Custody officer dies after attack at Blackfriars Crown Court

A custody officer who was attacked outside a court in central London has died.

Lorraine Barwell, 54, was assaulted on Monday as she escorted a prisoner from Blackfriars Crown Court to a van.

Humphrey Burke, 22, appeared at Camberwell Green Magistrates' Court on Wednesday charged with grievous bodily harm over an alleged assault.

The Ministry of Justice and Serco believe she is the first prison custody officer to be killed on duty.

A post-mortem examination will take place later and officers from the homicide and major crime command are investigating the case, the Met Police said.

BBC Home Affairs correspondent Danny Shaw said there would be three investigations into the incident, carried out by the Ministry of Justice, the Met Police and Serco.

Ms Barwell was working with other Serco team members preparing to escort a prisoner to a van parked inside the courtyard.

The Serco custody officer was attacked on Monday afternoon at Blackfriars Crown Court

She was treated at the scene by London's Air Ambulance and had been in a critical condition in hospital since the attack.

Justice Secretary Mr Gove said he was shocked to hear of her death.

He added: "No words can express the devastating effect this will have on her family and friends and my deepest sympathies are with them at this difficult time.

"Lorraine Barwell was a courageous and dedicated prisoner custody officer who delivered a vital public service for more than a decade."

He said the Ministry of Justice would provide assistance to the police investigation.

Analysis by Danny Shaw, Home Affairs Correspondent

My understanding was that Lorraine Barwell's family agreed with doctors that she would not recover from her injuries so they switched off her life support system.

The one comfort for her family is that she was an organ donor so her organs will be used to benefit others.

We have been looking back through the records and as far as we are aware there has been no reported incident of a custody officer working for Serco or any other private firm dying as a result of injuries sustained in their duties.

In terms of prison officers and custody staff in England and Wales the last recorded death was in 1991 - a skills instructor at Norwich prison, but of course there are incidents in Northern Ireland of prison officers who have died in the line of duty as well.

Reports of violence in prisons have been increasing and there have been some very serious incidents of staff in prisons being assaulted.

This was a fear prison officers had that one day they would get the call that one of their colleagues had died as a result of injuries sustained in duty.

Serco group chief executive Rupert Soames said the company was "shocked and desperately sad" about Ms Barwell's death and there would be a major review into how the incident occurred.

He said: "Lorraine has been with the company for over 10 years doing this and she was a consummate professional, really good at her job and much respected.

"There are very detailed procedures for handling people because on a daily basis we are handling murderers, rapists and people accused of vile crimes.

"This has all come as a huge shock to us, in part because it has has never happened before because our procedures and government's procedures have been proved very safe until now."

The group chief executive of Serco said the company had detailed procedures for handling prisoners

Ms Barwell was a grandmother and had two children.

The POA, the Professional Trades Union for Prison, Correctional and Secure Psychiatric Workers, said members were thinking of Ms Barwell's family and friends.

Glyn Travis, from the POA, said: "It's a sad day for the criminal justice system, the prison service, and of course the family.

"This is not about public or private, this is about someone who is just doing their job.

"No-one expects their mum, wife, sister or daughter to go to work and never come home."

Escorting a prisoner

• Prisoners have to be escorted in line with the National Security Framework

• A minimum of two staff should escort a prisoner outside of a secure setting

• A single prisoner custody officer (PCO) can escort a prisoner between prison cells, and the court and to the dock

• It is for a senior PCO in the court to carry out a out a risk assessment on whether additional measures are required.

Source: Ministry of Justice