Killed by Britain's Prison's in 2004 ................Tina Bromley, 37, died HMP Edmunds Hill 4 January.........Harold Shipman, 57, died HMP Wakefield 13 January..........April Sherman, 27, died HMP Edmunds Hill 13 Jan.........Phillip Taylor, 32, died HMP Blakenhurst 14 January.........Philip Rustell, 19, died HMP Reading 17 January.........James Skelly, 18, died HMYOI Portland 17 January..........Craig Roach, 28, died HMP Exeter 18 January.........Vincent Palmer, 37 , died HMP Woodhill 22 January.........Kevin Murby, 47, died HMP Nottingham 23 January...........Stephen Chamber, 31, died HMP Preston 26 January..........Paul Pitts, 29, died HMP Stafford 2 February.........Terry Sawford, 23, died HMP Nottingham 4 February.........Ricky Sears, 42, died HMP Wandsworth 07 February.........Vincent Morgan, 42 , died HMP Gloucester 10 Feb.........Thomas Burns, 24 , died HMP Gloucester 15 February.........Daniel Tull, 56 , died HMP Ramby 16 February...........Sajjad Hussain, 20 , died HMYOI Lancaster Farms Feb...........Ian Deans, 35 , died HMP Holme House 20 February..........Fausal Zahid, 27, died HMP Canterbury 21 February..........Steve Martin, 47, died HMP Belmarsh 24 February...........Anthony Richards, 37, died HMP Gloucester 28 Feb..........Anwar Islam, 36, died HMP Long Lartin 28 February.........Brian Carter, 34, died HMP Shrewsbury 4 March...........Christopher Ollerenshaw, 22, HMP Leicester March...........Stanley Denyer, 47, died HMP Lewes 8 March..........Kingsley Llewellyn, 29, died HMP Norwich 14 March.........Brendon Smith, 28, died HMP Wymott 23 March.........Abidemi Folarin, 35, died HMP Brixton 25 March..........Shaun Brown, 34, died HMP Preston 27 March.........Sheena Kotecha, 22, died HMP Brockhill 3 April.........Stephen Lloyd, 25, died HMP Frankland 15 April.........Michael Minishull, 45, died HMP Liverpool 16 April..........Julie Hope, 35, died HMP Holloway 17 April.........Louise Davis, 32, died HMP New Hall 18 April.........Paige Tapp, 23, died HMP Send 18 April...........Gareth Myatt, 15, died while be restrained by three prison officers, Rainsbrook Child Prison, 19 April..........Lawrence Mellon, 43, died HMP Woodhill 28 April...........Sharon Miller, 45, died HMP Durham 8 May..........William Butterfield, 61, died HMP Shrewsbury 8 May.........Heather Wait, 28, died HMP Holloway 8 May..........Steven Green, 35, died HMP Leicester 15 May.........Spencer Smith, 30, died HMP Blakenhurst 18 May..........Nicholas Bailey, 59, died HMP Lewes 19 May...........William Hunter, 25, died HMP Durham 24 May..........David Harpe, 39, died HMP Lincoln 25 May.........Rebecca Smith, 40, died HMP Buckley Hall 1 June...........Mark Fulton, died Maghaberry Prison, 10 June..........Carl Baker, 36, died HMP Nottingham 11 June..........Stuart Horgan, 39, died HMP Woodhill 20 June...........Andrew Williams, 29, died HMP Manchester 21 June...........Andrew Elliott, 43, died HMP Manchester 23 June..........Paul Bartropp, 36, died HMP Pentonville 25 June..........Richard Webb, 33, died HMP Manchester 3 July...........Lyton Setterfield, 36, died HMP Highdown 7 July...........Edward Orr, 46, died HMP Liverpool 26 July.........Rebecca Turner, 22, HMP Low Newton 28 July...........Stephen Ram, 28, died HMP Blakenhurst 28 July.........Marie Walsh, 29, HMP New Hall 29 July..........Jason Cressey, 29, died HMP Wormwood 7 August.........Jamie Leigh, 27, died HMP Birmingham 8 August..........Jason Alldis, 33, died HMP Elmley 8 August.........Adam Rickwood, 14, Hassockfield Child Prison 9 August...........Brendan Flynn, 28, died HMP Wakefield 11 August...........Michael Briggs, 41, died HMP Leeds 12 August..........Robert Finch, 45, died HMP Exeter 14 August...........Lee Nottingham, 30, died HMP Shrewsbury 19 August...........Stephen Badaj, 39, died HMP Dartmoor 23 August.............Benjamin Gibson, 19, died HMP Norwich 25 August...........Steven Hush, 44, died HMP Acklington 26 August.............Richard Carter, 33, died HMP Leeds 26 August............Abdul Omar, 28, died HMP Wormwood Scrubs, August.............Stephen Woods, 23, died HMP Bullingdon 28 August...........Phillip Parvin, 30, died HMP Shrewsbury 31 August...........Mark Keeling, 31, died HMP Shrewsbury 1 September.............Shaun Hazelhurst, 28, died HMP Manchester 4 Sept...........Patrick Kilty, 32, died HMP Manchester 04 September.............Kenneth Morris, 50, died HMP Acklington 17 Sept............Anthony Dunne, 19, died HMP/YOI Rochester Sept.............Raymond Goodwin, 44, died HMP Norwich 27 Sept...........hah Rahman, 23, died HMP Brixton 28 September............Raymond Horrocks, 24, died HMP Wakefield 29 Sept.........John Baxter, 25, HMP Hull 3 October.........Stephen Davis, 49, HMP Pentonville 10 October.........David Hull, 32, died HMP Kingston 12 October...........Mandy Pearson, 37, died HMP Newhall 12 October.........Damien McCrae, 26, died HMP Manchester 13 October...........Mairi Taylor, 20, Cornton vale Prison, 13 October .........Katherine Jones, 19, HMP Brockhill 15 October.........John Manana, 24, died HMP Leicester 15 October...........Andrew Mackintosh, 49 Aberdeen Prison, 18th October...........Andrew Maguire, 34, died HMP Durham 21 October...........Paul Calvert, 40, HMP Pentonville 24 October..........Jason Thompson, 26, died HMYOI Werrington 1 Nov.........Michael Arthurs, died Peterhead Prison, 14 November ...........Daniel Sawford, 22, died HMP Lincoln 16 November.........Roman Piho, 33, died HMP Wormwood Scrubs 23 Nov.........Robert Robertson, died Barlinnie 12 December.........Name Withheld, 49, died Maghaberry Prison 12 December.........Mark Franks, 31, died HMP Liverpool 13 December...........Derek Crook, died Castle Huntly Prison

