Author Archives: Richard Edwards

Hate crime and prison

By Richard Edwards | Mon 15th August 2016 - 12:40 pm

 

Everyone should be appalled at the rise in hate crime since the BREXIT result and agree that the campaigns by the EXIT campaigners in some way made respectable the attitudes and behaviours of the perpetrators.

Under the circumstances it is understandable that many are calling for tough or mandatory prison sentences for hate crime even where the intensity of an individual act may relatively minor. (All hate crime has an impact and should never be regarded as minor but I am trying to differentiate scale). But prison may not be the answer especially for young offenders with a first offence.

In prison there will be no form of programme to re-educate people away from hate crime. No such programmes in prison exist. Even if they did they would be reserved for the most high risk and serious offenders. The best someone could expect if imprisoned for hate crime would be an anger management course which may be useful but does not deal with the issue. At best a perpetrator will come out of prison with the same mindset with which they went in.

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Opinion: A life discarded

By Richard Edwards | Mon 6th July 2015 - 9:36 am

 

Mr K. had arrived on the wing at Brixton Prison on the Friday. By Monday morning he was dead. He had managed to hang himself using a sheet tied around the window bars. No-one knew what time he had died. It would be interesting to know whether the inquest showed up the notoriously lax attitude of Brixton night duty staff to night time cell checks.

No-one really remembered speaking to him and all anyone amongst the prisoners could really say was that he had arrived on Friday, was short and slight, had an Irish accent and kept himself to himself. He had stayed in his cell – one of the few on the wing for single occupancy – except for when he collected his food.

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Opinion: Bill – A Factual Postscript

By Richard Edwards | Mon 29th June 2015 - 9:02 am

Last week you published a post from me about an elderly prisoner called Bill. In a piece restricted to 500 words some things inevitably get left out which some readers need for clarity.

To help Stuart – Mary Reid’s helpful comment pointed out that the YOI element at Littlehey opened in 2010. It closed in 2014 to allow the prison to become a full adult prison. Unfortunately the Ministry of Justice website on Littlehey was last updated in April 2013 so doesn’t help. However I am sure a phone call to the prison on 01480 335 000 will elicit the information …

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Opinion: Bill

By Richard Edwards | Mon 22nd June 2015 - 10:36 am

He was cold. His shivering was so intense it was more like a palsy. The surgery receptionist ignored his growing distress. He had been sitting in the freezing cold waiting room for over two hours. The door stood open letting in a draught that cut through his thin clothes. He was wearing three layers – all the clothes he had.

Bill was 88 years old with sores on his legs and needing to get his dressings changed. Scandalous that in any NHS run medical facility an elderly and vulnerable person should be treated in this way. In a GP surgery or …

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