A VISIT ANYWHERE IN THE COUNTRY ASHLEY SMITH OR STUART YOUNG
Advice and representation on all aspects of Prison Law including: Recalls, Parole Hearings, Adjudications and Lifer Panels.
0208 463 0099
Contact: James Warren or Talia Martin
Call
(24 HOUR)
Ashley Smith & Co 4-6 Lee High Road LONDON SE13 5LQ
01273 723783 162 Church Road Hove BN3 2DL
1. Criminal Court Proceedings including Defence and Appeals 2. Police Station Representations 3. Immigrations ad deportation 4. Human Rights 5. Judicial Reviews 6. Prison Law 7. Parole 8. Adjudications 9. Appeals 10. Family Matters
Please write or call: Chinwe Okoli, Bright Arrey-Mbi or Joe N’Danga Koroma J Bon Solicitors 541 Barking Road East Ham London E6 2LW
020 8471 8822 “You will not regret contacting us”
22
Comment
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
What’s the point of OASys? David Ferguson questions the integrity and reliability of an assessment tool that appears to be subject to the whims and prejudices of the Prison Service hen the Prison Service introduced OASys as part of the sentence management procedure, it was claimed that this assessment tool would facilitate a fairer overview of whether a prisoner was suitable for progression or de-categorization. OASys was promoted as being the central tool to be used in all category and RAM board reviews.
W
Since its inception, OASys has been altered a number of times as it was felt that too few prisoners were scoring high enough. This moving of the goalposts is in itself questionable. Furthermore, OASys was not designed to account for lifers, yet is still used to assess their risk. Many who have been subjected to OASys assessment have been given cause to raise questions as to the impartiality and quality of the data used to compile the final assessment scores. As ever, this assessment tool relies upon the quality and integrity of not only the third party data being used, but also the integrity of the Prison Service employee conducting the assessment. It is claimed that this assessment tool is unbiased, as all the data is fed into a pre-set computer programme which then calculates the final score and risk level. Whilst this sounds infallible, it does not account for the authored assessors comments that are included in each section of the OASys assessment. These comments, and how they are interpreted due to the way in which said comments are constructed, are at the mercy of any whims or prejudices the OASys assessor may or may not hold. As each OASys sections score is based upon these comments, any hope of impartiality becomes very tentative at best. It is common to find that a prisoner is questioning the integrity of many of the claims within an assessment and therefore the subsequent score of their OASys assessment. When this occurs, it is all too common to find that the prisoner in question is able to provide documented proof of the OASys inconsistency, only to be told that the assessment score cannot be changed as it has been ‘locked’ into the Prison Service’s computer system. This is questionable alone in respect of the Data
❝Quote of the month❞
Protection Act, which requires the holder of any information on a third party to ensure that said data is up to date and accurate, or is altered accordingly when the inconsistency is pointed out. However when this is pointed out to the Prison Service, the proverbial stone wall is encountered. The Prison Service claim that once OASys data is locked in it cannot be rectified, if appropriately challenged, until the next OASys assessment is conducted some twelve months later. Unfortunately, by this time the prisoner will have had a RAM board and a category review panel using the incorrect data. Even if the prisoner correctly points out the inaccuracies contained in their OASys assessment they will find that no notice is taken, as the powers that be will claim that any inaccuracies would have been rectified before the OASys document was ‘locked’ in, effectively creating a catch-22 situation. On the rare occasions when OASys does work, it seems that it can simply be dismissed without a second thought. At a recent Cat A Local Advisory Panel, the board failed to make any mention of the subject’s exceptionally low OASys score. In fact the OASys assessment upon the individual, which incidentally hadn’t been updated for almost two full years, wasn’t even mentioned in the LAP’s synopsis of their hearing on the individual. Sadly, this is not an isolated case. Quite clearly, OASys is a highly suspect system to rely upon in the first place. However, is there any point to it whatsoever when the very panels for whom it has been developed, to enable them to reach a better informed decision, fail to use it at all, just because to do so would mean they would have to question their decision not to de-categorize the subject? Yet again the goal-posts are moved!
David Ferguson is currently resident in HMP Whitemoor
Rowan Atkinson as Jonny English
❝
I have spoken to a number of gay friends who are a little perplexed by the Government’s proposal to introduce a measure to outlaw the incitement of hatred against homosexuals, proposed as part of the new Criminal Justice and Immigration Bill. In announcing the measure, the Justice Secretary, Jack Straw, declared that: “It is a measure of how far we have come as a society … that we are now appalled by hatred and invective directed at people on the basis of their sexuality.” Precisely so. “It is time for the law to recognise this.” Why do we need a law to “recognise this?” Society seems to have recognised it pretty well and, as Mr Straw acknowledges, is working things out without any legislative interference from him. One can’t help thinking, with legislation of this nature, that point at which it becomes politically possible for it to be enacted, is precisely the point when it becomes unnecessary. It will be interesting to see exactly what words or actions the Government considers should be criminalised that would not already fall foul of public order or incitement laws. A worrying aspect of the initiative is that it appears to be infinitely extendable: witness the fact that the Government has invited two additional groups – the disabled and transsexuals – to “make the case” for the proposed legislation to be extended to them. I am sure that they could make a very good case, as indeed could all those who can claim that they cannot help being the way they are. Men, for example. Or women. Or people with big ears. This “tick the box if you’d like a law to stop people being rude about you” is one way of filling the legislative programme, but there are serious implications for freedom of speech, humour and creative expression. The devil, as always, will be in the detail, but the casual ease with which some people move from finding something offensive to wishing to declare it criminal – and are then able to find within government to aid their ambitions – is truly depressing.
❞
ROWAN ATKINSON - Letter to The Times 7 November
Ross S olmon & C o
Graceland Solicitors
We s pecialise i n a ll a spects o f P rison L aw, CriminalLLaw Human Rights Criminal aw aand nd H uman R ights issues. i ssues. We provide a personal and responsive service and We p rovide a p ersonal a nd r esponsive s ervice a w ithout d elay. and c learclear a dvice
Criminal Law, Prison Law and Immigration Law Free effective representation, legal advice and immediate response
We specialise in all aspects of Prison Law,
dvice without delay.
We cover most of the UK prisons and assist in matters including: • • • •
Discipline Adjudications Lifers Tariff Recall HDC • Family
• Appeals & CCRC • Confiscation Proceedings • Crown Court matters • Magistrates' Court Work Matters
We also also deal deal with with Private Private Immigration Immigration cases We cases including: including: • • •
Appeals against deportation Human Rights application Appeals Judicial Reviews Contact
Ross Solmon & Co Solicitors 17 High Street, Sutton, SM1 1DF
Tel:020 3186 1067 Fax: 020 3186 1068 e-mail:
[email protected]
For urgent advice and assistance call Mashood Iqbal - 07725 813979 or B a l a k a Fe l l - H o l d e n - 0 7 8 0 4 8 1 7 9 2 0
The sad futility of making the unacceptable illegal
• All aspects of criminal matters • All immigration cases stop deportation • Prisoner's legal rights • Judicial review of all decisions • Your human rights in law • All legal proceeding in all levels • Family matters • Confiscation Proceedings • Parole hearings/Adjudications • Paternity, Child support, Housing, conveyance matters etc • All civil matters, banking & insurance matters P l e a s e c o n ta c t M r. O k o r o Solicitor of the Supreme Court of England & Wales / Commissioner For Oaths. Suite 13-13a Island Business Centre 18-36 Wellington Street Woolwich London SE18 6PF
Te l : 0 2 0 8 8 3 6 9 3 5 0 Fax: 020 8836 9351 24hr: 0791 052 026 Email:
[email protected]
TRINIT Y SOLICIT ORS PRISON LAW, CRIMINAL DEFENCE AND MENTAL HEALTH LAW SPECIALISTS
A Personal Service and Unique Appr oach to Ever y Matter !Appeals !Licence Recalls !Categorisation !Parole Board Hearings !Human Rights !Adjudications !Judicial Reviews !Tariff Reductions !Allocations & Transfers !Maltreatment Complaints !Lifer Hearings & Paper Reviews !Criminal Cases Reviews !Sentence Calculations & IPP !HDC, MDT, VDT, ROTL Advice and Repr esentation also on all aspects of Mental Health Law Our dedicated and experienced team is always available to help. For immediate assistance and a quick visit anywhere in the UK, please contact: Abi Sanni or Ade Ajibola at TRINITY SOLICITORS 61a West Ham Lane London E15 4PH Telephone:0208 555 3030 or 01245 505399 24 hour Emergency Service: 07947 100880 • LET US HELP YOU • DO NOT DELAY • CONTACT US TODAY
Comment
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
23
The Truth About Rehabilitation Former prisoner Lucy Charman offers constructive solutions to the historic problem of rehabilitation for prisoners ... but will anybody actually listen to common sense? I have to say in her defence that my probation officer is a star and has been extremely supportive but in my defence, I probably haven’t been as challenging as some of her usual clientele!
Lucy Charman
I discovered that punishment doesn’t start when they close the door on you inside; it starts when they close the door with you outside. One prime example; my new doctor took one look at the letter heading from the doctor at Morton Hall and treated me from then on as though I was going to mug her for the drug cupboard keys.
very prisoner is given to understand that at some point in their sentence, before they leave, they will be given help with rehabilitation. If you have never been in prison you could be forgiven for thinking that the authorities would move heaven and earth to help you back on your feet and keep you on the proverbial ‘straight and narrow’, and as many other ‘do goody’ clichés as you want to use. Hogwash!
E
During my short stay in prison I was in three different establishments being moved further north and away from my home each time – a real help for stable relations and starting again. At each establishment I went to see housing because I lost my flat; the council apparently would only pay for 13 weeks so I had to cut my losses and depend on other people to pack and store all my worldly goods. With the help of my daughter, I ended up getting forms from the Councils and Housing Associations myself and sending them off. Even at my final prison, before being released on tagging, the housing officer didn’t do a thing, despite saying he would chase the council to see what the current state of play was regarding my place on the list! I was given no help with debt management – the problem that caused me to offend in the first place. At Peterborough Prison I met a young man who said he would give some numbers of organizations that arranged voluntary debt recovery, despite me telling him that I didn’t have enough disposable income, actually no income, to meet the required repayments; so
I am lucky. I have a supportive family. I managed to find my own home to rent and am now self-supporting. I had good work training when I was younger and it has held me in good stead, and I readily hold my hands up and admit to being one of the more fortunate ex-prisoners. But for every one prisoner like me there are ten who come out to absolutely nothing …no home, no job and no money. So they end up on the streets, invariably reoffending, and hence back inside. A veritable vicious circle if ever there was one. this wasn’t a help at all. I told him all the avenues that I had been down to get out of debt and try to solve my problem, yet he just kept repeating himself like a stuck record.
after release. Had I not been staying with the best son in law in the world, firstly I wouldn’t have got my tag and secondly, I wouldn’t have eaten.
Then came the interview with the DSS lady at Morton Hall. She got me a fast-track appointment at the Job Centre and told me they would ‘sort out my money’ quickly - round spherical objects! Yes, I got a fast-track appointment but it was three weeks before I saw sight of any ‘dole’ and I am assured by someone who works for the DSS that that was quick! It is absolutely no wonder that people re-offend in a very short space of time
Finally the job-hunting; I came closer to ending it all job-hunting than at any time in prison. I had been given all the ‘spin’ about having to declare if asked about my criminal record and not having to if not asked, but felt that I had to be up front in my interviews; if nothing else, how would I explain if someone got a flash of tag or I had to turn down an evening event? That got me a lot of ‘thank you but no thank you’, if they bothered to reply at all.
EBR
ATTRIDGE
SOLICITORS
Members of the Serious Fraud Panel
Specialists In Prison and Mental Health Law and Human Rights. We Can Assist You In The Following Areas:-
P R I S O N L AW • Lifer Panels • Categorisation • Parole Board • Adjudications • Human Rights & Judicial Reviews • Appeals & CCRC • Licence Revocation & Recalls • Understanding and dealing with the New IPP and extended sentences CJA 2003
HUMAN RIGHTS • Mental Health Act Transfers • MHRT • Special Hospital Work Treatment Issues relating to Mental Health Representation Throughout England & Wales
Experienced and qualified solicitors appearing on all Lifer Panels, Parole Board Hearings and MHRT’s
Video Link Facilities Available J o h n We a t e & R i c h a r d N i c h o l a s
0151 647 0000 RMNJ 63 Hamilton Square, Birkenhead, Wirral, CH41 5JF. RMNJ also has a substantial Criminal Law Practice www.rmnj.co.uk
[email protected]
Criminal Defence and Prison Law Specialists We provide legal assistance with the following matters:
* *
* * * * * * * *
* *
* * *
Adjudications Appeals Complaints Licence Recalls and Reviews Extended Licence Reviews Categorisation Prison Transfers Parole Board Hearings Tariff Reviews Lifer Hearings Home Detention Curfew ROTL Sentence Calculation CCRC Assistance Human Rights
Contact Miriam Altaf at EBR Attridge Solicitors 23 Southampton Place London WC1A 2BP 0207 842 8600
What’s the answer? A set rehabilitation regime - similar to the one being run at Swinfen Hall - across the prison estate. It stands to reason that it would be cheaper to set this in place and run it than having to see those released coming back time after time because of lack of pre-release help and support outside, especially if they do not have any supervision or licence orders on them. Sensible work based training skills to get a qualification. Maybe the real answer is to ask us, as former prisoners, rather than setting up endless committees to look into something that most prisoners know anyway. Who better to say exactly what is needed?
