"Set up to Fail"
Matthew Price wrote to Alex Chalk, the justice secretary in May 2023.
“My mother can't believe that she lives in a country where this is actually happening in this day and age.
I don't think the wider public can either.
I'm stuck in a never ending cycle of which suicide is quite possibly really the only way out.
Asking for help will go against me, not asking for help will most likely kill me.”
Listen to Trapped Ep 9: Set up to Fail
I talked to two lawyers, Emma McClure and Andrew Sperling, who’s firm had been representing, Matthew, who was an IPP prisoner on licence when he took his own life less than a month after he wrote to the justicr secretary. Emma was the last person to speak to him. Andrew and Emma described the terror that Matthew faced knowing he could be recalled back to prison at any time by his probation officer. A situation that is not unique for IPP serving prisoners on licence. Nineteen people serving IPP sentences in the community took their own lives between 2020 and 2022.
Nicole and Madison were both in prison on Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) sentences. Now out on licence, I met them in Parliament, whilst trying to lobby their MPs. We talked about life inside female prisons as an IPP serving prisoner and how they are both doing now.
As of December 2022, there were 40 women in custody serving IPP sentences. This includes 12 women who have never been released and a further 28 women who had been recalled. It’s rare to hear their stories, so we were keen to bring them to light.
“I can’t believe the state thinks they can keep on saying it’s “a stain on British justice”, “stain on the conscience of British Justice system ” & not rectify it…people have died & are dying on their watch”
Recently me and the Trapped team were interviewed by Faith Spears, a former Independent Monitoring Board member and whistle-blower for the Criminal Justice blog. Here's the interview: The IPP Sentence: At an Inflection Point?
You can follow us on Twitter , Instagram or Facebook @Trapped_Pod for updates. We’re also on Tik Tok, and finally getting a bit better at it!
For more info about the Campaigns for Justice for IPPs prisoners go to: UNGRIPP Twitter @UNGRIPP and IPP Committee In Action Twitter @ActionIPP