We were shocked to hear Jack died in jail.. he was not a bad boy
Probe launched into the suicide of 20-year-old
An investigation has been launched into how a 20-yearold was able to take his own life inside a scandal-hit prison.
Jack McKenzie, found dead in his cell at Polmont Young Offenders Institution last month, is the fifth young person to die by suicide there in the last four years.
But grieving friends and relatives who spoke with Jack hours before his death said he appeared in good spirits and suicide was out of character.
Jack, of Shettleston, Glasgow, who lost both parents to drugs, had been in Polmont since January and was due to face trial over allegations he was involved in a violent disturbance.
A family member said: “Everyone who knew Jack was shocked to learn he had died in prison. He had a hard life following the deaths of his parents and was brought up by his grandmother. Jack wasn’t an angel but he wasn’t a bad boy either.”
It’s understood he had a disagreement with prison officers a few days earlier over access to his solicitor. Since 2017 Katie Allan, William Lindsay, Robert
Wagstaff and Liam Kerr have all taken their lives in the jail, which houses young offenders between the ages of 16 and 21.
The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service confirmed it had received a report from police and an investigation is under way into his death on September 3.
Jack was due to stand trial at Glasgow Sheriff Court on charges of causing a disturbance in London Road in Glasgow and brandishing weapons. He had been arrested in January this year on another unrelated charge and returned to Polmont, having been freed in December.
Jack’s funeral took place on October 14 in Glasgow. Four days earlier, friends and family had gathered in a park near where Jack lived and released balloons in tribute.
One said: “It’s so sad. Like a lot of kids here, he’d gone off the rails. He’d made mistakes but he had such a difficult start in life. For his family, this is a tragedy and they’re hoping for answers.”
Both of Jack’s parents had been drug addicts and died from overdoses. His dad John passed away in 2002, aged just 31,
when Jack was a toddler and his mum Angela, 36, died in 2009.
He was then looked after by his gran, until she died in 2012, and then an aunt.
Jim Watson, who lectures at the University of West of Scotland on criminal justice and the prison system, said: “Increasingly there are young men and women across the prison estate dying needlessly in custody.
“There should be checks carried out during the night to ensure the safety of prisoners – the family should be told if this was carried out. The loss of liberty can take its toll mentally on even the strongest of individuals.”
A Fatal Accident Inquiry will take place into Jack’s death. They are m anda t or y in Scotland after a death in custody but other families who have lost loved ones in jail are still waiting.
S c o t t i sh Tor y shadow cabinet secretary for justice Jamie Greene said: “Grieving families need cases like this to be investigated thoroughly and speedily to offer answers to questions and muchneeded closure. It is imperative that lessons are learned so similar tragedies can be avoided.”
Earlier thisthismonthmonth, Katie Allan’sA mum Linda launched a blistering attack on the jail’s ex-boss Brenda Stewart and said Katie would be alive had the governor done her job properly.
Linda and husband Stuart, from Giffnock, Glasgow, have been fighting to get answers since Katie, 21, died in June 2018. Speaking about Jack, Linda said: “It is clear Justice Secretary Keith Brown and the system have no regard for the lives of young people in state care. “All the soundbites and promises have been little more than empty words. Jack is another name added to the list of the dead. “O u r thoughts and love go to his family as they
grieve and wait years for a mandatory fatal accident inquiry, which will find nothing wrong.”
Her lawyer Aamer Anwar added: “Scottish Prison Service (SPS) is free from any real form of scrutiny and each suicide is a sickening betrayal of the promises made following Katie’s deaths – it’s not FAIs that those in power should be facing but prison sentences.”
Scottish Lib Dem justice spokesman Liam McArthur said: “The systems in Scotland for investigating deaths are fundamentally broken.
“Families of those who have died in custody, such as Jack McKenzie, should not be subjected to long delays.”
S c o t t i sh Labou r ’ s justice spokes person Pauline McNeill said: “The number of deaths in custody is a source of g rave concern. I am increasingly worried that our prison service is unable to cope with the pressure of a large prison population.”
The SPS said: “Every death in custody is a tragedy for somebody. We do all we can to support people coming into prison and throughout their custody.”
Grieving need families these cases like ated investig to be hly and thoroug speedily