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Daily Mirror
11-07-2025
- Daily Mirror
Prisoner released earlier than expected found dead in doorway two days later
Michael Johnson, 39, was released from HMP Altcourse, in Liverpool, earlier than expected - but he was tragically found dead in a doorway just two days later after struggling to find housing A prisoner was found dead in a doorway just two days after he was released from prison. Michael Johnson, 39, was freed from HMP Altcourse, in Liverpool, early under the End of Custody Supervised Licence scheme but he struggled to find somewhere to live. Johnson had been convicted of stealing and was sentenced to 20 weeks in prison on April 29, 2024. During his initial health screening at the prison, he told a nurse he was an alcoholic and he had bipolar disorder and anxiety. He also explained that had an issue with drugs and had medication used as a substitute for opioids. Johnson told the nurse he was a regular cocaine user and was taking methadone, used to help with opioid disorders and pain, which he brought into custody with him. In a Prison and Probations Ombudsman report published this week on Wednesday, July 9, it said the drug and alcohol service manager at the prison destroyed the methadone on arrival. He was then referred to the substance misuse team. The 39-year-old's medication was changed by a GP while at HMP Altcourse as several of his previous drugs had a sedative effect, according to the Liverpool Echo. Johnson told his community offender manager, less than two weeks later, that he was in a lot of pain due to his sciatica and not being given alternative pain medication. He even admitted having thoughts of self-medicating through illegal substances but wanted to work to move away from his addictions. The day after this conversation, on May 21, Johnson was approved for release under the End of Custody Supervised Licence (ECSL) scheme which allowed prisoners to be released up to 70 days early in an effort to ease overcrowding in prisons. He was told his new release date was now May 23, rather than the originally scheduled date of July 7. Johnson's COM then made an application for him to be put into temporary accommodation for up to 84 nights to prevent him from being homeless when leaving prison, but this was unsuccessful due to Liverpool City Council having no bed spaces for his imminent release, the report said. He was released from prison on May 23 with his last dose of methadone and was not offered a naloxone kit which can help with the reversal of a drug overdose. Johnson was released from prison homeless, according to the report. He attended his initial probation appointment with his COM where he was challenged as he smelt of cannabis and he admitted drinking alcohol before the appointment. The report said: "During the appointment, the COM called Whitechapel Centre (homeless and housing charity) to see if they could support Mr Johnson with accommodation. "They were not able to help but provided her with their out of hours assistance number and provided the out of hours number for housing options emergency accommodation. She gave the numbers to Mr Johnson so that he could call the out of hours service. We do not know if Mr Johnson found any accommodation for his first nights after release." Johnson attended a further meeting on May 24 where he was given his methadone prescription. He was also offered a naloxone kit but he declined. At 9am on May 25, 2024, a member of the public found Johnson lying on the floor in a doorway and called emergency services. Paramedics pronounced him dead at the scene and drug paraphernalia was found. Liverpool City Council said the way it works with Liverpool residents being released from prison has changed dramatically since the sad death of Johnson. A post-mortem found he had died from mixed drug poisoning and a toxicology report said Johnson consumed methadone, various prescription medications, cannabis, Spice (a psychoactive substance), cocaine and morphine prior to his death. Prison and Probations Ombudsman Adrian Usher wrote: "We are satisfied that Altcourse and the Probation Service did all they could to manage the risks associated with his substance misuse. Although the prison did not offer Mr Johnson naloxone, we are satisfied they have made adequate changes to ensure that this failure does not happen again. We make no recommendation." A Liverpool City Council spokesperson said: 'We are sad to hear about the death of Mr Johnson. He was referred to Housing Options for a homeless assessment prior to his death. He was then released from prison early and we were unable to progress the application as sadly he passed away. "We had not been able to assess him, so accommodation was not considered as this can only be offered after contact has been made. The availability of bedspaces is not referring to an offer of accommodation from the council, and may be in relation to another service." An HMP Altcourse spokesperson said: 'Our thoughts continue to be with Mr. Johnson's family and friends. A full Coroner's Inquest has been held which examined all relevant matters, noting that there were no specific actions arising for Sodexo [the company that operates Altcourse].'
Scottish Sun
07-06-2025
- Scottish Sun
Shock death of newborn ‘Baby C' at women's prison being probed
The tot's gender and mother's condition has not been disclosed following the death behind bars TOT DEATH PROBE Shock death of newborn 'Baby C' at women's prison being probed Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) PRISON bosses are investigating the tragic death of a newborn baby inside a jail. The child was just one day old when they died at HMP Foston Hall in Derbyshire. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up An inquest into 'Baby C' is set to be held to establish how it died at the prison, which also has a Young Offenders' Institution. The tot's gender and mother's condition has not been disclosed following the death behind bars on October 16, 2023. It was confirmed by the Prison and Probations Ombudsman after featuring in its latest Independent Investigations Annual Report. Ombudsman Adrian Usher said: 'We are saddened to confirm that the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman are investigating the death of a baby. 'We offer our sincerest condolences to the family.' The newborn was among 292 deaths inside prisons in 2023/24, according to the report. A final investigation report will be published by the PPO after the inquest has finished. Three babies have now died in the English prison system in the last five years following deaths at HMP Bronzefield in 2019 and HMP Styal in 2020. Aisha Cleary died in her mum Rianna's cell at Bronzefield in Surrey, the biggest women's prison in Europe, in September 2019. Rianna, 18, endured more than 12 hours of labour and had repeatedly pressed her 'cell bell' before anyone came to help. Chilling moment prisoners smirk before battering sex offender to death in cell in 37-sec attack - then calmly walk away Officers found her covered in blood with her dead infant after biting through the umbilical cord as she had no other way of severing it. Louise Powell, 31, begged for an ambulance at HMP Styal before giving birth to her stillborn baby girl, Brooke-Leigh, in a toilet. She didn't know she was pregnant before going into labour in June 2020. A PPO report found the duty nurse made 'a serious error of judgement' by not visiting Powell after they were contacted three times about her severe pain.
The Irish Sun
07-06-2025
- The Irish Sun
Shock death of newborn ‘Baby C' at women's prison being probed
PRISON bosses are investigating the tragic death of a newborn baby inside a jail. The child was just one day old when they died at Advertisement An inquest into 'Baby C' is set to be held to establish how it died at the prison, which also has a Young Offenders' Institution. The tot's gender and mother's condition has not been disclosed following the death behind bars on October 16, 2023. It was confirmed by the Prison and Probations Ombudsman after featuring in its latest Independent Investigations Annual Report. Ombudsman Adrian Usher said: 'We are saddened to confirm that the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman are investigating the death of a baby. Advertisement Read More on PRISONS 'We offer our sincerest condolences to the family.' The newborn was among 292 deaths inside prisons in 2023/24, according to the report. A final investigation report will be published by the PPO after the inquest has finished. Three babies have now died in the English prison system in the last five years following deaths at Advertisement Most read in The Sun Exclusive Breaking Exclusive Aisha Cleary died in her mum Rianna's cell at Rianna, 18, endured more than 12 hours of labour and had repeatedly pressed her 'cell bell' before anyone came to help. Chilling moment prisoners smirk before battering sex offender to death in cell in 37-sec attack - then calmly walk away Officers found her covered in blood with her dead infant after biting through the umbilical cord as she had no other way of severing it. Louise Powell, 31, begged for an ambulance at Advertisement She didn't know she was pregnant before going into labour in June 2020. A PPO report found the duty nurse made 'a serious error of judgement' by not visiting Powell after they were contacted three times about her severe pain. 1 The child was just one day old when they died at HMP Foston Hall in Derbyshire Credit: Alamy