Alternatives to Prison

Prison is perceived as the normal response to a wide range of behaviour considered anti social or criminal. Irrespective of the value of alternatives its extensive use provides us with considerable information with which to evaluate Prison as a response to lawbreaking.

This evidence is conclusive, Prison is expensive, it damages both those imprisoned and their families, it makes those locked up more likely to commit further offences and it does nothing directly to assist victims. Whilst alternatives will not be perfect they will have to be seriously flawed to be as bad as prison! (See Why Cage: The justifications for imprisonment)

In terms of alternatives these are listed in two groups, the first are currently available and used by courts. These are in my opinion weakened by the need to package them as punishment. The focus on punishment means that pragmatic solutions are often rejected despite evidence they will lead to reduced offending because they could be perceived as "soft". Courts have tended to use these against people they were not intending to imprison and they have therefore not been real alternatives to prison.

The second group are "radical" alternatives that are currently not used but which we would advocate.

THE CURRENT ALTERNATIVES

Currently alternatives to prison include, cautions, discharges, compensation orders, fines, registration, "community" punishments and "control" or "tagging" orders

For full details of these click here

THE RADICAL ALTERNATIVES

Radical alternatives are different because they are based not only on a different response to ?crime? but a very different understanding of crime, the criminal justice system and the nature of the society we live in. Those of us advocating alternatives to prison not only object to the immorality of caging tens of thousands of our fellow citizens but to a criminal justice system that is institutionally racist, denies many citizens basic civil rights and is targeted at the poor and powerless. We don?t want to control the poor, abuse children or oppress black citizens.

Prison is fundamentally about punishment, the infliction of pain. Its use on such a wide ranging scale depends on a criminal justice system that focuses on the need to exert social control and punish individuals without understanding the social context for their behaviour or without any real concern for their victims. There is no doubt that some peoples selfish, anti social or inappropriate behaviour causes real damage. Advocating radical alternatives is not about ignoring or excusing such behaviour. It is about focusing responses on effective, just and proportionate responses. It is about trying to create real justice, that recognises a wrong has been done (where this can be proved!) and that society is best served by providing appropriate restitution to the victim and solutions that address the real problems and thus reduce future crime.

In responding to the phenemem of crime we need to stop lashing out, demanding the infliction of pain and start critically evaluating the exact problem we are facing and what is the most effective and just solution.

Reducing the number of crimes

Our first response must be to question what is a "crime". We need to focus on those acts that really do cause harm. We also need to understand that some things are best dealt with outside the criminal justice system. The current New Labour government has created over 1,000 new crimes, acts that previously would not have been criminal which now are. We would seek to reverse this trend. Unruly or difficult children needs support, education, and other welfare responses. The answer to children hanging around on street corners must lie in improved youth services not in imprisoning our children. Likewise the very real problems generated by drug use, prostitution, or mental illness cannot be solved by caging or otherwise punishing those who in reality need support and welfare services. Who really cares more about a woman involved in prostitution, the person who locks her up, fines her (forcing her back onto the streets to pay it), removes her children or the person who seeks to get her treatment for her addiction, safety from her pimp, and alternative employment that her allows her a decent income for herself and her children? Other current offences that have no victims or do no significant harm like casual recreational drug use should be entirely legal

Non-penal residential provision

Magistrates and judges often claim they send people to prison because there is nowhere else for them to go. This may be because they are homeless or because their home is not an appropriate place for them to be.

The lack of homes or residential provision should be no excuse. Prison is about imflicting pain and is now place for a child or a vulnerable adult. Good quality residential provision needs to be developed, prioritising schemes for children but also responding to the needs of homeless, mentally ill, and addicted convicts.

To be continued..........