Prison Suicide
Prison suicide is a global problem, but little is known about about investigatory processes occurring after prison suicides. This book addresses this gap, providing a case study of the investigations that follow prison suicides in England and Wales. Despite the large range of prison oversight institutions in England and Wales, prison suicides reached a record high in 2016, with the rate having doubled between 2012 and 2016. These deaths represent the sharp end of a continuum of suffering, self-harm, despair and distress within prisons, which affects prisoners, their families and prison staff. This book details and critiques the lengthy and expensive police, ombudsman and coroner investigations that follow prison suicides. Drawing on extensive document analysis, including over 100 Prison and Probation Ombudsman fatal incident investigations, and original semi-structured interviews with stakeholders undertaken between 2016-2017, this book provides a novel analysis of prison oversight. This book argues that post-suicide investigations create a significant burden for bereaved families and prison staff. The investigations are valuable, but can manufacture mystery around entirely manifest prison problems and obfuscate the role of deliberate political decisions in creating those problems.