Feeling guilty over the cost to the taxpayer

11th December
Doesn't take much to make a prisoner feel like he has an exciting task to do. Today, it's writing Christmas cards with the prospect that I might reach the end of my list.

Normally, I go to work every week day. I work in the prison library. It keeps me among the sanity of books and that is good. But workmen are making changes to the library so there is no work for me.

But it's worse for everyone else: There's no library for people to take out books for the time of year when we are locked away the most.

I shake my head and smile like a schoolteacher looking at a foolish answer on a test paper.

I mean, you have to ask: Who makes the decisions? Did someone ask, did anyone ask, 'When shall we close the library for repairs? Shall we do it when the library is in least demand, or the most?'

And someone has chosen the most. The busiest time of year. Some minutes later in my cell, I'm still shaking my head in unsurprised disbelief. ('Unsurprised' because I 've seen it all before.)

There are in prison in England and Wales 83,714 human beings, two per cent, we are told, more than a year earlier. (This is the latest figure - for 31 October.)

Then look at the figures for what our leaders euphemistically call the Projected prison population.

If you aren't familiar with it, let me explain. There's a 'high' and a 'medium' and a 'low'. What are we to make of it? Well, the highest number that could be flung into prison that year is the 'high', what might happen with luck is the 'medium', and what there's not a chance of happening is 'low'.

Out of the politicians' hands

Am I cynical and alone in the conclusion? But isn't it done this way to suggest that it's all out of the hands of the politicians? 'Blimey, don't blame us, geez. We're just guessing. It's the judges and them others what fills the jails.'

And look at the numbers and multiply it by around £50,000 which it costs to house a prisoner. Yes, £50,000 seems to be the latest guess. Well, you're thinking: Must be the high cost of brilliant administration.

And yet our expert and highly paid (because they deserve the money) administrators have decided that our library should be closed for maintenance, which could be done at any time, at the very busiest time of the year - Christmas. Well, to be fair, they know more about these things that the common man.

Year High Medium Low
2009 85,100 84,300 83,300
2010 88,100 86,400 84,400
2011 90,500 87,900 85,100
2012 92,100 88,700 85,000
2013 93,000 88,600 84,100
2014 94,200 89,000 83,600

I'll try to work out the cost on the back of a cigarette packet. 83,714 times 50, and that gets us, 4185700. Now divide that by 12, and we have the cost to the taxpayer for each human thrown into prison in this highly sophisticated, modern society.

That's 348808. Oh, we have to tack two zeros onto the stern. 3488080000. I think that's right. Then put in the commas so we can read it. 3,488,080,000.

Wish I hadn't done that for it reads to me like almost £3 and a half million a month to keep such a huge population in prison.

Don't tot this up, whatever you do

You'd have to add on the price of paying the officers, the judges, the prosecution, Legal Aid and so much more. But don't do it, not if you like to sleep peacefully.

I've heard it said that about 18% of people in prison are there through wrong decisions by juries. So take 18% of almost £4 million a month and you can see that the cost of injustice in England is far, far greater than just the tragedy of lost lifetimes.

Oh, before I close. Good news. I've just won £10 for an anti-bullying survey I did. Sorry, we'll have to add that to the grand total. (Give me a moment to think about whether I'll do the decent thing and hand it back.) Oh, well, back to the Christmas cards.
- Roger Gordon

Links
Prison population
Projected prison figures

Gladiators in training at Healthcare

December 9 2008
Passed the health news on to all at the library where I work. Then I ambled off to Healthcare, braced for more grim news. One thing about prisons. There are no surprises. And there are few surprises about Healthcare.

I know I am near the good health department because I can hear that the gladiator sessions are in full swing. The noise! The aggro!

Maybe it's more grown-up than gladiators. Perhaps it's more like a football match. There are people rushing, pushing to get in, a few lucky ones trying to grope their way out. There are grunts and curses and cries and noises like flesh ripping.

You'd think they were offering free pardons in here. Elbows are going like angry swan wings. Some fellows seem to be in training as rugby locks.

The scrum is like one huge many-legged, many-headed creature straining to reach the medical staff. Wisely, the medics are keeping a second door locked between the haloed - them - and the horrible(us).

I am looking at my diet from a diabetes point of view now. What a season to be told to leave the chocolates alone. But I will be disciplined - or try to be. Prisons aren't famous for their pleasures, and eating is one. I really like chips, but I will try to restrict them to Saturdays or Sundays.

A very real pleasure for a prisoner is contact from Outside. I received a card and a letter from my niece, Colette. That was really lovely.

I wrote to Sue and Slim, and did their Christmas cards.

A less pleasurable bit of correspondence was writing an App (an application - everything is by application in prison) to Officer D Lynch, requesting a national list of prisons who do HRC. I'm looking for a positive C Category place where I can make use of this time the State is stealing from me.

Lie detector tests

I have a battle going with the people in charge here over lie detector tests. It's a bit of a strange area, but only recently I discovered that a convicted man is allowed to take these specialist tests. I am chasing after authority for it and to have it done.

Then let them ask me again if I killed my wife, and let the scientists this time decide if I am lying - as the prosecution kept insisting. (Like to see them agree to a lie detector test after their performance in my trial. The equipment would go into melt-down.)