24
Comment
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
Smoking in prisons
Concerned about your healthcare?
by Mark Freeman
Jill Pohwer, a prison advocate from the Independent Complaints Advocacy Service (ICAS) offers examples of health concerns highlighted by prisoners
he 1st July 2007 saw England and Wales join the rest of the United Kingdom in banning smoking in public and workplaces.
T
I have watched with interest the campaign from the Government to ensure we are all aware of the consequences of not adhering to the legislation. Now, as a person who has been known to socialise occasionally, I am pleased that the Government are looking after our health and wellbeing. Pubs and clubs will be smoke free and the effects of passive smoking will be minimalised. Most of the workplaces I visit will also be subject to the legislation. I say ‘most’ because of course the Government and Prisons Board have taken the easy, unhealthy option of allowing prisoners who wish to smoke, to smoke in their cells. Is this right? No. It is wrong to subject prison staff to the effects of smoking in cells by prisoners. The security of prisons will suffer, the allegations against staff will undoubtedly increase and I have to say that once again the innocent are being made the victims at the expense of the criminals. • Will the policy introduced locally be manageable? I doubt it. • Will the local policy be abused by prisoners? Absolutely. • Will the Prison Service be subject to legal challenge by prisoners who believe their human rights are being abused? I would expect so. • Will staff have to cope with the situation on a daily basis, do more for less and suffer? Yes • Will we have faith in local risk assessments? Debatable. • Will the concerns of staff be listened to? No. • Who will deal with the problems of smoking and non-smoking prisoners, Governors, MP's etc? No, prison staff, front line staff.
It was determined at Conference that we would challenge the current exemption that allows prisoners to smoke in their cells. We will do this, but you must be proactive at local level. You must enter in the accident book any incident where you had to enter a cell that a prisoner was smoking or had been but the cell had not been ventilated.
"Prisoners give up certain rights when they go into prison, smoking should be one of them".
ICAS is here to help prisoners. We have trained advocates who can help you make an NHS complaint by writing letters or, if appropriate, attending meetings. This won’t get you financial compensation, but may get answers, explanations and changes in procedure. In an earlier issue of Inside Time (June 2007) we explained the various stages of the NHS Complaints Procedure, however we thought it would be useful to give some examples of the type of concerns that are arising. Over the past year we have visited prisons and talked to staff and prisoners to get a better understanding of healthcare issues affecting prisoners, and below are some examples of complaints from prison clients who we have contacted ICAS … • Client not getting medication for chronic conditions and has had pain relief withdrawn. Unable to work and has no pay, so feels punished for not being able to work.
You must raise the matter with your local MP and seek his views on this ludicrous policy. I quote Martin Callanan, MEP for the North East who sits on the European Parliament’s Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee: "Prisoners give up certain rights when they go into prison, smoking should be one of them". I agree.
Mark Freeman is Deputy General Secretary of the Prison Officers Association and Secretary to the Health and Safety Whitley Committee Reproduced by kind permission of Gatelodge Magazine.
• Client not getting correct medication and has not been referred for required operation – waiting many months. (The medication issue has been resolved and medication has been corrected). • Client has not been examined properly. Suffering from several medical problems but no tests have been carried out. Client was offered some help but this offer was withdrawn. Client has complained but has not had useful responses to complaints and is not happy with the attitude of staff. (Primary Care Trust to investigate). • Client has mobility problems and needs personal support. Also believes he is being treated for psychosomatic rather than health related problem. (ICAS helped client to write to the Healthcare Commission). • ICAS supported client with chronic health
CRIMINAL DEFENCE & PRISON LAW SPECIALISTS Advice & Representation on all aspects of Criminal Defence & Prison Law including:
Parole Board Hearings Recats Recalls Adjudications Complaints Appeals Advice given on all aspects of Prison Law
Contact Michaela Hoggarth at
FRANK BRAZELL & PARTNERS FOR ADVICE 0800 0832724 020 7689 8989
We also specialise in all aspects of Family Work, Divorce, Contact with Children, Child Care arrangements for mothers in prison.
FRANK BRAZELL & PARTNERS 97 White Lion Street London N1 9PL Representing our clients 24 hours a day, 365 days a year
CRESCENT & CO SOLICITORS
Specialists Criminal Defence, Prison Law & Human Rights
Passionate about prisoners' rights We cover all prisons throughout the UK and provide a quick response to requests for visits We are able to assist you in the following areas:• Judicial Review • Licence Recalls • Adjudication • Categorisation and Transfers • Parole • Appeals & CCRC • Lifer Reviews and DLP`s Immigration matters: • Appeal against deportation & human rights apps. • Confiscation proceedings • Criminal Court proceedings and appeals For immediate help and assistance please call
Tel: 020 7272 7202 Fax: 020 7272 8161
Mr Sulayman Dawodu or Miss Remy Mohamed (Mob 07932 570246)
(Mob 07926 938138) EMERGENCY 24/7
or write to:
Cresent & Co 2 Station Place, Finsbury Park, London N4 2DH
problems but some necessary medication not prescribed although received at several previous prisons. (Healthcare Commission has upheld this complaint and medication has been reinstated). • Difficult condition not being medicated correctly. (ICAS helped to take the complaint to the Primary Care Trust and treatment has now been reinstated and an apology received). • Inappropriate access to medical file. Internal complaint process completed. (Now with Primary Care Trust). • Client wants a necessary operation in the hospital of his choice with consultant who did the operation before; hospital finds this perfectly acceptable but prison does not. (Waiting PALS/Prison board decision). • Client forced to ‘detox’ but not in accordance with plan from GP. The ICAS service is free and confidential and if you do need our help, contact details are as follows (all phone calls charged at local rates). • EAST OF ENGLAND, LONDON AND WEST MIDLANDS: ICAS Freepost, PO Box 201, Ely CB7 9AB. Tel: 0845 456 4214 • EAST MIDLANDS: ICAS, PO Box 8519, Nottingham NG8 9AB. Tel: 0845 045 0376 • NORTH EAST, YORKSHIRE & HUMBERSIDE: ICAS, PO Box 8519, Nottingham NG8 9AB. Tel: 0845 122 8692 • NORTH WEST: ICAS PO Box 8519, Nottingham NG8 9AB.Tel: 0845 122 8592 • SOUTH EAST: ICAS, Unit 3, Willowside Park, Canal Road, Trowbridge, Wiltshire BA14 8RH. Tel: 0845 074 0044 • SOUTH WEST: ICAS, Unit 3, Willowside Park, Canal Road, Trowbridge, Wiltshire BA14 8RH. Tel: 0845 070 0878
HINE & Associates
Solicitors
Specialising in CRIMINAL DEFENCE and all aspects of P R I S O N L AW including: Licence Recall Adjudications Parole Hearings Categorisation Judicial Review Serving London and the Home Counties for immediate help and assistance contact Lisa Gianquitto on: 01753 482400 or write to: HINE & Associates Solicitors 17 East Common Gerrards Cross Bucks SL9 7AG www.hineassociatessolicitors.co.uk
Health
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
Inside Health ... with Dr Jonathon Following the launch of Inside Health in October we have received a number of queries from prisoners about health matters. Providing this service is Dr Jonathon Tomlinson, a GP practicing in East London. If you have a question relating to your own health, write a brief letter (maximum one side A4 paper) to Inside Time (Health) PO Box 251, Hedge End, Hampshire SO30 4XJ. Everyone will receive a reply, however only a selection will be published each month. No names will be disclosed.
Q. Can Dr Jonathon give me any constructive advice on retaining my sanity after being sentenced (wrongly) to life? My legal team say ‘no appeal’ …‘no funding for further work’, and already I am being pestered to ‘get on with it’, ‘being in denial’ and so forth. Please correct me if I’m wrong, either I am off my trolley with a mental illness or I did not do it. As I stood trial, I presume I’m all there … however in the meantime any ideas to stop the rot? I read a lot, keep up with current affairs and awaiting a pen-pal with New Bridge. I do some Open University work, try the library to (slowly) learn the law and write pleading letters for legal help. Going through a divorce (she feels let down that I used a prostitute). Enjoy imitating the jobbernowls who manage this prison and exercise in my cell, to name but a few activities. I am concerned about the long-term effects and wonder if any studies have been done to ward off potential mental health issues.
A. Thank you for your letter about how to stay sane inside faced with a life sentence. Firstly, it sounds as though you’ve made an excellent start by taking advantage of several different activities to keep your mind and body occupied. By doing this you’ll be distracted and have less time to let the negative aspects of your situation take over your thoughts. Doing this will help to alleviate some of the anxiety, depression and anger these thoughts can arouse. In time, you may even find that there are positive aspects from having uninterrupted time to study law or other subjects in greater depth, or develop a fuller understanding of current affairs than you’ve had before. There are many examples of prisoners who further their formal and informal education whilst inside. You’ve mentioned that your interests include current affairs, you read a lot, and you’re intending to study law and use the Open University. Focusing on
subjects that interest you and which can broaden and deepen that interest will be satisfying. Different people find different areas interesting. For some prisoners art provides an escape and a way of expressing their feelings. For others, music, theatre, puzzles, games and so on give them something to focus on that, done regularly, will help relieve the stress of their situation. People who are unable to find or develop any interests are at greatest risk of becoming stressed. Exercise, which you’ve started, is valuable for everyone and has been shown to be beneficial in relieving the symptoms of depression, relieving stress, and improving self-esteem. I’m not aware of any evidence that prison causes mental illness, though it’s likely that in vulnerable people, in particular the young (under 21) the elderly, and those with a history of mental illness are at greatest risk of developing or relapsing into mental health problems. The highest risk of suicide in prisoners appears to be in the first month after leaving prison, possibly because the opportunities and risks are greatest then, so its worth bearing in mind that the strategies you develop to cope with stress inside can be used outside. The risks of going ‘bonkers’, or more specifically of developing a mental illness such as depression, manic-depression (bipolar disorder) or schizophrenia depend on several factors. The strongest risk factor is a previous history of mental illness, so if you’ve been unwell before, then any stress, including a prison sentence, is likely to increase your risk of a relapse. If this is the case, then medical staff at the prison need to know. Genetic factors are highly significant, so that if you have close relatives who are affected then your risk is higher. Alcohol and drugs including cannabis, cocaine, amphetamines, ecstasy, LSD and others seriously increase the chance of a new episode or a recurrence of all types of mental illness. Young prisoners who have poor coping strategies for stress, even without a previous history of mental illness, seem to be at particular risk of suicide. If you think you’re really
becoming unwell, particularly if you find you cannot find any interest or enjoyment in anything, if your sleep is becoming disrupted, or if you do feel suicidal, then you should inform a prison doctor. Being aware of risk factors and avoiding potential precipitants, especially drugs, and actively pursuing your interests, whatever they may be, and regular exercise, will all help prevent you losing the plot. Relationships with significant others, partners, family, children, close friends etc. make an enormous difference to prisoners, usually in a positive way, though clearly in some cases these relationships can be stressful. New Bridge provides support from committed volunteers who write to and sometimes also visit prisoners. For people without many friends on the outside, or needing someone who is less emotionally involved to talk to, this service can be very supportive. It sounds from your letter that you’re already pursuing the right strategies to keep your mind healthy, good luck.
25
The medications I take include diclofenac, dihydrocodeine, nefopam, diazepam and citalopram. I have asked for help and seemingly was made to suffer because no one would pick up a phone to confirm what I need to get by, even though I was in pain. Is what I have been put through right? I just cannot believe all this has happened, it is unreal. Can Dr Jonathon advise?
A. In your letter you mention back pain and psychological problems. It’s good to hear that at least before you went to prison you were seeing doctors who were helping you to cope with both. There is a strong link between the problems, the pain worsening the depression and the vice versa. And, as you recognise in your letter, you need treatment for both. I will try to answer your questions about the medication you have been prescribed and how and when to take it. The medications you listed include diclofenac (an NSAID painkiller), dihydrocodeine (an opioid painkiller), nefopam (a non-opioid painkiller), diazepam (a sedative/muscle relaxant) and citalopram (an antidepressant), These drugs all act in different ways and can be safely taken together so long as the maximum recommended dose of each is not exceeded. Overdose can be fatal, and may be more likely in combination especially with sedative drugs such as dihydrocodeine, nefopam and diazepam. All non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) have the potential to cause inflammation of the stomach lining and should be taken after food and stopped if indigestion develops as a side effect.
