Shipman suicide 'could not have been prevented'

The death of serial killer GP Harold Shipman at Wakefield Prison “could not have been predicted or prevented”, a report by Prisons and Probation Ombudsman Stephen Shaw said today.

But Mr Shaw made a series of criticisms of the prison authorities and said procedures for dealing with at-risk prisoners such as Shipman needed to be looked at again.

He specifically criticised decisions made in relation to Shipman under the prison privileges scheme.

Shipman’s privileges had been dropped from standard to basic because he refused to take part in offending behaviour courses in which inmates are encouraged to discuss their crimes and admit their guilt.

The loss of privileges meant he could no longer afford to ring his wife and he was described as “very emotional” and “close to tears” by a prison doctor weeks before his death.

Mr Shaw dismissed allegations that Shipman had been taunted into killing himself in January last year by prison officers.

But he added: “I am critical of the fact that staff at Wakefield do not appear to have been alerted to the man’s long-term risk of suicide or what might finally trigger it.”