Prisoner check was not done correctly - inquest

Three deaths occurred in HMP Lowdham Grange in March 2023

A prison officer at a jail where three men died in their cells updated records with checks on inmates that were not made properly, an inquest has heard.

Nottingham Coroner's Court is hearing a joint inquest into the deaths of Anthony Binfield, Rolandas Karbauskas and David Richards, who died at HMP Lowdham Grange, in Nottinghamshire, within the space of three weeks in March 2023.

CCTV footage seen in court showed checks reportedly carried out on Binfield - the first of the three to die - had not taken place at the times recorded in a logbook, or done to the required standard.

Liam Doyle, a prison custody officer, told the inquest on Thursday he now realised he had made mistakes.

'Guesstimating' details

The court has heard Binfield was found hanging in his cell on the evening of 6 March, and was confirmed dead shortly afterwards.

He had been found under the influence of a synthetic cannabinoid - known as Spice - and carrying a weapon made out of a sharpened toothbrush on 3 March.

He was seen by a mental health professional the following day.

A prison officer sent two emails to other staff on 5 March reporting Binfield was "feeling very low" and mentioning his wishes to light a candle to mark the anniversary of a bereavement.

At about 17:35 GMT on 6 March, he was seen under the influence of Spice, and soon afterwards was put on half-hourly welfare checks, where prison officers were supposed to ask about his condition.

Mr Doyle, who had been a trained prison officer for about 10 weeks before Binfield's death, had been working that weekend as well as the day of the death.

He said he had spoken to the deceased about concerns over threats from other prisoners on 4 March, but was not aware of the incidents the day before, or of his history of self-harm and Spice use.

"I should have, but I didn't," he said.

HMP Lowdham Grange is a Category B jail now run by the Ministry of Justice

When he started his shift on 6 March, Mr Doyle told the court he could not recall seeing a handover or receiving a briefing, and said prison staff were "constantly playing catch-up" trying to deal with updates on inmates in a "volatile" environment exacerbated by a "lack of staffing".

He said he had no dealings with Binfield that day until after he was put on observations.

In a logbook for recording checks on prisoners suspected to be under the influence, Mr Doyle wrote he checked Binfield at 18:30, 19:00 and 19:25, but CCTV showed he was not at the cell at those times.

He was seen walking by Binfield's cell at 18:33 but did not stop, and while he said he spoke to the inmate at 19:08, he told the court he did not ask how he was feeling or if he had vomited, as he was supposed to do as part of the observations.

The prison officer told the court he sometimes wrote entries in the logbook in the office before or after carrying out checks and was "guesstimating" when he had actually made them.

"Sometimes I would write it before, sometimes I would write it after I had done the check," he said.

When questioned by area coroner Laurinda Bower, he admitted the checks he made "weren't good enough" and did not take place when he said they did.

After being asked why his account of the checks had changed from his earlier accounts to a disciplinary investigation, he said that "seeing the CCTV" changed his mind and shown they were not sufficiently thorough.

"I admit I have done wrong," he said.

If you have been affected by anything in this report, you can visit the BBC Action Line.