Q. For years now I have been having pain management at Leicester Royal Infirmary and medical psychology, as well as help from a GP where I lived. I had a spine block booked for September 2007, yet was sent to prison without any medication report being done. For 22 months I always turned up whenever asked to by the courts or the police, but the judge said I should be put away then and there. He was informed of what happens with my nerves but did not seem to care. I ended up in prison with no pills yet was previously on ten most of the time. I had all the paperwork for the pain department and for the psychology appointment, also a box with only two painkillers in, which was taken away from me. For near on a week I was made to suffer, at more than one point I wanted to end it all. Even now I have had my medication mixed up – being told to take them before food, one day told them I could not take them in one go … only half, then another half with more water; seven pills at a time. Was told ‘f***ing take them now or I will stop you having them’ by the nurse!
For chronic pain that is present all, or almost all of the time, painkillers are most effective if they are taken at regular intervals so that their effects do not wear off. The exception is for chronic headaches where painkillers actually make the problem worse. Antidepressant medications have to be taken regularly at an adequate dose to be effective. They should not be stopped without medical advice and a doctor should assess whether or not they are appropriate and effective. Psychological treatments for pain can also be useful and include cognitive behavioural therapy, relaxation techniques, activity planning and biofeedback training. Exercise is beneficial in almost all cases of chronic pain and has psychological benefits as well. Alternative therapies including acupuncture work very well for some people too. In cases of severe chronic pain, I think it is vital to consider a wide range of therapeutic options, paying particular attention to the psychological effects.
beesleyandcompanysolicitors Personal Injury and Civil Action against the Police and other authorities • Personal Injury (accidents both in and out of custody) • Assault • False imprisonment • Malicious prosecution • Negligence • Interference with property/goods • Allegations of mistreatment/injury caused by inmates or staff We can also assist with debt and housing issues.
CRIMINAL & PRISON LAW
Our team provides nationwide advice and representation in all aspects of criminal and prison law:
• Disciplinary Adjudication • Revocation & Recall • Parole Applications/Appeals • Lifer Reviews • Categorisation OLIVER & CO SOLICITORS,
Contact: Mark Lees at, 25 St John Street, Manchester, M3 4DT 0800 975 5454 (FREEPHONE)
BOOTH MANSION, 30 WATERGATE STREET, CHESTER,CH1 2LA
[email protected] www.beesleyandcompany.co.uk Nationwide service available in certain cases Legal Aid available
FAX:01244 350261
TEL: 01244 312306
26
Legal Comment
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
Barry George’s conviction quashed
Court Shorts Prosecutors and Defenders Lawyers working in the magistrates’ courts do not benefit from the slight disguise of gowns and wigs. Though most of the men wear a tie and darkish suit, the women a jacket and skirt or trousers, both prosecutors and defenders have a common air of being a bit hassled and a touch unkempt. Not surprising. While the wheels of justice usually grind slow, there are occasions such as a Monday morning court, with the cells full of weekend malefactors, when hearings succeed each other at dizzying speed.
On 15th November, Barry George’s conviction for the murder of Jill Dando in April 1999 was quashed by the Court of Appeal and he now faces a retrial some time in 2008. Here his solicitor Jeremy Moore from Carter Moore reports on the case
Those appearing for the Crown Prosecution Service will have tottering heaps of files before them, with which they have barely had time to become familiar. The defence lawyers arrive flushed from a rush-hour tube journey toting rucksacks or small suitcases on wheels. Invariably they ask for ten minutes to talk to their clients down in the cells or in the packed corridors outside the courtroom. Sometimes they will have three or four cases to deal with in a single morning, mitigating for the guilty pleas, making bail applications for the notguilties. Most harassed of all is usually the duty solicitor, who must do his or her best for the unrepresented, who may well be drunk, drugged or barely capable of speaking English. Barry George
Jeremy Moore
his was Barry’s second appeal, the case having been referred back to the court by the Criminal Cases Review Commission earlier this year.
T
The appeal concerned forensic evidence presented by the prosecution at trial in respect of a single microscopic particle of firearms discharge residue, “FDR”, found in the pocket of a coat which was seized more than a year after the death of Miss Dando, which contained similar components to a particle found in the victim’s hair. At the first trial in 2001, the defence had focussed on several different scenarios as to possible innocent explanations to explain how the particle had arrived in the coat pocket; for instance by contamination at a police station to which the coat had been taken on one occasion and inexplicably removed from its packing prior to examination. The prosecution expert at trial had, however, given evidence to suggest that the likelihood of innocent contamination in the manners suggested was ‘very unlikely’. What no-one at the trial had addressed satisfactorily however was the likelihood of the particle surviving in the pocket, had Barry been present at the scene of the crime, for the 12 months between the shooting and the examination of the coat. When this question was raised with both the prosecution expert from the trial and other experts that we instructed, their expert opinion was that
this was just as unlikely as the innocent contamination explanations. The FDR evidence was therefore ‘neutral’, i.e. inconclusive. What it really came down to was how the evidence was presented at court. It was particularly common in years gone by for forensic evidence to be presented by the prosecution as ‘supportive’ of the prosecution case or adding some weight to it. The modern approach however is for an expert to assess the probability of finding the forensic evidence, in this case the particle, in the alternate scenarios presented by the prosecution and the defence. In this particular case, as the two alternate scenarios presented were of equal probability the evidence was in reality of no evidential value. In the circumstances, the appeal judges agreed that the jury had been misled at trial into attaching undue weight to this evidence and, given that this was effectively the only evidence put forward directly linking Mr George to the scene and a key part of the prosecution case, they ruled that the verdict was therefore unsafe. This case has always been seen in many circles as an unsatisfactory conviction and whilst we are very pleased to get to where we are now, it is disappointing that Barry has already had to serve seven years of a life sentence. We look forward to finally achieving justice for Barry at the retrial, which will probably take place in the summer of 2008.
Ve r i ta s - Vi n c i t ( U K ) L td The Lifer Specialists
' Truth Conquers '
Experts on Lifer issues
Prison Affairs Department, PO Box 799, Aylesbury HP22 9DN We accept that many of our competitors are competent…however, we also believe, unlike many of our competitors…that competence is only a starting point. With John Jopling the former Head of Lifer Services for HMP Shepton Mallet as Head of our Prison Affairs Department we are second to none! Not only in terms of the high standards of service we provide, but also, and perhaps more importantly, the qualities and depth of knowledge combined with the expertise of our staff cannot be found anywhere else. We are unique in our approach to the particular needs of this specialist area of the law, and as a result are extremely successful in achieving the objective on behalf of our clients. It's your future at stake so don't hesitate, contact us now! Tel: 01844 202581 Mayfair House, 14-18 Heddon Street, Mayfair, London W1B 4DA www.veritasvincituk.com
I’ve yet to explore why lawyers join the CPS, which one would have thought an unloved branch of the profession. Prosecutors do not strike me as especially punitive types; some are notably considerate and understanding. Perhaps it is the regular salary and hours. As for defence solicitors who undertake legal-aid criminal work for modest fees, one presumes they do OK by cornering work from particular localities or nationalities. But there are certainly some who do it out of a sense of public service, like the Tottenham solicitor who has made such a speciality of appearing for young offenders in our area that he seems to be on first name terms with every troublesome family in the borough. Typically, his mitigations will be along these lines: ‘Your Worships, I guess you will have come across the Murphy clan before. I have represented Sean’s dad, his mum and two of his brothers. Sean has not had what you might call an auspicious upbringing…’ Some days this brisk, tousle-haired lawyer has so many clients he will get a whole courtroom to himself for an afternoon. There is talk of putting a plaque on the door with his name on it. A courtroom sketch for Inside Time by the artist and magistrate Chris Blessington, based on The Magistrates Tale by Trevor Grove, himself a magistrate, author and a Director of Inside Time.
Have you ever served in the Armed Forces? Do you or your partner need help? If the answer is yes, you may be entitled to assistance from The Royal British Legion and SSAFA Forces Help - two charities assisting the Service and ex-Service community, working together to reach all those eligible for assistance. Whether you are still serving your sentence or are due for release, we may be able to provide financial support to you and your family. · · · · · · · · ·
Household goods Clothing Rent deposits Education and training courses, including distance learning Equipment and/or Work Tools Relocation Costs Advice and Guidance on getting a job or learning a trade Advice and Guidance on applying for a war pension Assistance for your partner and family
Regretfully we cannot make cash grants. Nor can we offer legal or appeals advice. If you would like further information, or a visit from one of our caseworkers to discuss assistance please write to: TRBL / SSAFA Forces Help (Ref Inside Time) Freepost SW1345, 48 Pall Mall, London SW1Y 5JY
Or tell your partner to telephone Legionline on 08457 725 725 or SSAFA Forces Help on 020 7403 8773 or they can log on to w w w. b r i t i s h l e g i o n . o r g . u k o r w w w. s s a f a . o r g . u k
Legal Comment
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
Notes from the Appeal Court
Oh do come quietly Sir Ian
I want another shot at it
Barrister Teresa Pritchard, a specialist in prison law, highlights the appeal in the cases of two prisoners who challenged the current IPP system through the courts
T
he appeals in the IPP cases of Walker and James were heard on 20 and 21 November 2007 before the Lord Chief Justice and Lords Justice Dyson and Toulson. Judgment was reserved but must be given soon. In spite of this delay there were a number of interesting points made both by counsel and the bench. • The shortest tariff given in an IPP is of 28 days. Those of you with practical experience of an IPP may well wonder how any assessment of reduction of risk is to be measured after such a short period. • The prison system currently holds over 9,000 indeterminate sentence prisoners (including all lifers) but the system itself is only equipped to deal with half that number. At the end of October there were 3,414 IPP prisoners in the system, of whom 3,122 were still within their tariff, so only 292 were at that time post tariff. The average length of a tariff is 32 months. • The cost of preparing a full sentence plan for each IPP is £1,800. I have assumed that by ‘full sentence plan’ the Court means the document which I see in a Parole Dossier. I fail to understand how preparing it costs such an amount. • At present there are 2,000 prisoners with no sentence plan and yet sentence planning should start on the first day of a life sentence, although it was acknowledged that an IPP is more difficult to manage and treat than a mandatory lifer.
KRISTINA HARRISON S O L I C I T O R S SPECIALISTS IN PRISON LAW • Recalls • Parole • Adjudications • IPP & Extended Sentences • Lifer Issues • Categorisation • Transfers • Property • IEP Scheme • HDC • Request/Complaints • Appeals • CCRC • Judicial Review • POCA
Be represented by dedicated Prison Law Solicitors Hannah Bickerstaff Giselle Cullinane and now joined by Carl Miles
Reference was made in court to the cost of offending behaviour courses. The Lord Chief Justice suggested that money was of limited relevance on that point. Of more importance was the need for sufficient chartered psychologists and psychiatrists to deliver the courses. Lord Toulson was particularly concerned by one aspect which he questioned counsel about: was there an irreducible minimum of information that the Parole Board should have in order to reach a decision on release? The parties agreed that there was, but other than saying that without assessment and a sentence plan the Parole Board could not make a decision, no detail was given as to what that minimum is. Perhaps it will be referred to in the judgment.
The public are, no doubt, relieved to hear that there was no ‘systemic failure’ within the Metropolitan Police which led to them shooting dead a Brazilian man at Stockwell underground station. Sir Ian Blair, the Met Commissioner, will not be resigning, despite the criminal conviction of his force for having endangered public safety, a vote of no confidence in him by the London Authority and an Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) report, which catalogued 19 catastrophic errors.
The Lockyear Review, a Service Review of Indeterminate Sentence Prisoners completed in August 2007, was referred to. Apparently it makes recommendations but only on the basis that there is no additional funding to be made available, so whatever is recommended had better not cost anything. It would seem that the problem is as critical now as it was in July 2007 when these cases were originally in the Divisional Court, and likely to get worse. Prisons are unable to operate as Parliament was told they would and no steps were taken to adjust the existing system to accommodate IPPs. The latest conclusion is that the system cannot cope with IPPs. The irony of it all is that it was the Secretary of State’s own department which brought the provisions of the Act into force when it did. Had the Secretary of State given the matter any sensible thought he might have delayed for a period of time in order to allow the proper resources to be made available. As ever, one cannot pre-judge the judgment, but the general feeling among those I spoke to at Court was that whichever way their Lordships rule, this is likely to go further. I will keep your readers posted.
Nelson Guest & Partners Criminal and Prison Law Specialists
Adjudication Prison Rules MDT's & VDT's Parole Hearings Appeals Lifer Reviews Complaints & maltreatment
Call
Advice & representation on all aspects of Prison Law throughout London and the south east, including:
0161 823 3934 0161 832 7766
Belmarsh, Wandsworth, Brixton, Feltham, Canterbury, Maidstone, Elmley, Highdown, Coldingley and The Mount
(or Freephone 0800 614654)
or write to
Kristina Harrison Solicitors City Point 2 156 Chapel Street Salford M3 6BF
27
Contact Mr Glenn Collins on:
0208 3095010 5th Floor, Roxby House. Station Road Sidcup Kent DA15 7EJ
A petition has been started to try and save the BBC "Rough Justice" programme. For 27 years Rough Justice exposed miscarriages of justice. It's most recent success came in November when Barri White's murder conviction was quashed. The programme is true public sector broadcasting, it changed lives and yet the BBC has just announced it is to be axed. Barri White's solicitor recently told the BBC "it is no overestimate to say we would not have been at this appeal without the work done by Rough Justice." Please use the link below to sign the petition to persuade the BBC that Rough Justice should be saved. Please pass this message on. www.gopetition.co.uk/online/15419.html or write to: Mark Thompson, Director General, BBC MC4D1, 201 Wood Lane, London, W12 7TQ, or request a petition form from Inside Time.
