Parole Board dossier on John Hirst/Jailhouselawyer Proforma Summary
Parole Board dossier on John Hirst Proforma Summary
A mixture of law, politics, autobiography and humour. Once described as "The Devilish Advocate" (Guardian), I do have the ability to provoke a response. Sometimes it comes from someone who uses a thought process, and sometimes from jerks usually associated with the knee.
10 comments:
John,
I have been reading your blog for some time but have not commented to date. Can I ask why you have decided to publish the summary of your Parole Dossier? This would normally be regarded as private and confidential and not something normally to be shared with the wider public, unless you have issues with the content I guess?
Thanks
Jim
Hi Jim
I congratulate you on your perception.
There is more to come.
A few reasons have led me to go public.
One is, as you have guessed, with issues of content.
But, it goes deeper than that. I have thought of doing so for a long time.
Unity and Tim Ireland have blogged about Honest John. People do not normally associate honesty with criminals. Yet, I would say I am too honest to be a politician.
When in prison I wrote a poem called the Temple of Truth. Phil Wheatley, the former DG of NOMS has said I am too honest for my own good. I don't think anybody can be too honest, even allowing for the truth hurts.
The recent scandal with the media, police and politicians corruption has made me think I will test their transparency and responsibility.
Basically, there's perception and deception. Why go along with the King's New Clothes when it's obvious he is in the altogether?
I intend to challenge the claims of reform, transparency, etc.
I cannot undo the damage I have caused my victim and her daughter, but I would contend that does not mean I cannot offer something to society.
"I would say I am too honest to be a politician."
I always know where I stand with you, John, but politicians? I can never work it out...
Hi Tim: I can always rely on you :-)
LOL!
With you, Tim. You are, and we now see always have been, honest; I've never doubted that for a moment. But at the risk of embarrassing you, brave, too. Rare qualities, even more rarely seen together. I'll leave it there.
Hi Charles: Another reliable witness.
I do not get embarrassed easily, but when my friends mention begging and debts and me...
Stephen Sedley was right about the courage of prisoners who challenge the screws and the Home Office/MoJ.
I doubt you will leave it there...
Between you and me and the World Wide Web, Prisoner Ben has blogged that he has thought about publishing his Parole Boad dossier. I don't think he has got the bottle. Don't get me wrong, I still see him as a friend. It's just that his blog editor thinks I have been got at by Iain Dale and Co! I am my own man. My thoughts are my own. And I think Ben is hiding something.
In poker there comes a time when you have to lay your cards on the table or fold. I have chosen to lay my cards on the table...
John,
Thanks for responding. I'll put my cards on the table and say your Parole Dossier Summary is quite familiar and understandable to me. It essentially describes someone who has experienced a troubled childhood and who has/is suffering from a personality disorder. I'm very interested to hear the difficulties you have with the content.
In relation to Ben, I can't help but say I am surprised at your stance in essentially goading him into similar publication. After all, he has yet to be released and as such he must consider very carefully the possible ramifications of any such action.
It was possibly said somewhat rashly and I think he deserves respect if he subsequently decides a different course of action would be more sensible. There may well be things he wishes to hide from public attention and that is perfectly understandable in my view. It may also be, dare I say, a more sensible course of action given his present situation.
Thanks,
Jim
In my opinion, publishing your dossier will only have the positive effect of making those that compose such documents think twice before writing any falsehoods.
Jim: I don't accept the label personality disorder. When that dossier was written the accepted view was that I was a psychopath. 23 years down the line it was decided to subject me to a barrage of tests, and lo and behold it emerged that I was not one after all!
It was not until I was recalled that my barrister, Flo Krause, argued that I was suffering from Asperger's Syndrome. The psychiatrist member on the panel accepted this as being the case.
Whilst I was relieved to not be a psychopath, I am angry that I was misdiagnosed in the first place and treated as being something I wasn't for so long.
This leads to the label reading prunes, and peaches in the tin instead. Besides, there was the issue of it being opined that I showed no sign of remorse. The police doctor who first said this asked me no questions and only took intimate samples from me. Not surprising he found no sign of remorse from these! It took me 14 years before I could correct this error on my record. This raises the issue of report writers relying on false information in compiling their reports. Conclusions being wrong and inappropriate treatment in custody.
I am not goading Ben. In prison it's put up or shut up. Similarly on the internet, there are those who can and will challenge. Ben has said when he was 14 he killed a friend in a fight. He has not said that the boy he murdered was younger, smaller, and weaker than himself. He talks of the act and not the motive for it. I suspect it was sexual. I only have anecdotal evidence to back up my suspicions.
I recall sitting at a table with 3 other lifers at Kirklevington Grange, and it was pointless trying to give explanations that did not stand up as we could all cut through the bullshit and knew when one or another of us was not telling the whole truth and keeping something back.
With Ben there is a piece or pieces of the jig-saw puzzle missing and he is attempting to sell it as a complete picture. I expect that the Parole Board is of the same view. I can understand why he or anyone else might desire to hold back. The problem with Ben is that in doing so he is not addressing his offending behaviour and I can understand why the Parole Board is not prepared to say he is an acceptable risk to the public to be released. This was the first thing | had to address to convince myself before I could convince others. Bottom line, Ben is not convincing.
Darby: You have hit the nail on the head.
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