Young Offenders Institute officers probed

Jun 28 2009 by Coreena Ford, Sunday Sun

TWO prison officers at the centre of the prison “broken bones” scandal are suspended more than two years after police ruled there was no case to answer.

The unnamed pair, based at Castington Young Offenders Institute in Northumberland, have been suspended on full pay since an inmate was left with both wrists broken in an incident which took place two and a half years ago.

Police were brought in to investigate, but the Crown Prosecution Service ruled there was no case to answer and the men were never convicted of a crime in court.

However, as an internal Prison Service review has been taking place, the two Castington workers have remained on suspension at a potential cost of £140,000 to the taxpayer, even though union officials say they are desperate to return to work.

Tony Merricks, North East spokesman for the National Prison Officers’ Association accused the Ministry of Justice of abandoning his colleagues.

He said: “They have been hung out to dry, and they could be left there, abandoned, for a further three months, which is when the review is due to be completed.

“Yet in the eyes of the law they have done no wrong.”

The officers’ case forms part of a report published last week, following an inspection by the Prison Service in January. Chief Inspector of Prisons Dame Anne Owers has called for an urgent review into restraint techniques after an inspection found inmates suffered an “unprecedented” number of serious injuries at the hands of staff.

Over a two-year period, 10 children and young adults were reported to have been left with broken bones after being restrained by officers at the YOI.

The report said: “The number of times force was used was comparable to similar establishments.

“The principal concern in this area was the discovery that, over a two-year period, the use of control and restraint on young people had led to seven confirmed fractures and three suspected fractures.”