L A T I F A D A M S S O L I C I T O R S
24 H R C RIMINAL D EFENCE SPECIALISTS. ~PAROLE HEARINGS AND RECALL ~ POLICE STATION ATTENDANCE ~HUMAN RIGHTS ~PRISON DISCIPLINE ~ LIFER REVIEWS ~ CATEGORISATION ~ ADJUDICATION ~ JUDICIAL REVIEW ~MAGISTRATES /YOUTH COURT ~COURT OF APPEAL ~CROWN COURT ~EXTENDED SENTENCE HEARING RECALL ~DISCRETIONARY LIFER PANELS ~CIVIL ACTION AGAINST POLICE
> We also Specialise in Family Law
* We speak Punjabi* > 24hr Dedicated Service > Fast & Effective Representation > It is our policy to try to visit every client requiring advice and assistance
Need Professional Help? Call us on :
0208 574 2255 Emergency 0795 723 0560
Latif Adams Solicitors 2 Gladstone Cottages, Wimborne Avenue, Southall, Middlesex, UB2 4HD. Email:
[email protected] Web: www.Latifadamssolicitors.com
28
Legal Comment
“I
t is important for a jury to be cautious about convicting a person on the basis of uncorroborated evidence. Judges will always warn of the dangers of so doing”. So spoke the then Home Secretary, Douglas Hurd, in October 1987. He was speaking on the occasion of a bill to lift the bar on children giving uncorroborated evidence in court. It was an emotive issue, with the warring claims of mass sexual abuse in Cleveland and dodgy diagnostics making headlines on a daily basis. Allowing children to give uncorroborated evidence in such circumstances was a reasonable and necessary step in the interests of justice. But contrary to what Douglas Hurd promised, the warning would not stand firm. Within a few years, Michael Howard was announcing its demise for all complainants in sexual offences, because it was ‘demeaning to victims [sic]’. Nobody stopped to correct him that in many uncorroborated cases the status of ‘victim’ was precisely the matter at issue. But then the erosion of justice in contested sexual offence cases over the past two decades has been marked largely by silence or irritation that measures do not go far enough. And just when corroboration warnings were hitting the skids, a rush of cases started to flood courtrooms countrywide, based solely on a complainant’s story of what was alleged to have happened long ago. Before the mandatory corroboration warning was scrapped in the 1994 Criminal Justice and Public Order Act, the House of Lords decided that multiple complainants making allegations could be regarded as corroborating each other and that where there was a danger of collusion
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
children, are seen as a kind of demonic infestation that is the reserved territory of therapists and ‘survivor’ advocates and not the proper inquiry into offences committed in space and time.
Dangerous convictions
It was as the witch trials faded away, that the ‘corroboration warning’ first began to be formulated. Contrary to what has been said by opponents, there was never a time when corroboration was required to convict on sworn testimony in sexual offences in English law, the warning however acted as a brake on a rush to judgment, as well as method of gatekeeping and, importantly, a touchstone of investigation.
Margaret Jervis and Chris Saltrese take a close look at injustice in sex trials and conclude that it has become a political problem or contamination – precisely the dangers that had historically kept such allegations apart at trial – it was for the jury to decide. Once the mandatory corroboration warning had gone, the new rules on mutual support by allegation remained. So family members acting out an old grudge against a longdivorced parent could recite their pieces before the jury who would be able to use one allegation to support another and vice versa. Yes it’s circular, but it was a powerful way of convicting people in sex offence cases, even if there was no evidence of the crime outside what was said. Nowhere was the new similar fact rule employed to greater effect than in the trawl cases involving former approved schools and children’s homes. Massive police investigations scoured prisons and probation lists for allegations against care workers. As in all sexual offence cases, there were some guilty people (though often, contrary to popular belief, detected at the time), but the bulk of allegations were against innocent people and, as is
It’s no piece of cake being inside at Christmas When it comes to seeking legal advice, give yourself an advantage and talk to one of the regions largest specialist Criminal Defence and Prison Law teams. With a wealth of experience and technical know-how, we can represent you on Adjudications, Parole Hearings (Lifer, IPP, and Determinate sentence prisoners), Licence Recalls or Categorisation issues and claims for Unlawful Detention, as well as advice on claims for Judicial Review. Whatever the matter, we can provide you with excellent, effective advice or representation.
often a trademark of fictitious allegations, the more serious the allegations and more frequent the purported conduct, the less likely, by rational analysis, was it to be true, but the more likely it was that the jury would convict. In 2002, the Parliamentary Home Affairs Committee produced a damning report on the children’s homes trawls, detecting a ‘new genre’ of miscarriage of justice and calling for legislative reform of the similar fact rules to restore safeguards against wrongful conviction. In fact concerned defence lawyers were aware that the ‘new genre’ extended back further and more broadly than the Committee was willing or able to probe. Being jointly hit in the massive North Wales and Merseyside trawls of the midnineties, care workers had begun to form their own collective lobby, which led to the Parliamentary inquiry. Domestic cases, though far more prevalent, have so far failed to attract the same kind of collective concern. But the calls for reform fell on deaf ears in the government. And the similar fact rule, far from being abolished, has been extended through the Criminal Justice Act 2003 to include allegations of prior ‘misconduct’ such as alleged domestic violence that play no part in the criminal charges themselves. Why has this happened? The classic excuse is that sexual crimes are so prevalent, dangerous and difficult to detect that it is necessary to have special rules of evidence to convict. Such was the legalistic rationale in the 17th century witch trials where ‘spectral evidence’ - dreams, visions and hallucinations - was admitted.
Contact Rob Smith on 01782 324454 for a free, impartial consultation. Smith Partnership, Prison Law Dept., 88-90 The Strand, Longton, Stoke-on-Trent, ST3 2BP
Offices in: Burton upon Trent Derby Leicester Stoke-on-Trent Swadlincote
Something similar exists in today’s secular world, where sex crimes, particularly against
NIKOLICH & CAR TER •
S
O
L I
C
I
T
O
R
S
For while the handling of sexual complaints may have been insensitive and sceptical in times gone by, there is every reason for the police to test the evidence at the first opportunity, both to screen out unreliable claims and to find out whether there is a solid foundation for the offence. In effect it formed a spinal cord of the investigation and prosecution of sex crimes, and many sex crimes are in fact capable of being independently corroborated, if reported promptly. For what the direction said was that experience showed that people do, for whatever reason, make false allegations of sexual crimes, and that it was dangerous to convict on uncorroborated evidence, but, despite this caution, if the jury were sure then they could convict. When public anxiety and prejudice is excited, as in terrorism cases, an army of civil rights advocates will usually rush to the defence, though of course there are some people who pose a threat and do commit heinous crimes. Yet for over two decades now in Britain there has been a deafening silence on the issue of escalating injustice in sex trials. There is little, if any, attempt to conduct proper research and evidential reviews. This position must change. The current extent of injustice is an enormous waste on the public and private purse, in addition to being an affront to civilised values. While good defence and appeals may make a small indent, the problem, as the Criminal Cases Review Commission is occasionally moved to suggest, is endemic within the system of justice itself. In short, it is a political problem - and that is where the change must begin. Margaret Jervis is a legal researcher and consultant. Chris Saltrese a solicitor in Southport specialising in contested sexual abuse allegations see: www.chrissaltrese.co.uk
Contested sex offence allegations?...
•
Assistance with all Prison Law issues, in particular CCRC Applications, Adjudications and Parole Board Hearings Specialists in all aspects of Criminal Law with particular expertise in Serious Crime and Fraud Cases and Confiscation Proceedings
For a prompt service please contact
Gareth Martin or Sarah Bull 19 Ralli Courts West Riverside Manchester M3 5FT 0161 831 5535
approved member of the Serious Fraud Panel
…serving clients in the interests of justice
For advice and representation at trial and on appeal 13 Scarisbrick New Road Southport, PR8 6PU
Tel:
01704 535 512
Fax: 01704 533 056
email:
[email protected] www.chrissaltrese.co.uk
Legal Advice
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
Confiscation Orders Matters to bear in mind before the trial
Aziz Rahman and Jonathan Lennon When facing a criminal trial it is all too easy to put all your energy into your defence. Some, however, will have one eye on the bigger picture. What happens to my assets if I do get convicted? We cannot, in this relatively brief article, give a guide to the law on confiscation and the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA); all we can hope to do is introduce some of the considerations that may be worth assessing before a case comes to trial. Criminal Lifestyle Confiscation Orders are a sentencing tool. Once a Defendant stands convicted before the Crown Court, and the prosecution have asked for a confiscation order, then the POCA regime kicks in; the Court must proceed to s6, the confiscation scheme. Section 6(4) defines the depth and scope of the final Order; it provides that the Court must decide whether the convicted Defendant has a ‘criminal lifestyle’ or whether he has just benefited from his ‘particular criminal conduct’. By s75 a Defendant has a criminal lifestyle if the offence is one specified in Schedule 2 of the Act. This is a list of offences under, e.g. the Drug Trafficking Act, the Terrorism Act, the Immigration Act 1971, money laundering, people trafficking, arms trafficking, counterfeiting, intellectual property crimes (copyright infringement), pimping and brothel-keeping and blackmail. If convicted of one of these offences then you are deemed to have a ‘criminal lifestyle’. The other way to have a criminal lifestyle is if the conviction: (a) constitutes conduct forming part of a course of criminal activity or (b) it is an offence committed over a period of at least 6 months and the Defendant has benefited from the conduct which constitutes the offence. Conduct forms part of a course of criminal activity if the Defendant has benefited from the conduct and he was convicted at the trial of 3 or more other offences for which he gained benefit, or he has in the last 6 years been convicted “on at least two separate occasions of an offence constituting conduct from which he benefited.” Effect of having a criminal lifestyle If the Defendant has a criminal lifestyle, then under s6(4)(b) the Court must decide whether he has benefited from his ‘general criminal conduct’ and if so, by how much. In doing this the Court will apply the statutory assumptions under s10 to the past 6 years, e.g. any property transferred to the Defendant in that period was obtained through crime and that any expenditure by him in the past 6 years was met from the proceeds of crime. This means the Court, when trying to determine how much a Defendant has benefited from crime, will not be restricted to the crime the accused has just been convicted of but will instead ‘assume’ that the Defendant has a criminal lifestyle and that all monies/property received in the past 6 years derive from his general criminal conduct. The prosecution will attempt to list all the major transactions over the last 6year period and invite the Court to apply the assumptions.
Avoiding the assumptions The lifestyle finding in itself is not the problem – it is the assumptions that follow that is the worry. There are two ways of avoiding the assumptions under s10(6). Firstly, the Court cannot make the assumption if it “is shown to be incorrect”, so if the Defendant can show that a particular source of income was entirely legitimate then the assumption cannot be made that it wasn’t. Secondly, an assumption can be avoided if “there would be a serious risk of injustice if the assumption were made.” This could include so called ‘double-counting’ – where the Crown’s generous calculations appear to include property considered more than once.
It may be that there is a plea of guilty in your case. If that is the case then very careful consideration should be given to a Basis of Plea document, as this document just might limit the scope of any further confiscation proceedings; see R v Lunnon [2005] 1 Cr. App. R (S) 24; R v Lazarus [2005] 1 Cr. App. R (S) 98, CA and R v Bakewell [2006] EWCA Crim 2.
If found to have a criminal lifestyle, the prosecution can pursue you for everything you have, and in some cases haven’t got. Otherwise the Crown is stuck with the benefit from the offence that the Defendant has just been convicted of. So what practical steps can be taken to try and protect against a possible lifestyle finding if convicted?
Benefit Even where property is obtained only partly in connection with criminal conduct it is treated as if it were wholly so obtained; s76(6). The amount of benefit is the value of the property obtained. This means all the property obtained not just the net profit: R v Banks [1997] 2 Cr. App. R (S) 110. So where the defendant is a courier taking money out of the UK to Ireland to launder it, the value of his benefit is the total amount he carried, not just his pay for taking it: R v Simpson [1998] 2 Cr. App. R (S). But in the case of R v Olubitan [2004] 2 Cr. App. R (S) 14; the Court of Appeal refused to uphold this stringent interpretation of benefit. In that case, the defendant did not obtain any property out of or in connection with his criminal conduct; he had joined in the conspiracy on the day of his arrest and the Court of Appeal found there was no basis for a confiscation order to be made against him.
