Double tragedy.

[littleyellowbirdie 2,614]

A 30-year-old cyclist found to have killed a 79-year-old lady through reckless cycling has been found dead, shortly after serving half a one-year sentence for causing her death.

He struck her while on the way to his mother-in-law's house riding his bicycle. He was riding on the pavement and the bike had only one working brake. He fled the scene without stopping and turned himself in 10 days later, falsely claiming that he had checked to see she was alright.

His body was found in woods near his home after being reported missing following his release from prison.

I'd missed the original story of her death and his conviction; my immediate thought was whether enough care is taken regarding the mental health of perpetrators of crimes upon release from prison; while the young man was rightly condemned for his criminal stupidity, his suicide strikes me as another tragedy compounding the original accident that will have left another family grieving and a young child without a father.

Do perpetrators of accidental crimes like this get any sort of counselling in prison?

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/shamed-cyclist-who-hit-elderly-29705699

 

[Nuff Said 5,250]

“my immediate thought was whether enough care is taken regarding the mental health of perpetrators of crimes upon release from prison” and “Do perpetrators of accidental crimes like this get any sort of counselling in prison?”

 

You're taking the p1ss, yes?
 

As far as the Tories are concerned anyone in prison (unless it’s for a financial crime which they’d probably try and recategorise an “entrepreneurial “) is a filthy criminal and the key should be thrown away. They’ve decimated parole services, social services, public housing and anything else which might help lessen the prevalence of crime and the likelihood of reoffending. Michael Howard once made a famous speech about how “prison works”. The evidence shows the opposite, investing in community punishment, rehabilitation and training is far more effective and less expensive. But that doesn’t allow you to grandstand at political conferences and get fawning articles published about you in the Mail and Telegraph.

Edited April 14, 2023 by Nuff Said

[keelansgrandad 6,679]

You would hope the authorities would take into account prisioners who had no intention of committing a crime but through circumstances, including their own recklessness, have either caused a fatality or trauma.

Yes, there must be a certain amount of punishment in these cases, we punish children and pets, but the real job is to extract some kind of remorse from individuals. If you were to find a man raping your wife and you killed him during the act, then you know it will lead to some form of punishment but the rest of humanity would probably applaud you for your natural action and ridding the world of a rapist.

But you would hope that while in prison, the remorse you felt for taking a human life because you are a decent human being would be channelled into a positive approach.

Having said all that, I have become ambivalent about capital punishment. Whichever side of the argument I put forward, my conscience can find a suitable riposte.

[littleyellowbirdie 2,614]

18 minutes ago, keelansgrandad said:

You would hope the authorities would take into account prisioners who had no intention of committing a crime but through circumstances, including their own recklessness, have either caused a fatality or trauma.

Yes, there must be a certain amount of punishment in these cases, we punish children and pets, but the real job is to extract some kind of remorse from individuals. If you were to find a man raping your wife and you killed him during the act, then you know it will lead to some form of punishment but the rest of humanity would probably applaud you for your natural action and ridding the world of a rapist.

But you would hope that while in prison, the remorse you felt for taking a human life because you are a decent human being would be channelled into a positive approach.

Having said all that, I have become ambivalent about capital punishment. Whichever side of the argument I put forward, my conscience can find a suitable riposte.

Absolutely. The prison sentence was clearly appropriate to the crime, but as you suggest, there's a big difference between intent and fecklessness.

Upon sentencing, the judge summed up, somewhat ironically it turns out,  that he'd live with the knowledge of his crime the rest of his life, and it was obviously too much for him to bear. A convict walking straight out of prison to commit suicide is a clear failure on the part of the authorities.

It leaves me thinking that culturally the UK could do with revisiting its philosophy on crime, punishment, and rehabilitation to something far more joined up than any government, Conservative or Labour, has delivered thus far.

[Yellowfuture 71]

3 hours ago, littleyellowbirdie said:

A 30-year-old cyclist found to have killed a 79-year-old lady through reckless cycling has been found dead, shortly after serving half a one-year sentence for causing her death.

