Murderer demands moisturiser in prison
CONVICTED murderer Phillip Smith launched a legal challenge to get access to toupee and scalp-grooming products in prison.
The paedophile, who gained notoriety after fleeing to Brazil while on bail, was angered at not being able to use his Olay moisturiser and Dove skin cleanser behind bars.
He took legal action against the Corrections Department. On Friday, Corrections said they had reached an agreement for Smith to use the products, and legal action had been discontinued. Smith said: ‘‘If it were another prisoner that didn’t have the same resources that I do, then that prisoner would simply have been the victim of state coercion and denied what is a civil liberty.’’
Smith’s authorised grooming products include V05 hair gel, Nearly Natural shampoo, Dove cleanser and Olay moisturiser. An itemised list says the gel is
‘‘to style the hairpiece and make it look like credible, real hair,’’ while the shampoo preserves the hair quality, and the moisturiser is ‘‘to keep his scalp moist and healthy’’.
Smith was sentenced to life in jail in 1996 for murder, paedophile offending, aggravated burglary and kidnapping. He had molested a 13-year-old boy over a threeyear period, and later stabbed the boy’s father to death.
Smith fled New Zealand while on temporary release in late 2014. He was eventually caught in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and put in maximum security on his return.
Following his escape, Auckland Prison revoked his approval to wear a toupee.
He is now being held in low security at Upper Hutt’s Rimutaka Prison, following legal proceedings where he argued being held in maximum security at Auckland Prison was a breach of his human rights.
In 2017, Smith won a High Court case against Corrections for not allowing him to wear a hairpiece, which he now wears behind bars. Corrections had given an undertaking that it wouldn’t revoke Smith’s toupee again, but refusing to issue him with his approved accessories amounted to doing so, he argued.
A Corrections said:
‘‘Personal items requested by Mr Smith from his family have been withheld by prison management while the proper process for accepting material into the prison is met. Staff have spoken to Mr Smith and are working with him to resolve this issue.’’