Admissions Admissions under s10 of the Criminal Justice Act 1967 can be very helpful to Defendants. For example, a Defendant on a money-laundering charge may well have a legitimate income – if that fact and some details of income can be accepted by the prosecution, rather than having to call witnesses, then at least a convicted Defendant can point out to the Judge that it should be beyond dispute that there was some legitimate income in an attempt at avoiding the statutory assumptions. This can of course all be done post conviction but securing a s10 admission during trial will limit the prosecution’s assertions in the later confiscation proceedings.
The issue of benefit has always caused problems and will continue to do so. One aspect which is particularly difficult is the principle of apportionment; i.e. should a benefit be divided between the convicted defendants or should the whole value be attached to each defendant. The legislation seems to provide for the latter and caselaw has upheld this apparently unjust result; see e.g. R. v. Patel [2000] 2 Cr.App.R.(S.) 10, CA. The House of Lords is considering an appeal at the moment in a case called R. v. May [2005] 3 All E.R. 523, CA where guidance on when apportionment between co-defendants can be directed is expected; judgment likely March 2008.
SOLI CI TOR S Rahman Ravelli Solicitors have a particular expertise in Human Rights related Criminal Defence and Serious Crime.
SERIOUS CRIME DEPARTMENT Our team of dedicated lawyers have wide ranging Experience of defending cases of significant Complexity & seriousness. We appoint only specialist counsel, queen's counsel and experts who have passed our vigorous vetting procedures. We understand in such cases you deserve No-nonsense advice and individual attention.
CRIMINAL DEFENCE DEPARTMENT Our firm has developed an expertise in defending cases involving large scale police operations which affect human rights related issues such as: Use of covert listening devices informers and use of undercover policingvideo and other visual surveillance Public Interest Immunity applications The introduction of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 and the Human Rights Act 1998 offer both opportunities and pitfalls. Contact our Criminal Defence Department for advice
Call:
01422 346666 (24 Hour)
Saracen House, 10 Pellon Lane, Halifax HX1 5SP. www.rahmanravelli.co.uk Appointed to the Legal Services Commission Specialist Fraud Panel
✍
29
Drugs Cases Drug cases are notorious for producing some very Draconian Confiscation Orders. However, it is as well to remember that the general principle in assessing a benefit figure is to assess the value of the property, e.g. your house, at the market value of the property at the time of the confiscation hearing (s79(2)). Drugs however have no legitimate market value, so someone caught in possession with a large quantity of drugs would, in theory, be able to avoid the value of this for confiscation purposes. The Courts get round this problem by applying the logic that the drugs themselves were purchased from the proceeds of previous dealing, therefore the Defendant could be said to have benefited from drug trafficking to the value of the drugs in his possession; see R v Dore [1997] 2 Cr. App R (S) 152. However, the Courts cannot just make assumptions about previous dealing, there must be evidence of this; only then do the statutory assumptions apply, see R v Williams [2001] 2 Cr. App R (S) 206. R v Ajibade 28.2.06 (CA) was a case of a drugs’ courier caught at Heathrow. There was clearly no evidence that she had purchased the drugs herself – never mind from the proceeds of drugs dealing. In those circumstances there was no finding that the value of the drugs in effect represented their purchase price, see also R v Hussain 28.2.06 and now R v Green Times Law Reps 15/6/07. Furthermore, where the Crown supply figures to the Court based on street level values, the Court of Appeal has reduced final orders on the basis that the appellant must have purchased the dugs wholesale: see R v Berry [2000] Cr. App. R (S) 352; value reduced by 20%. Also, if pre-trial it can be established that your defence includes, for example, an assertion that you have a legitimate income or that your lifestyle can be explained by some other legitimate income stream, say gambling or being an amateur antique seller, then those assertions become part of your defence case. That being so the prosecution are under a duty to investigate. If you are confident enough to be able to specifically plead certain transactions in a Defence Statement then the police will have to look into these assertions. Maybe neither party uses the material produced but you would be entitled to disclosure of it and use of it at any later confiscation proceedings. It is sometimes nigh on impossible for the defence to obtain materials such as bank statements etc from third parties, which is why it is always worth considering using the resources of the State to tactically assist you if appropriate. If, on the other hand, the police do not diligently investigate your defence then this is some ammunition for making an application to avoid the statutory assumptions after any conviction. Conclusion Confiscation proceedings under POCA are quite separate from the trial and sentencing procedures. But sometimes you can start to protect yourself at and before the trial stage; it all depends on the particular facts of the case. Knowing the case inside out and understanding the defence ‘theory of the case’ is important – then at least the defence team can start thinking about possible tactical admissions, crossexamination points and issues about legitimate income etc. As usual, early preparation is the key.
Aziz Rahman is a Solicitor-Advocate and Partner at the leading Criminal Defence firm Rahman Ravelli Solicitors, specialising in Human Rights, Financial Crime and Large Scale Conspiracies/Serious crime. Rahman Ravelli are members of the Specialist Fraud Panel. Jonathan Lennon is a Barrister specialising in serious and complex criminal defence cases and Prison Law at 23 Essex Street Chambers in London. He is former co-editor of the Prison Law Reports.
30
Legal Q&A
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
A In response to your concerns, I can confirm
Inside Time Legal Forum Answers to readers’ legal queries are given on a strictly without liability basis. If you propose acting upon any of the opinions that appear, you must first take legal advice. Replies for the Legal Forum kindly provided by Frank Brazell & Partners; Levys Solicitors; Parlby Calder Solicitors; Stephensons Crime; Stevens Solicitors; Henry Hyams Solicitors; Morgans Solicitors - see advertisements for full details. Send your legal queries (concise and clearly marked ‘legal’) to Inside Time ‘Legal Query’ PO Box 251 Hedge End Hampshire SO30 4XJ. For a prompt response, readers are reminded to send their queries on white paper using black ink or typed if possible. which gives power to recall to the Release and Recall section at the Home Office. Ordinarily it is the supervising probation officer who instigates a request for recall. This can be on the basis of a wide range of circumstances including the behaviour which can lead to an arrest for further offences or breach of licence conditions. Once the revocation order has been granted, the prisoner will be arrested and taken back to prison if not already in custody. After arriving back in prison the prisoner should be provided with a dossier, which includes reports on his behaviour and the reasons behind the recall. The prisoner is then entitled to make representations against the recall and request an oral hearing with the Parole Board. The Parole Board will consider whether the recall was appropriate and can decide to release immediately, at a future date, or at sentence expiry.
From: Mr M HMP Holme House: Q I have recently been recalled to prison for being drunk and disorderly and also criminal damage to the sum of £10. The drunk and disorderly was for wandering in a back lane at 11 o’clock at night and the criminal damage was for rocking a paper towel dispenser off the wall in the police station. The offence for which I was on licence was a Section 18. I was at Court and my solicitor told me it is not in the public interest to go ahead with the charges as I had been in prison for 3 weeks. My solicitor also told me that it wasn’t probation that breached me but MAPPA. My probation officer has indicated that she is willing for me to carry on with my licence as I haven’t been as much as late for an appointment, so could you give me some idea how much licence I will have to serve before release?
There are a number of special considerations which may also affect you if your sentence was an extended sentence or it was imposed before April 2005. In all cases you should seek legal advice from a specialised solicitor to advise further. MAPPA stands for Multi Agency Public Protection Arrangements and these arrangements in general deal with how offenders are to be managed with particular regard to risk levels. Each offender is categorised at a level (1 to 3) and this dictates how much monitoring and supervision should take place.
...............................................
From: Mr C HMP Stocken: Q I am a lifer and my life licence was revoked
A In respect of your recall, it is difficult to give
due to being charged with robbery. My revoke dossier contained the reason my licence was revoked, but it also contained full details of an incident that occurred 6 weeks previously and had already been dealt with by the Probation Service by way of a written warning.
a specific response as you have not given some of the important detail about your sentence and when it was imposed. I have assumed that you were sentenced to a straightforward determinate term of imprisonment and that the sentence was imposed after April 2005. If this is correct, you will have been recalled under the provisions of the Criminal Justice Act 2003,
I was found not guilty of the robbery charge but was then recalled due to the previous incident. My question is this: if the incident for which I was given a written warning was not the reason that my licence was revoked, then should that incident have been mentioned in the revoke dossier?
“With 15 years’ experience in Prison Law and Litigation” • Lifer Parole • License Recalls • Confiscation Orders • Judicial Reviews For a friendly, approachable firm you can trust,
call 01392 202404 (South West Region) Contact Frank Goddard, County Chambers, 75 Queen Street, Exeter, Devon EX4 3RX APPROACH ABLE
U N D E R S TA N D A B L E
ACCESSIBLE
that your previous Probation Service warning can be included in the dossier. This is because the Parole Board is entitled to see all the information related to your risk of re-offending on release, including your response to supervision (i.e. how that risk is being managed in the community). Having said this, your recent acquittal will count positively towards any release decision.
...............................................
From: Mr T HMP Holme House: Q I was sentenced to 17 months imprisonment in July 2007 and given EPP. As this is my first sentence, I wonder if the Court can give me EPP and, if so, when my parole date is due, and if I have successfully completed all my courses, do they have the right to keep me beyond that date? My offences were Section 47 Assault, possession of an offensive weapon and an extra 3 months for previous offences. I was told by the Judge to use my time in prison to sort my head out as I was suffering from depression and mental health problems. Now I feel better than I ever have done before and I’m concerned that if I spend any more than half my time in here I may become depressed again.
A You question the legality of your sentence. This is a matter of criminal law and, as such, I regret that I cannot advise you further about it. As far as your other questions are concerned, I can tell you that you will be eligible for release halfway through your custodial tariff. You should bear this in mind and approach the Parole Clerk/Officer for further advice. Your initial Parole application should be submitted 26 weeks before your release date. You ask about the effect of completing offender courses upon your chances of release. Taking these courses successfully can increase your chances of release significantly but there are no guarantees because the Parole Board needs to decide whether you pose a low enough risk of re-offending in the community to justify releasing you. In doing so they will consider your original offence, prison discipline and general behaviour as well as offender courses and many other factors. All are important.
...............................................
From: Mr B HMP Bedford: Q I seek your help in a situation in which I’ve found myself. I am serving a 4 year sentence for a dwelling burglary. I have been in prison since October 2004. I was doing 8 months for a breach of ASBO. I went onto remand on 14th
February 2005 and got sentenced on 8th March 2005. Since then, in August 2006, I have been sectioned under the Mental Health Act 1983 (47-49). I was returned to prison in August 2007 and now my Parole date of 18th May 2007 has gone. On 16th September 2007 I was given some papers to sign. I gave them back on 17th September and then on 19th September was transferred here to HMP Bedford. I have asked here about my Parole and they don’t know anything about it! Could you let me know how to go about trying to get my Parole hearing? My release date is 16th February 2008.
A You state that your release date is 16th February 2008. You further state that you lodged (what I assume to be) Parole papers with (I assume) the Parole Officer at your prison on 17th September 2007. Actually the Parole process takes some time (26 weeks) and your Dossier and Reports do not officially have to be disclosed to you until 9 weeks from 17th September. This means that you should have them during or about the week of 19th November. If this does not happen you need urgently to contact the Parole Officer.
............................................... From: Mr D HMP Grendon: Q On my previous sentence I was
given added days and quite a few at that! But it was around the time in 2002 when all additional days (loss of remission) were rewarded back to prisoners and some prisoners were automatically released because they were serving their added days. I was given added days at this time, except when the law came in I had just been released. Where does this leave me in terms of possible compensation because I was illegally held? It was 5 years ago, so is there a time limit and am I past it? I can provide all information of my added days as my previous file is with me on this new sentence.
A You wish to obtain compensation for extra days served in 2002. Sadly, whether or not you were held unlawfully, the time has long passed when you could claim compensation for it. Special remission is a totally public decision. This means only the High Court could consider your case, via a Judicial Review. The time limit for this would have been 3 months from the time you were held for the extra days. After five years there is nothing further that can be done. ill be reviewed again one year after this decision and if on this second occasion you are refused parole, you will automatically be released on licence once the custodial sentence has been served in full.
Levys SOLICITORS
REPRESENTATION AT ADJUDICATIONS BY THE EXPERTS LEVYS SOLICITORS - NATIONWIDE SERVICE WE SPECIALISE IN • ADJUDICATIONS • JUDICIAL REVIEW • PAROLE REVIEWS/LIFER HEARINGS • IPP & EXTENDED SENTENCES • CATEGORY A REVIEWS & RECATEGORISATION • RECALL CHALLENGES • CRIMINAL APPEALS • CONFISCATION ORDER/PROCEEDS OF CRIME
For immediate and confidential advice contact a member of the team on:
0161 233 6600 Prison Law Yasmin Aslam Margaret McNally
Criminal Appeals Benjamin Knight
Levys Solicitors Manchester House 84-86 Princess Street Street Manchester M1 6NG
Legal Q&A
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
31
BANKS ON SENTENCE Answers by Robert Banks, a barrister who writes Banks on Sentence, the book the Judges use for sentencing more than any other. www.banksr.com Q
I came from South America and overstayed. I needed to work. I also needed to show I had a bank account. The bank needed certain documents, which I didn’t have so I used someone else’s. The bank became suspicious when I tried to withdraw money and called the police. I pleaded to possessing a false identity document. I received 6 months, less 7 days served. Do I have an appeal? My barrister said I didn’t.
