Disturbed prisoner hangs herself in cell

Press, 4 May 1984, Page 1

Disturbed prisoner hangs herself in cell

A psychiatrically disturbed woman inmate hanged herself in her cell at the Christchurch Women’s Prison yesterday afternoon. Previous suicide attempts by the same prisoner, including an incident when she tried to chew stitches out of her wrists, sparked calls for the provision of a secure psychiatric facility for criminally insane women.

The woman tore strips from her prison clothing and made them into a noose. She hanged herself from a pipe in a cell in the prison’s punishment area. The prison superintend-

ent, Miss Fleur Grenfell, said that the woman was found dead at 1.45 yesterday afternoon, between 10 and 15 minutes after she hanged herself.

Miss Grenfell said that the woman was checked by prison officers about every 20 minutes.

Miss Grenfell would not release the woman’s name or details of her conviction yesterday because some of her relatives had still to be informed of the death. She had served three years of a five-year and three-month sentence.

Miss Grenfell said that she was “totally” satisfied

that everything possible had been done by prison staff to prevent the woman being a danger to herself.

“It is a miracle it has not happened before now with the number of close calls we have had,” she said. As well as attempting suicide, the inmate had often tried to mutilate herself and had made several escape attempts. Early last year, the woman was responsible for an incident at the prison when a series of fires were lit in an apparent suicide bid.

In June, she slashed her wrists and later attempted to chew the stitches out,

eating some of her own flesh in the process. After this incident, she was at first refused admittance to Sunnyside Hospital because of its lack of secure facilities. She was finally admitted to the hospital for five days after discussions between the Health and Justice departments. The Christchurch Women’s Prison had to provide two officers to guard her at all times. The incident led to renewed calls for the provision of a facility in a psychiatric hospital for disturbed women prisoners.

After the first incident last year, Mr R. J. Woods, the then prison superintendent, said that some secure facility for criminally insane women had to be provided or lives would be at stake.

Miss Grenfell had echoed the call, saying that several other inmates at the women’s prison created similar problems. When inmates became disturbed, the only thing staff could do was watch them around the clock. This created a severe strain and upset the normal prison routine. Miss Grenfell said yesterday that the woman had to be held in separate confinement throughout most of the three years she had been in the prison, although staff tried to keep her with other prisoners when possible. She continually attempted to mutilate herself and was aggressive both with staff and other inmates, she said.

“She was a very, very difficult inmate to have in the normal stream of the inmate population,” Miss Grenfell said.

The woman had caused continual problems since her suicide attempt last June. Yesterday was her first day back in the punishment cells after she had spent a spell in the normal maximum security block. She was held in the punishment cells because that was the only separate area where she could be held.

The cell was not locked and she was able to go into the exercise yard.

Miss Grenfell said the woman was visited regularly by the prison psychologist. A psychiatrist was called in when necessary. Recently, a visiting psychiatrist from Auckland had examined the woman and said that she should not have been held in a prison, Miss Grenfell said.

The prison staff had tried to set up a treatment facility for the woman and for other psychiatrically disturbed inmates. This could not be continued because the only room available was in the separate cells, which was the prison’s punishment area. Miss Grenfell said the woman’s death made her feel frustrated because such inmates were not catered for.

She had made various proposals for their treatment at a psychiatric hospital, such as Lake Alice, but so far no action “whatsoever” had been taken. After the incidents last year, the Minister of Justice, Mr McLay, asked for a report on the handling of disturbed inmates.

In February this year, he said that women inmates could be held at Lake Alice Hospital and that all that was needed for the arrangement to go ahead was an agreement on staffing levels.

Miss Grenfell said that as far as she knew, no progress had been made with the proposal.

She said that a Justice Department inquiry would be held into the death.