Failing Prison Neglected Disabled Inmates
Whatever my feelings may be about disabled criminals, I still find these stories shocking and unacceptable.
A disabled prisoner was unable to wash properly for over a year because staff refused to carry him to the showers, a damning report revealed today.
Another disabled prisoner went six months without a shower because of a lack of staff “trained” to push his wheelchair, an official inspection found.
Inspectors said HMP Parkhurst on the Isle of Wight, where both men were held, lacked “basic levels of safety and decency”.
Juliet Lyon, director of the Prison Reform Trust, said today that she had called on the Prison Service to comply with its responsibilities under the Disability Discrimination Act.
She said she was writing to Director-General Phil Wheatley, Secretary of State Jack Straw and Trevor Phillips, chairman of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, to ensure the service does comply.
She said: “The Ministry of Justice is breaking the law by allowing Parkhurst and other jails to be used as an inhumane, double punishment for disabled people.”
Same Difference 