Demand for answers from Scotland’s top prosecutor
JOHN FERGUSON
Guards who restrained tragic Castlemilk man Allan Marshall were the first to be granted immunity from prosecution in five years of prison death investigations.
A total of 135 fatal accident inquiries (FAIs) about inmates dying behind bars were conducted over that time.
However, staff involved in attempting to place Mr Marshall, 30, under their control at Edinburgh’s HMP Saughton were the only ones to be informed they would not face criminal charges.
Lord Advocate James Wolffe, Scotland’s most senior prosecutor, admitted the extraordinary move in a letter to Holyrood’s justice committee.
He confirmed his decision was unprecedented in any custody death FAI between 2014 and 2019.
Now Scottish Labour’s justice spokesman James Kelly has demanded that Wolffe explains his rare decision.
Glasgow list MSP Mr Kelly said: “This revelation makes it even more crucial to establish the reasoning behind this decision.
“What was so different in this case and why did the Crown counsel feel immunity was suitable?
“Allan Marshall’s family deserve answers. There must be transparency around what happened here.”
Mr Marshall’s family are planning to sue the Scottish Prison Service, Police Scotland and the Lord Advocate for compensation.
In an FAI judgment last August, Sheriff Gordon Liddle described the remand prisoner’s death as “entirely preventable”.
But before the inquiry took place, the guards involved were told there was zero risk of them ending up in the dock.
Mr Marshall’s brother Alistair has also questioned the incredible decision.
He said: “What made my brother’s death so different from all these other ones was that special arrangements had to be made for the guards.
“From day one there has been every effort made to protect the Scottish Prison Service and its staff while we have been treated with contempt by the authorities.
“We need to know why this decision was taken on immunity and we need to know that it won’t happen again in the future.
“I’m sure that Allan would still be with us today if it hadn’t been for what happened to him in Saughton.
“It’s astonishing that the most senior prosecutor in the land seems to have wanted to get in the way of justice being done rather than the opposite.”
Wolffe responded to a letter from Holyrood’s justice committee in March.
His reply explained that 246 FAIs were concluded between April 1, 2014, and March 31, 2019.
Of these, 135 were related to deaths in custody. Mr Marshall’s case was the only one where it was decided witnesses would not be prosecuted.
The family were told that witnesses would speak more freely if the threat of criminal charges were removed.
However, the evidence heard was so horrific that Mr Marshall’s relatives believe the wrong decision was made.
The dad of two was being held after appearing at Hamilton Sheriff Court on a breach of the peace charge. He was remanded in custody over unpaid fines.
The Reformer’s sister newspaper the Sunday Mail obtained CCTV footage showing his final conscious moments as he was dragged naked across the floor with a towel placed over his head.
He died four days later, on March 28, 2015, in Edinburgh Royal Infirmary.
A Crown Office spokesman said: “Any correspondence received will be considered and responded to in due course.”