A prisoner who took his own life in his cell had not been placed on 'suicide watch', an inquest heard.
Ian Galtress, 47, was found dead at HMP Liverpool on October 14, 2018. An inquest into his death opened at Gerard Majella Courthouse in Liverpool on Monday (April 25).
The inquest heard that Galtress, from Birkenhead, who was remanded to the Walton prison on June 19, 2018 on the charge of robbery, had barricaded himself into his single occupancy cell after refusing to leave for 'association'. At 10.33am, another prisoner saw him in the cell and informed prison officers.
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Officers could not enter Galtress' cell for seven minutes due to the barricades. They were able to enter at 10.40am and an officer started CPR, while nurses also attended.
An ambulance had arrived at the scene at 10.38am and paramedics intervened, but Galtress did not respond and was declared dead at 11.12am. Area Coroner Anita Bhardwaj heard from forensic pathologist Dr Jonathan Medcalf, who conducted Galtress' post-mortem which stated the cause of death was neck compression by hanging.
Galtress was the second prisoner to die at the Hornby Road site in a matter of three weeks in 2018. A 2017 report into HMP Liverpool saw it declared the worst jail inspectors had ever visited. However, significant improvements had been made by 2019.
Statements from Mr Galtress' family and estranged wife detailed their concerns about his mental health, dating back before his time in HMP Liverpool. The statement from Lisa Galtress, his estranged wife, stated he took drugs, including heroin, in the community and had been in and out of prison for a number of offences. This had affected his mental health, which she said was 'in a bad way' by the time he went to prison in 2018.
The statement from mother Joan Galtress said that he suffered from paranoia and she believed that he had a mental breakdown in November 2016. Her statement said: "I believed he had bad mental health problems" and cited his belief that people were talking about him to the FBI as an example of her son's paranoia.
Joan's statement added: " I cannot understand how he fell through the net when being assessed as I felt he was mentally unwell". She described her son as a "very sensitive person" and detailed his commitment to being a good father, while sister Nicola Galtress said her brother's death has left a void in her life and called him a "loving dad" who was "very caring and conscientious".
Stella Hannaway, who has been Head of Healthcare Transformation at HMP Liverpool since December 2018, told the court that records showed Galtress was drug dependent when he came into prison - he had been taking both heroin and crack cocaine. However, he was given methadone as part of his clinical detox, which concluded by October 4.
A letter sent from Galtress to sister Nicola while he was behind bars detailed some of his issues with prison life. Galtress said he would "k eep getting into fights and losing canteen" and added he felt he " may never get out of here alive". He said that he was being moved from wing to wing and added: " It’s rough in here and I mean rough as toast".
A summary of Galtress' time in prison read by Ms Bhardwaj detailed how he had twice been involved in violent incidents with his fellow inmates. On August 5, 2018, Galtress assaulted another prisoner, knocking his teeth out, which landed him with a disciplinary charge. On September 16, he stabbed his cell mate in the face multiple times with the metal part of a broken mop handle, after which he was not allowed to share a cell.
The summary added officers deemed Galtress unsuitable for segregation after the second assault, but did not view him as being acutely unwell. He was sent back to the prison's H-wing, where he would get treatment for substance misuse on September 18. By October 1, he had stopped taking methadone.
The inquest heard that other prisoners believed Galtress had mental health and the Samaritans had raised concerns with officers in October 2018, but he was not placed on an ACCT (Assessment, Care in Custody and Teamwork) - the care planning process for prisoners identified as being at risk of suicide or self-harm.
Sometimes referred to as 'suicide watch', ACCTs can be opened by any medical staff at a prison. Ms Hannaway told the court that medical staff should do so if they are in 'any doubt' about a prisoner's likelihood to commit self harm or suicide.
Ms Bhardwaj's summary added that, on October 14, 2018, an officer unlocked Galtress' cell door for association (time spent out of the cell) but he didn't want to leave and asked for the door to be locked. The court heard Galtress proceeded to barricade the door and was found in his cell at 10.33am.
No alcohol or illicit drugs were detected in his toxicology report, but therapeutic levels of antidepressant Mirtazapine were present.
Joan Galtress said she was informed that of her son's death that day by a prison officer. She added that she believed it was out of character for him. The inquest continues.
