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You are here: BAILII >> Databases >> England and Wales High Court (Administrative Court) Decisions >> Kenyon, R (on the application of) v HMP Wakefield & Anor [2012] EWHC 1259 (Admin) (22 March 2012) URL: https://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/Admin/2012/1259.html Cite as: [2012] EWHC 1259 (Admin) |
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QUEEN'S BENCH DIVISION
THE ADMINISTRATIVE COURT IN LEEDS
1 Oxford Row Leeds LS1 3BG |
||
B e f o r e :
____________________
THE QUEEN ON THE APPLICATION OF | ||
GLYN KENYON | Claimant | |
v | ||
(1) THE GOVERNOR HMP WAKEFIELD | ||
(2) THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR JUSTICE | Defendants |
____________________
WordWave International Limited
A Merrill Communications Company
165 Fleet Street London EC4A 2AG
Tel No: 020 7404 1400 Fax No: 020 7831 8838
(Official Shorthand Writers to the Court)
Ms Cathryn McGahey (instructed by Treasury Solicitor) appeared on behalf of the Defendants
____________________
Crown Copyright ©
MR JUSTICE HICKINBOTTOM:
"I have been convicted at two trials. The combination of that and that one of the trials had large volumes of evidence means that I have large amounts to organise and I can't do that properly without access to a laptop.
Due to the above, any submissions I make are likely to be long and complicated and will take much organising to be able to produce them in a style that the court will be able to read it. This will be easier with a laptop, which would allow the amending/addition/subtraction of material."
The trial in which he considered that he had "large volumes of evidence" was the second trial, involving the charges of unlawful sexual activity. The Claimant's application for a laptop computer was refused on 9 February 2011, on the basis that he was not a "registered applicant" and that the prison only supplied "read-only" computers.
"Having considered your application for an Access to Justice computer we are satisfied that, with due regard to the associated regulations as defined within the National Security Framework and supplemented by the Policy, you have failed to demonstrate a real need for access to IT facilities and that refusal to provide you with access to such facilities would not raise any risk of prejudicing the legal proceedings to which you refer."
"1. That the test to be applied when considering a prisoner's application for an Access to Justice laptop should properly be one of reasonableness rather than necessity (or real need) and that the Claimant was entitled to have his application considered on that basis.
2. That the decision of 22 August 2011 was premised upon an interpretation of the policy that was too restrictive in any event, principally because the Defendant [i.e. the Governor] wrongly considered that making submissions to the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division) did not require the Claimant to have the use of a word processor regardless of the test that was applied. The application on this ground is pleaded out of time, but the Claimant will argue that the matter is sufficiently closely linked to the original ground that permission should be granted."
"1. Prisoners' access to IT must be balanced against security and safety considerations. In line with other prisoner communications, IT access may be restricted where it is necessary for safety reasons to secure good order and discipline, prevent crime or escape or protect victims. There is for example a potential risk that prisoners could access imported material on disc or the hard drive that might endanger the security of the prison. Similarly, prisoners could store and share information on staff, misuse information about witnesses and victims, forge documents, generate false documents or create and edit pornography."
Mr Stanbury rightly accepts, as he said "largely as a matter of common sense", that the introduction of computers and other IT facilities into a prison (and, particularly, a high security establishment such as HMP Wakefield) does pose substantial risks, including those identified in the passage which I have quoted; e.g. access to and circulation of smuggled material, information about staff or others and pornography (including evidence from trials) might be facilitated, or false documents generated or confidential material disclosed (evidenced in Robert Waterman's Statement 17 January 2012, paragraphs 6 and 7: Mr Waterman is responsible for Access to Justice policy within the Security Policy Unit of the National Operational Services Directorate of the National Offender Management Service, an agency within the Ministry of Justice). The risk is a general one, in the sense that it does not relate solely to the individual prisoner's actions and intentions - because there a risk that, even if a laptop is given to one prisoner, it might be abused by or at the behest of others.
"2. Any prisoner who requests access to IT facilities for legal work and demonstrates a real need for this (i.e. refusing the request would raise a real risk of prejudice in the legal proceedings) must be granted access to the IT provided for this purpose for the period specified. Whether such access must be in possession or not, will depend on the completion of a risk assessment.
3. It must not however be presumed all requests for IT for legal work must be granted. The prisoner will need to show that such facilities are necessary for the preparation of their legal case. It is also likely that access will often be necessary for only the limited part of that preparation. Just because a prisoner can demonstrate a real risk of prejudice without some access to IT facilities it does not follow all work on that case requires IT access. Factors that may lead to the provision of IT are:
• if the prisoner is conducting a personal defence
• where the prisoner is represented but has documents on discs that would make it unreasonable to disallow correspondence with their representative by disc
• if the defence complex or requires the manipulation of data, that could not easily be done without the use of IT provided.
• if the prisoner has a particular disability or there are other relevant health factors.
4. Applications that could be considered frivolous may include:
• a preference on the part of the prisoner to type a letter rather than to write by hand
• requiring IT to assist with spelling
• instances where the prisoner lacks the competence to use the IT if it were provided."
"... the discipline imposed by use of pen and ink can restrain prolixity. Prolixity often makes it more difficult for the court to do justice by coming to the heart of a case."
In the Claimant's case, he has had an extended CRO imposed upon him because of his tendency to issue and pursue claims in respect of his convictions that lack any merit, and thus waste the precious resources of the court including judicial time. Access to a word possessor may both encourage him to seek to make further such applications and, on the other hand, obfuscate possible merit in any application that he may wish to make. Additionally, of course, the provision of a computer out of public funds has cost implications. As I have made clear, these other factors are of no relevance if, without IT facilities, the Claimant is unable properly to pursue a criminal appeal in the terms of Article 6; but they are further reasons why a computer should not be made available in this case, unless, in accordance with the policy the Claimant can show that failure to provide him with a computer would breach Article 6.