Scholes, Regina (on the Application of) v Secretary of State for the Home Department: Admn 16 Jan 2006

The deceased had committed suicide whilst in a Young Offenders Institute. The coroner had called for a further enquiry into the way he had been sentenced. The Home Office refused a public enquiry saying that the coroner’s inquest had satisfied its human rights duties. Judicial review was now sought of that decision.
Held: The respondent argued that the claimant knew the extent of the coroner’s proposed enquiry, and had opportuniy to challenge it. The Inquest had heard evidence from the prisons service as to its policies and the estate available. The court contrasted the resources available in the limited number of secure hostels with those in young offenders institutions.

Citations:

[2006] EWHC 1 (Admin)

Links:

Bailii

Statutes:

European Convention on Human Rights 2

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Citing:

CitedRegina v l Lobban Sawyers and Others, Regina v Q; Attorney General’s Reference Nos 4 and 7 Of 2002 CACD 29-Jan-2002
The appeals concerned sentences for robbery of mobile phones in public places.
Held: Such thefts had become commonplace. The court would not set out to provide sentencing guidelines, but rather to bring together existing guidance. The courts . .
CitedAmin, Regina (on the Application of) v Secretary of State for the Home Department HL 16-Oct-2003
Prisoner’s death – need for full public enquiry
The deceased had been a young Asian prisoner. He was placed in a cell overnight with a prisoner known to be racist, extremely violent and mentally unstable. He was killed. The family sought an inquiry into the death.
Held: There had been a . .
CitedMiddleton, Regina (on the Application of) v Coroner for the Western District of Somerset HL 11-Mar-2004
The deceased had committed suicide in prison. His family felt that the risk should have been known to the prison authorities, and that they had failed to guard against that risk. The coroner had requested an explanatory note from the jury.
CitedPlymouth City Council v HM Coroner for the County of Devon and Another Admn 27-May-2005
The local authority in whose care the deceased child had been held challenged a decision by the coroner not to limit his inquiry to the last few days of the child’s life. The coroner had decided that he had an obligation to conduct a wider enquiry . .

Cited by:

Appeal fromScholes v Secretary of State for the Home Department CA 17-Oct-2006
The deceased had committed suicide whilst in prison. The judge had requested that prison should be told of the risk of self harm. The mother appealed refusal of the judge to grant a judicial review of the Home Secretary’s refusal to grant, as . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Prisons, Children, Human Rights, Coroners

Updated: 12 November 2022; Ref: scu.242192