Anyway, for the moment I am not getting any official response to my request to be allowed to take it. So today I sent a second complaint to Security asking them to answer my earlier App.

The problem with that compensation cheque is still with us. Seems I have to get the solicitor to write another one with my brother's name on it. Well, I got that letter written and made another wild assault on the Christmas cards.

It's such a chore to keep a big Christmas card list going ... and such a pleasure. So many mates from the past, and family, accept that I didn't kill Anita. Well, when you've known a fellow for a lifetime, you know whether he is likely to kill the woman he loves.

So writing cards to each of these people, thinking of them, picturing them in my mind, chatting to them in the cell as I write their names, makes a delight of the hard work. Well, a mechanic turned taxi driver isn't much of a pen-pusher. But he is enjoying this task.
- Roger Gordon

Friday 5th December:
Happily picked up my medication today. The nurse said that he wouldn't be giving me the blood test, but he didn't say why. Instead, I am to return in three months.

I might have said, 'Sorry, Nurse, I'll be in another place by then.' He might have thought I meant heaven, but it would have referred to a gentler establishment that I hope to be transferred to.

But then I thought of superstition, and felt it might bring bad luck to act as if it's certain to happen, and also would be showing rather a lot of naivete. With the experience of knowing how rapidly everything doesn't happen in here, it is more than likely that I will be in the queue for him in March.

A bright side was a call from sister Helen. That was really good. A Christmas card came from old friends Sue and Slim. I studied their handwriting for a while, dreaming of old times we shared together. Thank heavens for memories.
- Roger Gordon

Important prison lesson: How to write cheques

Thursday 4th Decemeber:
After the scare about diabetes, I was glad to get the news from the diabetes nurse yesterday that I have to attend Healthcare this morning. The moment circumstances allowed me to go, off I rushed.

I should have known better. I could have taken my time.

The nurse was 'not available', and as it turned out, nor was the medication. 'What a surprise,' I said, keeping a straight face.

'It happens,' said the orderly very seriously. I think he must be a bit short on memory. When doesn't it happen. 'Come back tomorrow,' he said.

'Just for you,' said I, 'I'll try to stay alive till tomorrow.'

'I don't think diabetes is all that fatal,' he said encouragingly, and seemed to mean it.


December 1 2008:
I hurried over to the library today for a recommended course called CALM - learning to control anger and managing it. I'd been looking forward to studying for it for lots of reasons. I think it will help to keep me calm when I eventually get to the Appeal Court. Establishment hates the mistake they have made with me - but more than anything else, they hate to admit a mistake.

They'll have their sharpshooters out to make nonsense of my evidence. I intend to give them a tough time. CALM would help. I intent to be calm.

The interview to test my suitablity for the course lasted just ten minutes. The fellow in charge shook his head. 'Unsuitable,' he said.

Somehow, I had the feeling that he had been practising that response. I said, 'Because, I suppose, I insist on my innocence?'

'I don't know, Gordon.'

'It could be because I am rated low risk. I'd be grateful if you'd find out if it's because I'm not seen as a risk or because I maintain my innocence.'

He looked at me for a moment, could see that I was serious, and promised he'd look into it.

I'm going to explain soon about how the Legal Aid solicitor comes to be paying me some compensation. As unlikely as it seems, the cheque arrived. I expected it to go into my prisoners' finance account, but Officer C shook his head when I said I was surprised the sum wasn't there.

'Well, Gordon, the story is this: Your solicitor who knows so much about our system has written the cheque out to you.'

'So? The sum is compensation for me.'

'Prisoner Gordon, you don't get it, do you? And you've been in long enough to know the routine. Let me explain the process to you. The cheque, Gordon, has to be made out to the Governor, does it not, the Governor of this Establishment. If the cheque is not written out to the Governor of this Establishment, then it is not possible for the prisoner to have the funds. Got it now, Gordon?'

Of course, I was grateful for the lesson. But I managed to get hold of the cheque and sent it off to my brother Alec to sort out. I hope it gets through the mail censors.

Ages ago, a lifetime it feels, I was made Category C and that means I should be in a gentler place than crazy Swaleside. I applied to go to a place where I can be positive and advance my learning. I waited weeks, months, and then I was told that my choice doesn't take lifers.

'Ah,' I said, trying to hide my disappointment, 'but what about wrongly convicted lifers?'

I applied to other establishments where people are C Category. The lifer clerk reported today that Earlsdown has no space for me. So I sent out the next three choices and arranged for them to go off by recorded delivery - to Blunderstone, Stockham, and Earlstoke.

I had a letter today from my sister, Helen. That made my day. And then I had a visit! Chris Reeves dropped in. He is much better, and looks much better. But can't drive still. We had a good chat.

The letter and the visit made all the difference to the day. Then I was called to Healthcare. The nurse said, 'The diagnosis is back. You're a stage 2 diabetic. That should have been picked that up in 2005. I'm a bit worried about possible kidney damage.'

What a day, I thought, as I staggered back to the cell. Christmas cards waited on my bed from D Smith and Chris Reeves. Christmas! It'll be my sixth inside.

- Roger Gordon

Links:
CALM
LegalAid
Swaleside
Blunderston
Stocken
Erlestoke
Diabetes