Report on Isle of Man Prison

[joebean]

The prison has, for far too long, concentrated on offering a non-confrontational life of non-demanding activity for out relatively small population of useless recidivists. Of course, those in charge will busy themselves with their pseudo-liberal bullshit and, I see the usual practice of hastily cobbling together programmes and activity, in advance of an inspection has taken place. Yet to be implemented or fully implemented, of course. They will have another 12 years to do that whilst relatively unimportant priorities, like public protection and risk management, can be further ignored. Remember, these are the people that brought our most serious offenders, including a double murderer back to the island for assessment prior to release. The inspection reveals that they don’t know what they are doing and don’t have public protection as an overriding priority. We should be concerned. 

[Dirty Buggane]

8 hours ago, Moghrey Mie said:

Time in prison could be used for positive activities such as learning to read and prepare for work.

Oh the irony, some body in chokiiiiee for a spliff getting taught how to cultivate and raise cannabis plants. With the intension of being employed in the medicinal cannabis trade.  🤣

[Shake me up Judy]

9 hours ago, Moghrey Mie said:

Time in prison could be used for positive activities such as learning to read and prepare for work.

Why do you think that they're in prison in the first place ? It's because many of them continually rejected the positive activities and opportunities that life offered them at every turn. I've worked with some of these types. Most of them made very clear and conscious choices to exploit every opportunity because there were never any consequences. Somebody else always took the responsibility and 'paid the bill'. There was never any real authority.

Rehabilitation is self-realisation and personal transformation, not somebody else's liberal bullshit that just fails over and over again. Make prison meaningful, not some soft option that helps nobody. 

[2112]

I would love to know what exactly Minister Hyacinth Bucket does all day? This report hardly reflects well on her enlightened ministerial administration, she can’t argue that she is new to the role as has been in post for a while. Perhaps if she devoted as much time to sorting out the prisons issues as compared to her dogooding perhaps things wouldn’t be so bad. 
 

Incidentally the NPM interviews a Head of Community Rehabilitation. How many managers are employed by the DHA&J and the Prison? 

[2bees]

Wasted lives, it’s all very sad. 

[Roxanne]

13 hours ago, Shake me up Judy said:

Many of these inmates would have completely rejected all education/training and 'rehabilitation' throughout their young lives, long before they reached Jurby. Why would it work when they get there ? It's that familiar liberal guilt and delusion again.

There are many reasons why those incarcerated would decide to engage with educational and rehabilitation services.

Boredom, time on their hands, time to reflect, time away from outside influences and their life circumstances, and of course, the pain of being locked up. There's nothing like your liberty being taken away to make you think about personal change if only to avoid being back in that same cycle of offending and incarceration.

I used to teach at the old prison on Victoria Road. I used to offer adult literacy, English language and social skills. I had six students a week, all male. Every single one of them had some success or other. two went on to do English GCSE, all of them improved in their social and communication skills. All except one who sadly died in prison. 

I would wager there isn't one of them who doesn't remember our time together.  When I see them down the street they still shout,'hiya miss'.:)

Did any of the end up back inside? Probably, but that doesn't mean we should stop trying.

For an hour a week they had someone who cared about them and who didn't care about what they had done. That one on one connection be it in school, workplace or prison can do wondrous things to a person who has low self esteem and who thinks they don't matter. Don't underestimate it.

So, don't be so quick to judge. You're making your judgement on your preconceived ideas of what prison is like and what it should be and also what the people inside are like.

 

[Shake me up Judy]

I'm not judging anybody. We all have pre-conceived ideas about all sorts of things and you don't know what my experience is, so don't make assumptions. I'd also question your 'not caring about what they had done'. Doesn't that matter ? Were you their teacher or their priest ? Isn't that moral neutrality ? I wouldn't be comfortable with that in some cases.

 

 

 

 

[joebean]

5 minutes ago, Roxanne said:

There are many reasons why those incarcerated would decide to engage with educational and rehabilitation services.

Boredom, time on their hands, time to reflect, time away from outside influences and their life circumstances, and of course, the pain of being locked up. There's nothing like your liberty being taken away to make you think about personal change if only to avoid being back in that same cycle of offending and incarceration.

I used to teach at the old prison on Victoria Road. I used to offer adult literacy, English language and social skills. I had six students a week, all male. Every single one of them had some success or other. two went on to do English GCSE, all of them improved in their social and communication skills. All except one who sadly died in prison. 

I would wager there isn't one of them who doesn't remember our time together.  When I see them down the street they still shout,'hiya miss'.:)

Did any of the end up back inside? Probably, but that doesn't mean we should stop trying.

For an hour a week they had someone who cared about them and who didn't care about what they had done. That one on one connection be it in school, workplace or prison can do wondrous things to a person who has low self esteem and who thinks they don't matter. Don't underestimate it.

So, don't be so quick to judge. You're making your judgement on your preconceived ideas of what prison is like and what it should be and also what the people inside are like.

 

Yes, some of that is true. However, people largely reform themselves when they are ready or realise that their lives are not what they want for themselves. Education and training is a part of a custodial regime but public protection and risk management is the foundation. No doubt, we will hear many excuses and promises but the inspection report identifies failings that are really quite inexcusable. We have many managers in the prison and probation service, receiving high salaries and not achieving much. It’s a familiar story. 

[Shake me up Judy]

I wasn't trying to be critical and I'm always interested in learning. That's how I spend my day. I'm genuinely interested in your view but I'm just testing it. That's what we do on here isn't it ? Prison ain't working and everyone knows it.

[Albert Tatlock]

2 minutes ago, Shake me up Judy said:

I wasn't trying to be critical and I'm always interested in learning. That's how I spend my day. I'm genuinely interested in your view but I'm just testing it. That's what we do on here isn't it ? Prison ain't working and everyone knows it.

Prison is only one element of a chain of services that are currently not working properly here.

[2112]

2 minutes ago, Albert Tatlock said:

Prison is only one element of a chain of services that are currently not working properly here.

What does work (properly)?

[2112]

On today’s NPM news item, they report that the IOM are using portakabins, which an advocate mentioned during sentencing of a defendant. Are these for prisoner accommodation or used as classrooms? WTF is going on at Jurby Hilton, and what is Minister Poole Wilson doing, apart from posing with a cheesy grin?

Before long, a new prison will be needed, with the stock excuse being, it’s not fit for purpose and doesn’t meet current standards. 
 

 

[Shake me up Judy]

It's like a Premier Inn with revolving doors for the Island's recidivists. How many in there are repeat offenders like Goldie ? The prison system in the U.K. is at bursting point so we've probably got some who would normally serve their sentence across. 

[Harry Lamb]

Flogging would be a lot cheaper. Maybe we could make it a regular event at the Villa and claw back some money?

[Roger Mexico]

2 hours ago, 2112 said:

On today’s NPM news item, they report that the IOM are using portakabins, which an advocate mentioned during sentencing of a defendant. Are these for prisoner accommodation or used as classrooms? WTF is going on at Jurby Hilton, and what is Minister Poole Wilson doing, apart from posing with a cheesy grin?

If you continue to arrest large numbers of people for drug-smuggling and lock them up for a large number of years, then the space you have to lock people up is going to decrease rather quickly.  In theory those from the UK can be sent back there to finish their sentence, but you can't force people to apply or the UK to take them and there are good reasons why neither is happening - mainly that UK prisons are in an even worse state than ours.

The Manx Radio piece is spectacularly unhelpful about details - it doesn't even mention the name of the lawyer it is quoting - but as it's about sentencing you'd assume that it was about accommodation, rather than just facilities.