A I am afraid the barrister was right. The Court of Appeal has recently considered this and has held that the gravity of this type of offence is that it undermines the system of letting people stay whilst prohibiting them from working. The Court then upheld a similar sentence to yours. I hope their ruling is reconsidered soon because if burglars are regularly given community service on a plea, I don’t see why you should be treated more harshly. I can see the problem that you may not be eligible for community service because you cannot remain in the country anymore, but the sentence could be suspended. I would have thought 7 days and/or a suspended sentence was enough. No wonder the prisons are full. I suspect if you had pleaded at the Magistrates your sentence might have been different, yet if you were
charged with possession with intent to use the document to “establish registrable facts” you have to be dealt with in the Crown Court.
Q
I was convicted of murder. I was a crack addict and relied on burglary to pay for the drugs. At night I was caught in a kitchen and the man came towards me. I picked up a knife and stabbed him. I could not face being banged up again. I did not want to kill him. My plea of self-defence failed. I received a minimum term of 23 years; that is a very long time as I will have to serve all of that. I am told there is no chance on appeal. Why not?
A I have little to go on but I would be surprised if you had a chance on appeal. David Blunkett in his Criminal Justice Act 2003 increased the minimum terms for many types of murder. The Act laid down the starting point for a murder done in the “course or furtherance of a robbery or burglary” was 30 years. That is 30 years before you can be considered for release and with no remission. You received no discount for a plea, as there was none. Your drug addiction is no mitigation. You clearly have previous convictions. I expect the Court of Appeal would consider that the seven-year discount from the 30 years
HAYES-BURCOMBE & Co We can provide you with specialist legal advice, assistance and representation in the following matters: • • • •
PRISON LAW • APPEALS & CCRC CASES • MAGISTRATE COURT CASES • JUDICIAL REVIEWS • • CONFISCATION
CROWN COURT CASES/VHCC's EXTRADITION/TERRORISM CONTACT WITH CHILDREN FAMILY MATTERS PROCEEDINGS
We cover all aspects of Prison Law including: Tariff Settings, Adjudications, Re-categorisation, Mandatory & Automatic Lifer Reviews, Parole Refusal, Cat ‘A’ Reviews, Transfers and Licence Recalls. We offer a service throughout England & Wales and visit clients in custody. No prison is too far or out of the way for us to attend.
For immediate help and assistance call
020 7348 5100 or write to either Julian Hayes or David Wells @
Hayes-Burcombe & Co 7 Cambridge Court 210 Shepherds Bush Rd London, W6 7NJ
The Children Panel
[email protected]
www.hayes-burcombe.co.uk
did take into account the fact that you did not intend to kill the victim and you did not take the knife with you. Last year they dealt with a similar case and their approach supports your barrister’s advice that there is no prospect of a successful appeal. If you have not received a written advice from your barrister about the sentence you should ask for one.
Q I am a boxer and expecting a long sentence. Can I stop the sentence being passed by refusing to leave the cells? A No. The Judge can order you to attend. However most judges would rather sensibly carry on without you, which of course is easier for the court. By refusing to attend you are likely to come across as arrogant and someone who enjoys defying the powers that be. You will not be able to see your court case. Your mitigation is likely to be overshadowed by what the judge will think is your belligerent behaviour. My advice would be to work with your legal team to reduce the likely sentence rather than trying to increase it.
Q I am awaiting sentence for importing drugs. I have an Italian passport. I have lived in London with my girlfriend for 3 years and I don’t want to be deported back to Naples. Does the principle of
the free movement of people in the EEC mean that I cannot be deported?
A No, I am afraid not. Whereas defendants without a European Community passport have the rules determined by case law, defendants with a European Community passport have the rules set by Treaty as interpreted by the European Court of Justice. Although a 2006 Directive confers on EU citizens enhanced rights to remain in member states, it is still possible to deport EU nationals. The basic principles are, no recommendation can be made without a full judicial enquiry, the judge must be satisfied that the defendant’s presence represents “a genuine and sufficiently serious threat to the requirements of public policy affecting one of the fundamental interests of society”, a previous conviction is not in itself a basis for making a recommendation and the defendant’s record with the offence which is before the court indicate that it is likely he will offend will be a very important consideration.
Unless you say you don’t want your question and answer published it will be assumed you don’t have an objection. No-one will have their identity revealed
32
Book reviews
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
Cameron: The Rise of The New Conservative by Francis Elliott & James Hanning Jane Andrews wonders whether Tory leader David Cameron is being somewhat Machiavellian in his aspiring political career Is David Cameron a ‘typical Etonian’? According to one old school chum, he is a “natural Etonian ... confident, entitled, gracious, secure” ... but as another pointed out in this biography of his life he is ... “a bit too ‘To the Manor Born’ for my liking”.
friends out for a day on the river. One of these friends was Jade, daughter of the singer Mick Jagger, who called Cameron's mother, far from pleased to hear that his daughter had been participating in blood sports! Mary Cameron "dipping lightly into her reserves of breeding and politesse, explained gently that ‘punting' is what one does in a punt, and that his daughter had enjoyed an entirely peaceful afternoon punting on the river".
Between the plutocracies of the world of politics, here we have a man who is very much the paterfamilias in his private life, and has always stated that his family comes first, before politics, and always will.
Some may say this is to do with breeding, but I do not agree, it merely shows that not all of us have the privileges that some have ... of course Mick Jagger does these days, but he was far from born with a silver spoon in his mouth, let alone a canteen of cutlery!
In reading this book, I am not expressing my political status, this is not my intention, I am merely showing how very different someone's life can evolve if they are born into status as opposed to working their way to the top. For example, Cameron has been likened to his post-war counterparts such as Winston Churchill, who descended from a duke, also having a private school education. However, you then had the likes of John Major; son of a garden gnome manufacturer; through to Michael Howard's father who was a Romanian immigrant. So does this mean that Britain is obsessed by class? If Cameron is not a snob does it merely mean he is old-fashioned, with old family values, or is he being Machiavellian in his aspiring political career? Only time will tell...
Sandra Howard had in fact looked at the ‘codes housekeeping standards' and had commented on such matters of bed linen and food, and felt that ‘a balanced and nutritious diet were giving
Kaj & Co Solicitors Criminal and Prison law specialists
Freephone 0800 023 2375
Criminal Defence and Prison Law Offering
Nationwide Service • All Criminal Court Proceedings • Parole Applications • Licence Recall • Appeals • Adjudications • Re-categorisation Contact
David Rees or Simon Palmer Davies & Jones 32 The Parade, Roath, Cardiff, CF24 3AD
Tel: 029 2046 5296 or 24 Hour Emergency Number: 079 7096 9357
Cameron: The Rise of the New Conservative is available in all good bookshops Jane Andrews is currently resident in HMP Send
For the image conscious
He may well have quickly risen to being one of Michael Howard's young advisers in the Home Office between 1993-1994, but it was not a surprise to Howard when Cameron announced that he would be taking a job outside of politics.
There are many anecdotes throughout, but one that made me not only laugh but also cringe was a story that Cameron ‘adores retelling' when he was at Oxford University and took
Specialising in
Michael Green, Cameron's boss at Carlton, just happened to be a longstanding friend of Lady
Could it be said that behind every successful man is a strong woman? Well, in the case of the rise of David Cameron this could well be the case.
His first break came in the shape of working in the Conservative Research Department in 1988. However, some could say this only came about because of the ‘judicious prodding of a ‘phantom string-puller’ from the Royal Household. Of course something those indoors have always vehemently denied.
I did at times find parts of the book very amusing if not informative in getting to know how the said David Cameron ticks, even if he leaves himself wide open to criticism for being called a pompous snob!
SOLICITORS
Cameron moved onto his new job but did he get this on his own merit ... umm ‘No’. This time it came in the figure of Annabel Astor, married to Viscount William Astor, and yes, before you ask, Astor of Cliveden, aka ‘The Profumo Scandal’ that rocked the world of politics in the 1960s. Even William Astor was true to form in 2004 when he too had an illicit affair with Michael Howard's political secretary. Talk about keeping it in the family!
One thing that left a ‘mark’ on me throughout is that Cameron is a family man, who clearly adores his wife Samantha. When their first son Ivan was born with severe epilepsy and cerebral palsy, a senior colleague in the political forum is quoted as saying … “He'd walk around with the baby in a basket, he'd come to every meeting ... where Cameron had previously appeared arrogant, this was a real leveller”.
As the old adage says, ‘It's not what you know, but who you know', which allows me to go onto the subject of nepotism throughout Cameron's life.
Maybe Howard's, or should I say that of Howard's wife Sandra's draconian opinions on the state of the country’s prison system at that time makes you wonder if he wholeheartedly agreed with his radical views. Was this the reason he then moved into public relations, or was it just a very shrewd manoeuvre on his part?
DAVIES & JONES
today's offenders more than they deserved.' Moreover, on the subject of linen, Howard's suggestion was a change of blankets three times a year! Can you imagine!
Astor, whose daughter Samantha had recently become secretly engaged to Cameron. So once again Cameron had a help up the career ladder. This book in fact shows how remarkably quickly the Tory leader has risen up the greasy pole of politics. Moreover, throughout has more ‘spin’ than a spinning top in his children's play-box.
Are you facing serious criminal charges? Have you just received a knock back or nicked? We can assist you in all aspects of criminal and prison law matters including:
The new century is barely seven years old and yet there have been many wonderful moments for sports fans to savour. Heroes have risen, flourished and faded. Reuters has produced a stunning publication to relate the story of our sporting century so far. In Sport in the 21st Century, the leading news agency presents more than 750 images from its foremost photographers, spanning sports from athletics to wrestling from bog snorkelling to elephant polo and from the Henley Royal Regatta to Bavarian finger wrestling. There are also photo essays on giants of sport, including one on Diego Maradona, the last hero (or should that be villain?) of the 20th century, whose decline in health and into ignominy was as distressing as his rise was uplifting. You can view 200 of the photographs in a free outdoors exhibition at More Riverside London, beside Tower Bridge, until January 25. The book is available at £24.99 from Thames & Hudson.
MW
• Reprsentation in all aspects of criminal proceedings • Appeals against conviction or sentence • Adjudications
McMillan Williams Solicitors
• Home Detention Curfew
PRISONERS LEGAL RIGHTS - CAN WE HELP?
• Re-categorisation
We specialise in Criminal Defence work & all aspects of Prison Law including:
• Transfer • Parole • Licence • Recall • MDT & VDT
Criminal Defence Service
Community Legal Service
• Closed visits • Lifer reviews
Contact Ken Jokosenumi at 406 Holloway Road London N7 6PZ Tel: 0207 700 7826 Fax 020 7700 7819
• Licence Recalls • Parole Reviews • Adjudications
• Categorisation • Transfers • HDC
Please contact Sashon Samuels or Tamla Campbell
M c M i l l a n Wi l l i a m s 9 Beddington Gardens Wallington Surrey SM6 0HU
Te l : 0 2 0 8 6 6 9 4 9 6 2 Mobile: 07958 004489
Book Reviews
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
Cover up by John Francome Lucy Charman reviews the latest novel by a former top jockey and racing legend You don’t have to be a horse-racing fan to enjoy John Francome’s books. They are fast and furious and although you know from the outset who is doing what, there are nifty twists and turns during the story and unlikely outcomes. I guarantee you will not want to put the book down and you will be disappointed when you finish it. Cover Up is centred round a stud farm that has bred a Classics winner, Goldeneye. An ex-trainer commits suicide because of one of Goldeneye’s owners. A Czech stable-girl gets murdered after her former and violent lover appears on the scene, and a horse gets the blame even though we know who really did it, don’t we? Her brother, Goldeneye’s jockey, is out for blood and gets pretty close but not how you would expect. The reader will spend a lot of time trying to work out how middle-class ladies are making a killing on the betting in the first race at Hampton Water, and why are they only placing their bets at one shop? And why does Rose, the ex-trainer’s daughter, have a liaison every Sunday in church? Not your usual venue for ‘a bit on the side’ and difficult to conceal when her husband decides to go to church as well. The ‘supposed’ good guy resorts to a little pornographic blackmail and there is a very unlikely hero racing to rescue the damsel in distress. The plot resembles one of those children’s puzzles where you have to follow the string through various routes and tangles to find out which child has what toy. Having said that, you don’t have to keep going back on yourself and the storylines all gel together perfectly. Francome’s books are a little ‘racier’ (excuse the pun) than those by Dick Francis, but the stories bring racing to life without getting technical - combined with a jolly good yarn. I have never been disappointed by any of John Francombe’s books and I don’t think you will be.
Cover up by John Francome is available in all good bookshops.
