Nikki Mitchell

Theresa Mcrae is campaigning to end Imprisonment for Public Protection sentences after her son Josh died in prison following more than 16 years in custody. Josh was convicted of grievous bodily harm, released on licence after serving his minimum tariff, then recalled to prison and later found dead in his cell. More than 2,000 people in England and Wales remain imprisoned under IPP sentences without a definitive release date. A United Nations working group recently found that Josh and four other prisoners had been arbitrarily detained, citing the lack of a legal basis for their continued detention and the psychological harms created by the system. The government says rehabilitation and mental-health support have improved and is considering further action, while the Ministry of Justice maintains that UK and European courts have not ruled the sentences unlawful. Legal representatives are preparing a High Court challenge, and an inquest into Josh's death is expected in October.

An inquest jury found that 63-year-old Richard Laversuch was unlawfully killed by fellow patient Owen Herbert at Parklands Hospital in Basingstoke in November 2021. Herbert, who was considered high risk and had recently tried to strangle another patient, was incorrectly admitted to an understaffed lower-security ward after no psychiatric intensive care bed was available. The jury identified failures in admission procedures, risk assessment, staffing and staff responses to warnings. Laversuch’s siblings said both men were victims of systemic psychiatric-care failures. Herbert, who pleaded guilty to manslaughter, is detained indefinitely at Broadmoor Hospital. The NHS trust apologised and said it had strengthened staffing, communication, bed-allocation procedures and risk escalation.

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust apologised to the families of Richard Laversuch and Owen Herbert after an inquest found that multiple failures contributed to Laversuch’s strangulation by Herbert at Parklands Hospital in Basingstoke in 2021. Herbert was admitted to a low-risk ward despite being considered too high-risk, with failures involving risk assessment, staffing, records and communication. The trust accepted that these failings caused or contributed to the death and has since tightened admission procedures, improved senior oversight and installed corridor mirrors. The inquest is continuing.

An inquest heard that Owen Herbert, who strangled fellow patient Richard Laversuch at Parklands Hospital in 2021, could have been admitted to a secure psychiatric unit despite it being at full capacity. Senior staff testified that better communication and reassessment of bed availability might have allowed Herbert to be placed in a higher‑risk ward. Nurses on the lower‑risk ward, where the killing occurred, said they felt compelled to admit him despite inadequate staffing. Evidence also highlighted limited staff access to CCTV at the time, prompting later policy changes. The inquest continues.

A police van recording captured Vickrum Digwa admitting to fatally stabbing Southampton student Henry Nowak in December 2025, contradicting the self‑defence claims he initially made to police and his family. A translated transcript shows Digwa and his brother Gurpreet discussing how to describe the weapon, how to present their accounts, and praying for their family as all four relatives were in custody. The conversation was used in Digwa’s murder trial, where he received a life sentence with a minimum of 21 years, and sparked wider scrutiny following public anger over earlier footage showing Nowak handcuffed while dying. Digwa is appealing his conviction and sentence, while the Solicitor General has asked for the sentence to be reviewed as potentially too lenient. His mother was convicted of assisting an offender, and further weapons‑related charges against the men are due for trial in 2027.

Footage from a Ring video doorbell helped Thames Valley Police secure the conviction of Charles May for indecent exposure and criminal damage after he was recorded urinating on a resident’s doorstep. The case highlights a wider push by police forces in southern England for residents to register home security cameras with the NiCE Investigate system, which allows officers to request relevant footage during investigations. Officials say the growing volume of digital evidence has significantly improved crime‑solving, while maintaining that camera owners retain control over what is shared. Victim Sally Evans reports feeling safer after installing multiple devices, and police emphasize the value of public-submitted footage in prosecuting offenders.

The Hampshire police force faces an urgent inspection by the national watchdog after officers handcuffed and arrested dying student Henry Nowak despite his repeated pleas that he had been stabbed. Police and Crime Commissioner Donna Jones requested the review, citing serious concerns over inadequate information given to responding officers and their failure to provide timely medical aid. His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services has agreed in principle to carry out the inspection, which will assess control room culture, officer training and medical response duties. The review will proceed alongside an ongoing Independent Office for Police Conduct investigation into the police response.