The families of two young inmates who died at Polmont have called for the prison service to be stripped of crown immunity following an inquiry.
The grieving relatives of Katie Allan, 21, and William Lindsay – also known as William Brown – 16, have hit out at jail bosses after a Fatal Accident Inquiry (FAI) ruled both of their deaths at the young offenders institution “could have been avoided”.
Solicitor Aamer Anwar, who represents both families, said the immunity for the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) gives them a “licence to kill” and that it should be revoked.
He said: “On this occasion we can tell you that we are assured of the support of every political party in opposition that support the removal of crown immunity that grants the SPS a licence to kill.”
Katie, a student at Glasgow University, was found dead in her cell on June 4, 2018, while serving a 16-month sentence for drink-driving and causing serious injury by dangerous driving.
William, who had been in care repeatedly, was detained at Polmont after he had walked into a police station with a knife, while on bail for another blade offence. He had been remanded in custody as there was no space in a children’s secure unit. He was found dead four months later on October 7 – two days after he was remanded at the facility.
A joint FAI identified a “catalogue of individual and collective failures by prison and healthcare staff” which led to Katie and William’s deaths at HMP Polmont. Particularly, the probe identified a series of safety failings and defects where staff failed to pass on vital information about their histories of self-harm that could have prevented both suicides.
Following the determination, which was made public on Friday morning, John Reilly – William’s brother – dubbed the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) system as “corrupt” and begged: “Why could this ever be allowed to happen to a child?”.
He added: “My mother Christine never got to see today. The only thing I know is that William’s and Katie’s legacy must be real change, not empty promises. Whilst some would call the system corrupt, well I just call it the SPS, who act as though they are a God with a total freedom to kill.
“There are those who should be in prison for William’s death, yet they have never suffered any consequences and it is time the law was changed at the facility.
“Why could this ever be allowed to happen to a child? He was my baby brother – he was just a terrified little boy. Before the FAI process had begun, I attended a meeting with the Crown along with my mum Christine Lindsay and my solicitor Mr Anwar. It seemed to me that Polmont essentially could not afford to keep William alive, which is a horrible and distressing thought.”
Linda Allan, Katie’s mother said: “Katie was brutalised in Polmont, so much so that she lost all hope and saw only one solution – her death. She did not ‘thrive’ as claimed by a witness at her FAI – she was bullied, she was petrified, she was lost.”
Both families will now go on to campaign for SPS to be stripped of crown immunity – a legal doctrine that protects the state from criminal prosecution and civil suits.
In the context of prisons, it means that the SPS cannot be prosecuted for health and safety offences. Instead, they can only be censured.
Linda said: “The prison service literally gets away with creating the circumstances by which people die prematurely, no sanctions exist, they cannot be criminally prosecuted. Unless this changes, another Katie or another William will lose their lives, three have already done so in Polmont since 2018.”
Mr Reilly believes no justice has been served for his brother’s death. He said: “It is difficult trying to put into words how in six years my family have experienced so much heartache and the grief and loss will never leave me. My mother Christine never stopped crying after William’s loss, but she also never gave up fighting but in the end, she died of a broken heart in December 2021.
“William’s death set in motion a period of my life which has caused unspeakable grief, losing not only William, but my two sisters and my mother, all in quick succession. None of the family could come to terms with what happened to William, and I have no doubt that his death played a part in what followed thereafter.
“Why is the Crown, the Courts, the prison service accountable to nobody – that’s not justice. Whilst I welcome the report and the Sheriff has turned his fire on every failure of the SPS to save William’s life, I ask why has it taken our family over six years to get answers?”
Anwar says the SPS ignored the “cries for help” from Katie and William, and that they should “hang their heads in shame”.
He added: “Whilst it is not the job of FAIs to apportion blame, it is clear from the Sheriff’s findings that had the Scottish Prison Service simply done its job, then Katie Allan and William Lindsay may have been alive today.
“The SPS, former prison governors, senior management at Polmont, the Forth Valley health board, First Ministers, former First Ministers and successive justice ministers, should all hang their heads in shame.
“You are complicit in the deaths that continue to take place. You did more than fail the most vulnerable people in society. You ignored their cries for help. We do not have a death sentence in this country but for Katie and William that is what you served on them.
“For over six years you denied the truth, you lied and conducted a whitewash, you gaslit the families and the fact is that some of you should be facing criminal prosecution. But while Crown immunity remains, you will remain secure in your lack of accountability.
“To be clear, the Crown Office told us before the start of the FAI there was more than sufficient evidence to prosecute the SPS for the deaths of William and Katie under health and safety laws. But, because the SPS has Crown immunity, nothing could be done.”
A spokesperson for SPS said: “Our thoughts remain with the families of Katie Allan and William Lindsay and we would like to take this opportunity to offer our sincere condolences and apologies for the failures identified in this report. We are committed to doing everything we can to support people and keep them safe during the most challenging and vulnerable periods of their lives.
“We are grateful to Sheriff Collins for his recommendations, which we will now carefully consider before responding further.”
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