Wilson & Co Solicitors If you feel that your rights have been ignored, contact our specialist team for free, independent and friendly advice. PAROLE REVIEWS MANDATORY LIFE SENTENCE REVIEWS ADJUDICATIONS/MDTS JUDICIAL REVIEW FAMILY MATTERS HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES
Contact Paul Wilson Wilson & Co 56 Avenue Road Hartlepool TS24 8AT
01429 869523 *************
“YOUR VOICE IN THE NORTH EAST”
33
A book to read before you die
A Christmas Carol
Sponsors of Inside Time’s Book Review section
More teachers urgently needed
Charles Dickens First Published 1843, by Chapman & Hall Full Title A Christmas Carol, in Prose: Being a Ghost Story of Christmas Over the course of a single Christmas Eve a miserly misanthrope, Ebeneezer Scrooge, relives five incidents from his past, visits scenes from the present Christmas to Twelfth Night, and is presented with a vision of a future that connects his own death to that of the child of Bob Cratchit, his long suffering clerk. Accompanied upon these journeys by a trio of supernatural guides, Scrooge finally repents and makes amends to those he has ill treated. The story is darkly comic and tinged with pathos, making the customary Dickensian appeal to the transforming power of sentiment. While Dickens's novels became increasingly pessimistic about there ever being a society that would honor its obligations to the poor and the dispossessed, this issue is neatly sidestepped here. The prevailing fantasy of the story is that a softening of character rather than a more radical transformation of socioeconomic structures is sufficient to bring about social harmony. It is perhaps because of, rather than in spite of, this collective wish
We have recently received a large donation of books from the London School of Economics. All these books are available free to prisoners. Please write to us directly, telling us if you are interested in receiving books on the following topics:
Management techniques; Training; Personal Development; Communication techniques; Human Resources; Using electronic tools (i.e. Internet, Intranet, etc..) to improve business performance. We will send a maximum of two books per request, as the books are quite heavy and the postage costs will be high. Haven Distribution 27 Old Gloucester Street London EC1N 3XX
TAYLOR NICHOL SOLICITORS
PRISON LAW - ADJUDICATIONS MISCARRIAGES OF JUSTICE CRIMINAL DEFENCE LAWYERS We represented: R v Bridgewater (Hickey,Hickey & Robinson) R v Pendleton (leading House of Lords case) R v Rowe, Davis & Johnson (M25)
Contact JAMIE LAKE TAYLOR NICHOL 3 Station Place London N4 2DH
0207 272 8336 email :
[email protected]
fulfilment at the heart of the narrative that the novel has consolidated its reputation, not least through numerous film and stage adaptations. Ultimately, though, it is the masterful storytelling that will ensure A Christmas Carol's popularity. It would be a stony heart indeed that did not warm to its charms.
The Shannon Trust’s reading programme ‘Toe by Toe’ reaches prisoners that the educational system cannot engage, and 4000 prisoners a year learn to read through this unique programme. The principle of using prisoners to teach other prisoners how to read has several advantages, not least of which is they are a huge resource to help the tens of thousands of prisoners who cannot read. The reading programme requires very little training. On average, teachers are competent within a few weeks of starting the programme and an average prisoner can learn to read from scratch in 4 - 6 months. Many teachers find the work so rewarding they teach up to five learners at a time. All of our teachers are passionate supporters of the reading programme and many now say they want to enter teaching or skills training when they are released from prison.
Top: 1970’s BBC adaptation of ‘A Christmas Carol’. Above: The ghost of Marley appears to Scrooge in one of John Leech’s handcoloured engravings that illustrated the first edition (inset).
Could you help by becoming a teacher and in turn help others to enjoy reading? Contact your education department or write to The Shannon Trust Freepost RLZZ-UTGG-ETJS
O'KEEFFE SOLICIT ORS APPEALS, PRISON LAW, CRIMINAL DEFENCE AND IMMIGRATION SPECIALISTS
For free effective, determined and no nonsense assistance with all appeals, criminal matters, immigration issues and prison law call or write to us at any time…. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
One of the leading criminal defence & immigration law firms in the UK We a l t h o f e x p e r i e n c e w i t h a l l t y p e s o f c r i m i n a l c a s e s Sp e c i a l i s ts i n s e r i o u s f r a u d a n d o t h e r c o m p l e x c r i m e s L e g a l a i d a n d p r i v a t e w o r k u n d e r ta k e n U n d e r ta k e a l l M a g i s t r a t e s ' C o u r t a n d C r o w n C o u r t c a s e s E x p e r ts i n i n v e s t i g a t i n g a n d b r i n g i n g a l l t y p e s o f a p p e a l s A s s i s t p r i s o n e r s t o a s s e r t t h e i r r i g h ts E x p e r t i s e i n m o u n t i n g J u d i c i a l R e v i e w s a n d Sta t u t o r y R e v i e w s Experienced in prison adjudication hearings H e l p w i t h c o m p l a i n ts , t r a n s f e r s a n d o t h e r p r o b l e m s Skilled in representing lifers for setting of minimum term Highly successful Parole Board hearing advocates Based in London but cover all of the UK D e d i c a t e d a d v i s e r s a b l e t o a s s i s t w i t h a l l d e p o r ta t i o n i s s u e s We c a n h e l p b o t h c o n v i c t e d a n d r e m a n d p r i s o n e r s
A MEMBER OF THE SERIOUS F RAUD PANEL Contact: Marcus Bonnell O'Keeffe Solicitors, Prisons Department 1B Dyne Road London NW6 7XG Te l : 0 2 0 7 6 4 4 8 8 0 0 E-mail:
[email protected] EMERGENCY TEL : 020 7440 5199(24/7)
34
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
Jailbreak
TWENTY QUESTIONS T O TEST YOUR GENERAL KNOWLEDGE
DO NOT TALK TO MY PARROT!!!
1. Which former editor of the Sunday Times presents TV's This Week? Alison’s dishwasher suddenly stopped working so she called a repairman. Since she had to go to work the next day, she told the repairman, "I'll leave the key under the mat. Fix the dishwasher, leave the bill on the counter, and I'll post you a cheque."
2. What is the name of the popular brand of soft sweets, of various shapes and colours, all containing liquorice?
"Oh, by the way don't worry about my bulldog Spike. He won't bother you. But, whatever you do, do NOT, under ANY circumstances, talk to my parrot!"
5. The cathedral city of Canterbury is located in which UK county?
3. Singer KT Tunstall grew up in which country of the UK?
?
?
4. The musical The Sound of Music is set in which European country?
6. In which decade of the twentieth century was the UK voting age lowered from twenty-one to eighteen?
?
7. Originating in the Low Countries, what type of food is Limburger?
"I REPEAT, DO NOT TALK TO MY PARROT!!!" When the repairman arrived at Alison’s house the following day, he discovered the biggest, meanest looking bulldog he had ever seen. But, just as she had said, the dog just lay there on the carpet watching the repairman go about his work. The parrot, however, drove him nuts the whole time with his incessant yelling, cursing and name calling. Finally the repairman couldn't contain himself any longer and yelled, "Shut up, you stupid, ugly bird!" To which the parrot replied, "Get him, Spike!"
8. The dance called the Lambada originated in which South American country?
?
9. Which British artist had songs in the 1980s with 'I Guess That's Why They Call It the Blues' and 'Little Jeannie'? 10. Before she married, what was singer and actress Madonna's maiden name? 11. By what stage name is the Irish singer-songwriter George Ivan Morrison better known? 12. Which colour was the body dye known as woad, used by the ancient Britons?
?
13. From the French for 'red stick', what is the name of the Louisiana state capital?
Mind G ames
14. Which group had hits in the 1960s with 'Ferry 'Cross The Mersey' and 'I like It'?
?
15. In 1901, who became twenty-sixth president of the USA, following the assassination of President McKinley? Good or Evil?
Optical or Illusion?
Now read this again, one word at a time! Me or You?
?
16. In mathematics, what is the opposite of multiplication?
17. In 2000, which popular author also starred in the West End production of his play The Accused?
?
18. In 1998, which female gardening expert joined the TV series Ground Force? 19. Which world-famous ballet company is based in Moscow, Russia? 20. In which US state was President John F. Kennedy born?
Teach or Learn?
ANSWERS CAN BE FOUND ON THE BACK PAGE PAGE
Inside K nowledge The p rize q uiz w here w e g ive y ou t he Q uestions a nd t he A nswers ! A ll t he a nswers a re w ithin this issue o f I nside T ime - a ll y ou h ave t o d o i s f ind t hem ! ! 1. Louise Shorter laments the axing of Rough Justice after how many years?
10. How long did John Straffen spend in prison?
? ? ? ? ? ?
?
11. How many counsellors and therapists descended on New York survivors?
2. Who is not fanatically 'PC' or lacking a sense of humour?
12. Who wrote the book 'Strength to Love'?
3. Who has a number of outstanding VOs over a period of six years?
13. When will the retrial of Barry George probably take place?
4. When was Jeremy Bamber convicted of murder?
14. Who is a family man who clearly adores his wife Samantha?
5. Who has been offered a job with pay of £20,000 per year?
15. Who needs to be that boy again … no matter what the cost?
6. Who was dragged into the Ministry of Love for shouting 'Down with Big Brother' in his sleep?
The first three names to be drawn with all-correct answers (or nearest) will receive a £25 cash prize. There will also be two £5 consolation prizes drawn from all those who tried, regardless of how many answers are correct. Prize winners' names will appear in next month's issue. Send your entry to:
7. Who might well wish to portray his members as 'professional and skilled? 8. How many cases did the Parole Board handle during 2006/07?
I n s i d e Ti m e , ‘ P R I Z E Q U I Z ’ P O B o x 2 5 1 , H e d g e E n d , H a m ps h i r e S O 3 0 4 X J P l e a s e u s e a 1 s t o r 2 n d c l a s s s ta m p , a s e n t r i e s i n e n v e l o p e s w i t h i n s u f f i c i e n t p o s ta g e will not be accepted. Closing date 22/12/2007
9. When was the 'Straight to Work' project set up?
PLEASE DO NOT CUT THIS PANEL OUT, SIMPLY SEND YOUR ANSWERS ON A SEPARATE SHEET SHOWING YOUR DETAILS
Last M onth’s w inners
£
-
£25 prizes for the first 3 names drawn with 15 correct answers to
£
last month’s quiz :- John Bradley - HMP Frankland Tracy Smith - HMP New Hall Jens Larsen - HMP Moorland
£
Plus £5 Consolation prizes for: June Chase - HMP Morton Hall and Margaret James - HMP Downview
EP D
CRIMINAL DEFENCE & PRISON LAW SPECIALISTS
ERICA PEAT & DIABLE N AT I O N W I D E A D V I C E & R E P R E S E N TAT I O N O N SOLICITORS A L L A S P E C T S O F P R I S O N L AW I N C L U D I N G : For a fast, experienced and professional service • Adjudications • Judicial Review • Categorisation • Parole Review • Licence Recalls • Tarrif/Minimum Term Reviews please contact: • Criminal Appeals & CCRC Cases • HDC Applications
Simon Diable 020 8533 7999 SERIOUS CRIME SPECIALISTS WITH A TRACK 24hr Emergency RECORD OF SUCCESS IN CASES INCLUDING: 07968 358 509 write to:Erica Peat & Diable Solicitors 314 Mare Street Hackney London E8 1HA
• Murder/Attempted Murder • Rape/Serious Sexual Assault • Serious Fraud • Drugs Importation & All Drugs Offences • Blackmail • False Imprisonment • Armed Robbery
Answers to Last Month’s Inside Knowledge Prize Quiz 1. Their file 2. Richard Tunstall 3. Friedrich Nietzsche 4. The smoke free legislation (Health Act 2006) 5. Highpoint
VYMAN SOLICITORS 43 Albion Place, Maidstone Kent, ME14 5DZ Specialists in Criminal & Prison Law We can help with the following: • Adjudications • MDTS/VDTS • HDC • Lifer Reviews • Licence Recalls • Parole • Transfers • General complaints • Criminal Defence Our experienced staff can visit all clients at any prison in the South East. No case too small
6. Gerard McGrath 7. Rye Hill 8. 59 9. Ronald Castree 10. Some 6-8 billion
Parole and Recall Business Crime Issues and Confiscation Proceedings Please contact: Martin Towey, Solicitor
Freephone: 0800 801 032 www.jmw.co.uk
01622 671517
Serial killers Darren Armstrong Emma Humphreys The Ombudsman 17
Specialists in all Lifer issues.
Contact our criminal law specialists:
Wayne Crowhurst or Gurnam Mander
11. 12. 13. 14. 15.
JMW Solicitors, Freepost MR 9693, Manchester M3 8BA
35
Jailbreak
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
CAPTION C OMPETITION Last month’s £25 prize winner Paul Berry HMP Woodhill
Aramark arranged the buffet so if you ticked the right boxes when you arrived you will get your sausage rolls.
Inside Time’s Operations Director John Roberts at the celebration event of the newspaper’s 100th issue talking to guests Jim Dawkins, former prison officer and author of The Loose Screw, and Dave Courtney, former London Gangster now author and filmmaker.
Well d one P aul your £ 25 p rize i s i n t he p o s t .
