§ Mr. Prittasked the Home Secretary whether the system called knock, whereby prisoners under punishment are awakened by a warder knocking on their cell door at short intervals throughout the night, is, or has recently been, in operation at Dartmoor; whether it has official sanction and. if so. in what circumstances: in how 1387W many cases in the last five years it has been applied; and whether he will take steps to put a stop to it?
§ Sir S. HoareThere is no foundation whatever for the hon. Member's suggestion that such a system exists, or has recently existed, at Dartmoor or any other prison. I hope that the hon. Member will let me know the source of this baseless story. I am sure he will agree that, in fairness to the prison service, its author should not remain anonymous.
§ Mr. Prittasked the Home Secretary whether his attention has been drawn to the case of a prisoner at Dartmoor who had a crippled arm and was certified insane and removed to Broadmoor; whether that prisoner is still at Broadmoor; whether he is now sane, and, if not, from what form of insanity is he suffering; whether his insanity was brought about wholly or partly by his treatment in Dartmoor; whether his arm became crippled as a result of an attack upon him by a prison officer at Dartmoor; and whether any inquiry has been, or will be, held into the circumstances under which his arm was crippled?
§ Sir S. HoareI presume that the case referred to is that of a prisoner named A. H. Jackson, who in April of last year sustained a deep cut on his right forearm from broken glass. The circumstances were fully investigated at the time by the board of visitors, whose inquiry showed that there was no foundation for the suggestion that he had been attacked by a prison officer. The suggestion that the prisoner subsequently became insane owing to his treatment in prison is equally unfounded. His mental condition has improved but he is still unfit to leave Broad-moor Asylum. He was suffering from delusional insanity.