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Cell phones

(206 Posts)
BlueBelle Fri 28-Dec-18 08:08:07

Should prisioners have phones in their cells ?
What do you think
Is this £10.000.000 well spent or a total waste of precious money

EllaKeat Fri 28-Dec-18 18:38:08

GabriellaG54 if I did, i honestly cant remember?

What i will say though, is that everyone, from the reception staff to the Governor, were genuinely good people. Sounds ridiculous for me to say it, but they were all lovely and treat me like a human being.
Got a lot of respect for them, and never met a bad 'un.

GabriellaG54 Fri 28-Dec-18 18:41:58

FF
The prisoner ought to have thought of his/her children before committing the crime.
Many of them hardly see their kids before it becomes a 'necessity' to speak to them after being locked up.
Many of them spend much of their time committing crimes and have more mates inside than out, can reel off the names of the staff and it's a way of life, a time to recuperate before being on 'the out' again and living on their wits.
Many have several children with different women and have only sporadic (if any) contact with them, certainly, few of them pay support. It's you and I who do that.

EllanVannin Fri 28-Dec-18 18:48:01

The actual incident was well documented in 1985 on the front page of every newspaper.

The DCI leading the case gave his verdict of 4 murders and a suicide. A month later the case was led by a police sergeant who turned it on its head.

It's a very complex case and one of those which unless you spend as long as I have going through files/documents you can't readily come to any conclusion.

I can't even begin to explain the many anomalies made by police and prosecution witnesses, but they're all there in statements which were altered/edited, including those which remain withheld.

8 years ago the CCRC refused his bid for an appeal even though forensic evidence was strong with submissions presented by some of the worlds leading forensic scientists. Everything submitted fitted the criteria of the CCRC and was within the criminal act of section 23.
Had the guy won his judicial review of the CCRC decision it would have brought into question the integrity veracity and competency of the handling of cases by the CCRC who to my mind are not fit for purpose when 96% of cases are rejected.

NfkDumpling Fri 28-Dec-18 18:49:06

Are these phones to be given as a right, or something to be worked for? And taken back if necessary. That would surely be ok?

holdingontometeeth Fri 28-Dec-18 18:53:51

That’s the theory GabriellaG54
It’s fairly recently that a young lad was looking at a certain conviction for rape. It was the CPS who discovered evidence withheld by the Police which would exonerate the accused.
Case withdrawn.
No action against the Police.

EllanVannin Fri 28-Dec-18 19:01:45

holdingontomyteeth that young man supports the chap I'm on about who's been inside for 33 years and has joined the support group and has also written to the man in question.

FlexibleFriend Fri 28-Dec-18 19:02:09

GabriellaG54 You obviously know far more inmates than I do, I only know one who has no children and only ever committed the one crime and knew no one on the inside before being committed himself. Or does your information come from the press rather than being factual, at least I know my information is factual.

EllanVannin Fri 28-Dec-18 19:08:05

The police have been utterly disgusting in the case I'm following. They didn't have a clue and relied heavily on outside witnesses who weren't even conversant with the family involved in the incident but continued an assassination of the character of the accused.

holdingontometeeth Fri 28-Dec-18 19:40:06

EllanVannin Chilling. I think I have identified who you are talking about.
Bit like the battle for justice of the Birmingham and Guildford bombers.
That couple who got arrested re the Drone.
The male was working at the time but no one would listen to his employer when he wanted to give him an alibi 24 hours before their release.
That story has died a death I see.
These long term prisoners, even if, and I reiterate if, they can cast doubt on their conviction, the state will be very reluctant to admit their wrongful conviction.
Keeping face and obviously not giving the public reason to doubt our Justice system.

holdingontometeeth Fri 28-Dec-18 19:52:46

GabriellaG54 You are wrong in several of your admissions.
It was a sensational case and was plastered all over the media.
I had forgotten about it as no doubt many others had.
The original sentence wasn’t as you described either.

holdingontometeeth Fri 28-Dec-18 19:59:02

Talking about statements look what came out in the Hillsborough enquiry.
Serving officers at the time with knowledge of policing football matches knew from early on who the main responsibility lies.
And still no definitive action is being taken against him though he and several of his ilk were shown to be accomplished liars and responsible for changing statements and covering their backs.
Their are some very big egos to be protected by the establishment.