- - - ANOTHER £25 PRIZE IS ON OFFER FOR THE BEST CAPTION TO THIS MONTH’S PICTURE Spice Girls Geri,Emma, Victoria and Mel C applaud fellow band member Mel B and her dancing partner Maksim Chmerkovskiy (photo inset) at the Dancing With The Stars TV show. Mel B and Maksim were runners up in the American competition
CHRISTMAS WORDSEARCH FIND THE THIRTY NINE HIDDEN CHRISTMAS RELATED WORDS ANGEL, BELLS, BUBBLY, CARDS, CAROL, CHRISTMAS TREE, CHRISTMAS WISHES, DECORATIONS, ELVES, FAIRY, FATHER CHRISTMAS, FROST, GROTTO, HAPPY NEW YEAR, HOLLY, IVY, JESUS, MERRIMENT, MERRY CHRISTMAS, MINCE PIES, MISTLETOE, NATIVITY, NUTS, PRESENTS, PUD, REINDEERS, ROBIN, SAINT NICHOLAS, SANTA, SNOW, SOUND OF MUSIC, STABLE, STOCKING, THE GREAT ESCAPE, THREE KINGS,TINSEL,TUMS,TURKEY, YULE.
CHECK FORWARD, BACKWARD AND DIAGONALLY, THEY ARE ALL THERE!
P HIP HO JAZZ SOUL
COUN
TRY
POP R&B INDIE
ROCK Music & Computer Games Gema, sponsors of Jailbreak
Suppliers of Music CD’s and Computer Games, both new & pre-owned. Catalogues cost £2 (postal order payable to ‘Gema’) but this is r e f u n d e d w i t h f i r s t o r d e r. Gemma PO Box 54, Reading RG1 3SD
Our new catalogue is now available with 9 0 0 0 new items. We have also been asked to produce another catalogue,
'Music from around the World'
Send your version of what is being said or thought here. Closing Date 22/12/2007
PLEASE DO NOT CUT THIS PICTURE OUT WRITE YOUR ENTRY ON A PLAIN SHEET OF PAPER GIVING YOUR NAME, NUMBER AND PRISON. THEN POST IT TO: Inside Time “CAPTION” P O Box 251 Hedge End Hampshire SO30 4XJ Please use a 1st or 2nd class stamp, as entries in envelopes with insufficient postage will not be accepted.
Help us ensure that we include countries,cultures and artists that would be of interest. Send your ideas and suggestions and you could win £15 Gema Records Voucher in our free prize draw. The winner’s name will be published in Inside Time. P R O B A B LY LY T H E U K ’ s L A R G E S T M U S I C B A C K C AT AT A L O G U E
W T S R Y S T A A A S O I T A R O C E D
E H O R C I M S N H A O T T O R G O H S
W R U S E E R T S A M T S I R H C F C H
M E N W H M N E W T E A R S I S A R R A
E E D E Y I Y I M H Y E K R U T R O E P
R K O Y O S Y S A P U D D J H O D S L P
R I F T U T L L S A L A I E C C S T B Y
Y N M I F L B L L P E R R S A K R O A N
C G U V A E B E A O E C D U R I E S T E
H S S I I T U B N P H G I S O N E T S W
R S I T R O B I N R W L N W L G D N L Y
I E C A Y E C T I N S E L V E S N E U E
S I O N A R H S L Y Y A G E N A I S C A
T P U W M R T E D N K D S M U T E E Y R
M E A I E M G S A R E T S B G N R R I X
A C M S A N R T U S T U N R T A O P V X
S N X S A I N T N I C H O L A S Y U Y X
I I X C H R I S T M A S W I S H E S S R
S M E R R I M E N T P P Y N E W Y E E A
H Y E E H R E P A C S E T A E R G E H T
This Wordsearch was compiled by Lucy Charman, formerly HMP Morton Hall. Many thanks Lucy, much appreciated.
Our brains are much cleverer than we think. Read this and see O lny srmat poelpe can raed tihs. cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Amzanig huh? yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt!
if you can raed tihs psas it on !! MW HMP DOVEGATE
Are you facing Confiscation? · · · ·
Facing Confiscation/Compensation ? Cant get funding to satisfy orders ? Have a poor credit history/CCJ'S ? Have assets but no liquid or facility to arrange funding ? · Family or friends will pledge property to secure funding ?
W E C A N H E L P Y O U PAY Y O U R C O N F I S C AT I O N / C O M P E N S AT I O N ORDERS · Principal lender funding within 24 hours · Secured against property · Short term lending/all cases accepted · Avoid further detention/imprisonment · Funding from £26,000 to 5 Million · National Coverage Free Advice Given Contact Suzanne at
Supreme Finance Ltd C i t y H o u s e 5 8 S w a n St r e e t Manchester M4 5JU
Tel: 0161 834 2288 Fax 0161 832 6067 e-mail
[email protected] w w w. s u p r e m e - f i n a n c e . c o m
Specialist W r i t e t o u s a t : Prison Law Freepost, MID 18045 Advice Team Nottingham dealing with: NG1 1BR • Tariff Representations • Parole Board Hearings including all Lifer P anels a nd Recall H earings • Adjudications • Categorisation and Transfer issues • Parole • I.E.P. Scheme • Request /Complaints • LSP 3B/3E Reviews
or call us on:
(0115) 9583 472 Our dedicated team are always willing to help. Please feel free to contact : Melanie Woodward David Parker Stephen Luke Martin Bridger Jessica Vogel Ben Samples Naomi De Silva Serina Woodhouse
Poetry
Insidetime December 2007 www.insidetime.org
Reflections
Euthanasia
Jimmy Brand - HMP Highdown
What she says (and what she does) Robert Shreeve - HMP Swaleside
They gave me a mirror, hangs on my cell wall, The person stood before me someone I cannot recall, Clear eyes, pearl teeth, like a film star, not a cellmate I'd pick or choose, He reminds me of someone I once knew before getting high on the booze. Every time I go for a drink, he's there, watching, above my sink, He mimics me when I shave, why don't he just behave? The more I stare into his face, the more he seems right on my case, Smirking back his insidious smile, giving it cunning and treacherous guile. He's boxing clever, there's nowhere to hide, Do I make out he's not there and swallow my pride? Is he me serving it large, artful, cunning, always in charge. Full of himself, surfing the high, no fake, cheap copy living a lie. Mirrored image, bold and clear, no longer the lesser, hooked on gear. Which of us stays, who? Banished to go, Withering fast, watching him grow, Lost to perish upon his curse, who will prevail to finish the verse? Do I fare from whence I came? Bathed in Hades' flame, Fading away, headed to hell … reflecting from a solitary cell.
She says she loves, She says she’ll wait, That her position Won’t ever deviate.
Paranoid Prisoner David Morris - HMP Featherstone
But, she says she likes Scarves and shampoos, Then buys another Pair of shoes!
Are the walls closing in on me? Is my life going to change drastically? Will I lose the ones I hold to my heart? Will they get used to us being apart? Will my wife decide I am no more? Independent now, I’m so unsure. Will they all still miss me in three years or so? Not needed now, will I have to go? This is how prison makes you feel, Like you no longer have any more appeal. Each day you think they’ll need you less, You go to bed, your head in a mess. Yes they’ll manage they won’t need me, Just a matter of time and they will see They never needed me all along, I need reassurance, please tell me I’m wrong. One day I’ll be walking out the gate And my family and me will celebrate, But if on release … no children … no wife Then I’ve lost everything, no point to life.
She says she prefers Her meals plain, Then goes on A rich binge again. She says she considers Sport the dregs, Then runs after Rugby players’ legs. She says she’s happy; That her heart sings, But then … she says A lot of things.
36
★
Congratulations to David Sharp - HMP Altcourse who wins our £25 prize for 'Star Poem of the Month'
When I look in the mirror, I see this stranger staring back, I really do not like him, he’s a vision I can’t hack. He’s not the child that I once knew, the one that brought me joy, He’s not the man I thought he’d be when I was playing as a boy. He’s not a soldier or a sailor, or a man from outer space, He’s not a cowboy or a pilot or a daring driving ace. I can only see a shadow with his eyes of shallow blue, Pasty skin with spotty face and a nose that’s sore from glue. There’s not a drug that he’s not tried but now he’s at his worst, After all these years of drug abuse it’s heroin that’s his curse. It’s taken him from family and all the friends that he once knew, It took him to a place he hates …now he’s wondering what to do. He always feels in darkness every time he’s in the light, He also feels invisible and always out of sight. I think that I can help him now and end his pain I’m sure, To take him from this loveless life is a job for me to cure. People call it suicide but to me it’s a chance for change, To go into a better world is really not that strange. I need to free this person from the mirror where he’s lost, I need to be that boy again …no matter what the cost.
We will award a prize of £25 to the entry selected as our 'Star Poem of the Month'. To qualify for a prize, poems should not have won a prize in any other competition or been published previously. Send entries to: Inside Time ‘Poetry' PO Box 251 Hedge End Hampshire SO30 4XJ.
Bretherton Law
> NEXT ISSUE Week commencing 31st December 2007
SOLICITORS SOLICITORS Specialising in Criminal Defence and Prison Law. In particular:-
>> insidetime Is now available online for your family and friends Current and back issues can be viewed and articles downloaded. A legal database, showing who is available, where, and what issues they specialise in, is fully operational, together with links to over 50 help organisations.
So please, tell everyone at home now !
www.insidetime.org Jailbreak ANSWERS TO TO THIS MONTH’S TWENTY QUESTIONS TO TO TEST YOUR GENERAL KNOWLEDGE
Don’t Rot On Recall!
Parole Hearings Licence Recalls Adjudications Re-categorisation Requests/Complaints
We’re outside fighting for your rights inside Prison Law Specialists in Wales
Contact: Costa Cantaris or Ozlem Erbil
Dealing With:
Bretherton Law Alban Row 27-31 Verulam Road St Albans Hertfordshire AL3 4DG
01727 869 293 We also provide assistance in the following:• Family Law • Mental Health • Civil Litigation • Wills & Probate • Child Care • Conveyancing PROTECTING AND ADVANCING YOUR RIGHTS
PARLBY CALDER SOLICITORS
Adjudications Parole Reviews Licence Recall Categorisation Transfers Lifer Panels Criminal Defence and Appeals
Start the ball rolling now - call Gemma Morgan on:
02920 729 888 Elgin House 106 St Mary Street CARDIFF CF10 1DX Elgin House 106 St Mary Street CARDIFF CF10 1DX
STOKOE PARTNERSHIP STOKOE PARTNERSHIP UNDER ARREST? SOLICITORS S O L I C I T O R S
The specialist in Criminal and Prison Law
SPECIALISTS IN CRIMINAL DEFENCE Serving the South West
The Specialist in Criminal Law :Serious Crime :Adjudications :Appeals/CRCC • SERIOUS:Parole/Disciplinary CRIME • TERRORISM :Prisoner Rights :Tariff • SERIOUS FRAUD • DRUG TRAFFICKING :Licence/Recall :All other matters • CASH SEIZURES • Prison MONEYrelated LAUNDERING
PRISON LAW Adjudications & Appeals against Adjudications Parole Applications - Recalls Categorisation - Lifer Reviews Licence/Probation Problems - Transfers HDC Applications - Healthcare Problems Judicial Reviews - Prisoner’s Rights Obtaining Prison Records - Police Interviews AGENCY WORK UNDERTAKEN For free professional advice contact Natalie or Donna at: Parlby Calder Solicitors First Floor, 7 Whimple Street Plymouth PL1 2DH
01752-600833 Fax: 01752-600933
The Stokoe Partnership is a franchised
Our business is to provide expert, rapid
advice, assistance representation firm of independent solictorsfor with including All languages catered Greek,andFrench, in all aspects of criminal investigation. branches in Manchester and London in criminal law. Spanish,specialising Urdu,only Panjabi, Bengali, Hindi and Chinese.
0161 237 5755
0161 237 5755 AVAILABLE – 24 HOURS
TheMANCHESTER Boatmans, 40 City Road,OFFICE: Deansgate, Manchester, M15 4QF MANCHESTER OFFICE MANCHESTER OFFICE:
LONDON OFFICE: The 4040 City Road, Deansgate, Manchester,M15 M154QF 4QF TheBoatmans, Boatmans, City Road East, Manchester 646-648 High Road Leytonstone, London, E11 3AA
LONDON OFFICE LONDON OFFICE:
You’re Not Alone
646-648 High RoadLeytonstone, Leytonstone, London, E11E11 3AA 3AA 646-648 High Road London, This Firm is aThis Member THE SPECIALIST FRAUD PANEL Firm is aofMember of THE SPECIALIST FRAUD PANEL Regulated by the Solicitors Regulatory Regulated by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority Authority
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20.
Andrew Neil Allsorts Scotland Austria Kent 1960s Cheese Brazil Elton John Ciccone Van Morrison Blue Baton Rouge Gerry and the Pacemakers Theodore Roosevelt Division Jeffrey Archer Charlie Dimmock Bolshoi Massachusetts