He struck her while on the way to his mother-in-law's house riding his bicycle. He was riding on the pavement and the bike had only one working brake. He fled the scene without stopping and turned himself in 10 days later, falsely claiming that he had checked to see she was alright.

His body was found in woods near his home after being reported missing following his release from prison.

I'd missed the original story of her death and his conviction; my immediate thought was whether enough care is taken regarding the mental health of perpetrators of crimes upon release from prison; while the young man was rightly condemned for his criminal stupidity, his suicide strikes me as another tragedy compounding the original accident that will have left another family grieving and a young child without a father.

Do perpetrators of accidental crimes like this get any sort of counselling in prison?

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/shamed-cyclist-who-hit-elderly-29705699

 

There are various offender programs run, often by probation officers, in prisons. I would be very surprised if there was anything aimed at the sort of offence committed by this chap, unless his mental health issues become evident to prison staff I suspect he would have been ignored.

Edited April 14, 2023 by Yellowfuture

[sonyc 5,541]

8 minutes ago, Yellowfuture said:

There are various offender programs run, often by probation officers, in prisons. I would be very surprised if there was anything aimed at the sort of offence committed by this chap, unless his mental health issues become evident to prison staff I suspect he would have been ignored.

That is correct. I think the main problems are what happens after release from prison and the interface with the probation service. Mental health issues used to be routinely explored as part of a package. The cuts to probation (and increasingly contracted out to the likes of Serco, G4S and a few other 'primes') meant that the quality in after care vastly declined. It became all about numbers. It became about profit maximisation for contractors. Chris Grayling had a big hand in that. Say no more. Some things should not be nationalised because of the consequences.

Sad story to read.

[Yellowfuture 71]

2 hours ago, sonyc said:

That is correct. I think the main problems are what happens after release from prison and the interface with the probation service. Mental health issues used to be routinely explored as part of a package. The cuts to probation (and increasingly contracted out to the likes of Serco, G4S and a few other 'primes') meant that the quality in after care vastly declined. It became all about numbers. It became about profit maximisation for contractors. Chris Grayling had a big hand in that. Say no more. Some things should not be nationalised because of the consequences.

Sad story to read.

Yep, I was involved when the probation service was split to try and mirror the NHS with a purchaser and provider split where offender management and accredited programs were essentially provided by the same staff but were taken out of the.service. Simplistically they were set up as contractors who would bid against other established companies such as G4S. The view seemed to be that you could privatise any public service. Sadly the drive to cut costs and win contacts with low bids can only end up with one conclusion.

[keelansgrandad 6,679]

I said I was ambivalent about capital punishement and today reading of the couple who murdered their baby but in a tortured way makes me want to execute them myself.

[Midlands Yellow 4,118]

That’s such a tragic story. I feel for all parties involved. 

[GodlyOtsemobor 2,454]

23 hours ago, keelansgrandad said:

I said I was ambivalent about capital punishement and today reading of the couple who murdered their baby but in a tortured way makes me want to execute them myself.

This in spades, boils my pïss the way some people treat their kids, it's heightened for me because since the cancer diagnosis etc I've been told I can't have kids aswell... So something like this and seeing other wastes of oxygen popping out kids like shelling peas all while ignoring the kids they do have for their latest dïckhead! 

 

 

Sad story from the OP though. Should really be more support for those types of releases. 

Edited April 15, 2023 by GodlyOtsemobor

[keelansgrandad 6,679]

59 minutes ago, GodlyOtsemobor said:

This in spades, boils my pïss the way some people treat their kids, it's heightened for me because since the cancer diagnosis etc I've been told I can't have kids aswell... So something like this and seeing other wastes of oxygen popping out kids like shelling peas all while ignoring the kids they do have for their latest dïckhead! 

 

 

Sad story from the OP though. Should really be more support for those types of releases. 

Sorry to hear your news.