PECS Fri 28-Dec-18 20:10:17

Our own, mostly limited or non- existent,experience of the prison system and time spent in prison is just anecdotal or gleaned from biased press reports. If those with far greater knowledge and experience than I have feel it will make life safer for inmates and officers why would I argue?
Whilst I accept there are people in prison who have committed dreadful crimes and caused terrible hurt & damage there are also ordinary , but stupid, people whose lives got in a muddle & due to a perfect storm of circumstances break the law & end up inside. Not everyone inside is the scum of the earth!
Some on here would make the unreformed Scrooge seem generous!

holdingontometeeth Fri 28-Dec-18 20:27:43

I don’t know if it’s still going on, but people originally charged with not having a television licence sometimes ended up in prison.
Not for not having the licence but for failing to pay the fine, often in the hundreds of pounds, issued as a punishment.

dizzyblonde Fri 28-Dec-18 20:29:10

I would be hugely sceptical of anything the press say. Having seen quite a few incidents that I have been personally involved in reported and knowing that the press have only got the day it happened correct. Due to confidentiality even our press office cannot correct them. You feel like commenting saying no the patient wasn’t 12, they weren’t a girl, they weren’t hit by a car, and no we weren’t putting them in the recovery position, they had a simple fractured arm ( all details changed but you get the gist ?) but you can’t. Any story involving victims, patients etc will be the same, all carefully cloaked in ‘sources state, passerby’s stated’ to avoid a legal challenge and police, doctors, courts cannot comment providing they haven’t stated it as absolute fact and they are nearly always too clever for that.
You can only believe probably 10% of what is reported. I was shocked the first time I read a report but now I just roll my eyes and quietly despair.

Lindaylou55 Fri 28-Dec-18 20:56:59

Yet again, it's a case of look after the criminals rights, before their victms. No wonder our jails are full they are living by he life of Riley with no costs to themselves, while our pensioners and veterans struggle, something somewhere went very wrong on this country!!!

petra Fri 28-Dec-18 21:16:43

EllanVannin
I think I know the man you are referring to. I lived not far from the scene of the crime. I can still see the scene at the home as I was on my way to work.
I still can't make up my mind, but I'll admit it was handled badly by the police.

Lesleyann9 Fri 28-Dec-18 21:58:50

A prison sentence is about rehab as well as punishment. Remember they are deprived of freedom locked up separate from familied

kwest Fri 28-Dec-18 22:25:56

It is not just the prisoner being punished, it is their wife and children or parents. They do not deserve not to hear from their loved one. Let us shoe some compassion.

holdingontometeeth Fri 28-Dec-18 22:30:35

Re the jail for tv licence post www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4130060/amp/More-women-men-jailed-TV-licenses.html
I’ll bet they more than rolled their eyes!

Jannicans Fri 28-Dec-18 22:46:47

NO. Isn't prison being removed from society as a punishment for a crime.

GabriellaG54 Sat 29-Dec-18 00:39:53

FF
That may be your impression but it's not quite on the mark, and no, my info is not from the press although the press and media get quoted quite a bit on here and they are largely one and the same.

GabriellaG54 Sat 29-Dec-18 01:53:01

holdingontometeeth
I didn't say for a fact that the original sentence was a whole of life term, simply that the prisoner, having been incarcerated for 33 years (and not having been eligible for parole, otherwise he'd be out) must have been given a whole of life tariff, as cases in the UK which attract such swingeing sentences as 33+ years, are as rare as hen's teeth.
There are, of course, instances where bad behaviour can add time to a sentence but it depends on the severity.
There is only 1 person in the UK who fits this scenario and the dates do not tally and he was given a whole of life tariff, contrary to what you say...IF it's the same person whose name begins with J.

Hiimrene Sat 29-Dec-18 04:00:18

as a retired California Correctional Officer, inmates aren't allowed cellphones period for the safety and security of the institution, the officers, other free staff, as well as the other inmates. If a cell phone is found in their possession it's because an officer has passed it to someone. The officer will be dealt with in accordance with the law and lose his/her job and escorted off prison grounds. The inmate caught with the cell phone will lose parole time/credit, recieve time in SHU (security housing unit/confined single cell), even points against time earned. Inmates do have access to landlines on specific days at specific times they must sign up for within their housing unit but they must earn the right to use the phone through good conduct including: following building rules, no negative disciplinary reports, cells maintained.

holdingontometeeth Sat 29-Dec-18 05:24:14

Different people GabriellaG54
It’s easy enough to ID him if you read the posts a bit more thoroughly and google what you have gleaned.

Anja Sat 29-Dec-18 07:36:28

Cell phones or phones in their cells?

The image on the news tonight clearly showed a land line.