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Press releasesREF: PR/07/05 DATE: 22nd April 2005 To: ALL POLITICAL PRESS RELEASE Suicides In Prison - Doctor Harold ShipmanPrison Officers trades union leaders made clear their continued concern today on the level of suicides in prisons and stated this will be matter of debate at their Annual Conference to be held in Southport from Tuesday 24th – Friday 27th May 2005. Speaking on the announcement following the lengthy inquest on the death of Harold Shipman at Wakefield prison Brian Caton, General Secretary of the POA stated: “The Prison Officers Association has always expressed their condolences to the family of any prisoners taking their own life in prisons. It is however so often forgotten that Prison Officers who deal with deaths in custody, and save so many potential suicides in prisons by their speedy action, are condemned at times of suicides. In this case Prison Officers at Wakefield have suffered at the hands of the media who have published scurrilous accusations against individual officers and against the staff at Wakefield prison”. He went on to say: “POA members at Wakefield are amongst some of the most professional Prison Officers in any prison system in the world and this jury has confirmed that there is no criticism to be laid at their door. Clearly the evidence of those who sought to blame staff for this death was disregarded by the jury who accepted that Harold Shipman took his own life out of a love for his wife Primrose and in order to ensure her financial future and did so in such a way so as not to give a hint to staff of his true intentions. The Officers ability to deal with long term difficult and dangerous prisoners is so often over looked and never fully understood. I trust that there would be no long term effect on our members at Wakefield, either collectively or individually”. He continued: “We will be demanding improvements in both the provision for dealing with suicidal prisoners and the training of all prison officers. However, where a prisoner is determined to take their own life, it is difficult to both identify and prevent these tragic incidents”. END.
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