An award-nominated true crime podcast with a particular focus on prison. Featuring stories from people who've been to prison, those who work there and experts to show the human behind the crime or uniform, and the realities of life in prison. Hosted by Kaigan Carrie, doctoral researcher in prison officer culture and wellbeing. Subscribe to monthly bonus episodes of Evolving Prisons: https://evolvingprisons.captivate.fm/support
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Lessons from 26 years in the prison service
59:18
59:18
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Andy Laidlaw spent 26 years in the prison service in England, starting as a prison officer and finishing as a deputy prison governor. He tells us about his experiences as a hostage negotiator, how to minimise staff corruption and what working in a prison has taught him about life. Subscribe to monthly bonus episodes of Evolving Prisons for £3 per m…
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Bonus: Eye-opening experiences teaching art in prison
9:46
9:46
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This is a 10-minute teaser of my full conversation with Steve Tafka, released as this month's bonus episode. Subscribe here for £3 ($3.85) to listen to the full conversation and all monthly bonus episodes. What do you do when a prisoner draws an unnerving picture during class? And how does it impact you when the first thing you see while interviewi…
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Inside the mind of madness: forensic psychiatry in prison
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1:00:08
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Dr Ben Cave is one of the UK’s leading forensic psychiatrists. He has 35 years of experience, including as a prison psychiatrist and a consultant in secure and general mental health units. He is also the author of What We Fear Most. We discuss misconceptions around mental illness, the fact the Mental Health Act does not apply in prison, and the ris…
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Camaraderie, culture and challenges with mental health
1:02:45
1:02:45
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Jason worked as a prison officer in both mainstream and sex offender prisons. He tells us about the mental health toll the job takes, whereby three of his colleagues took their own lives. He also talks about how management seeing prison officers as a number can contribute to them feeling undervalued and lacking self-worth, and he shares personal ex…
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Bonus: 7 years in prison in Ecuador for drug smuggling
11:36
11:36
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This is a 10-minute teaser of my full conversation with Oscar Castro, released as this month's bonus episode. Subscribe here for £3 ($3.85) to listen to the full conversation and all monthly bonus episodes. Oscar Castro was on his third trip to Latin America to smuggle heroin back to America when he was caught at a hotel in Ecuador. He subsequently…
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34 years in prison: finding a dead man in my home
48:20
48:20
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48:20
Jamie Morgan Kane spent 34 years in prison in America after walking into his home and finding a deceased man there who his wife had poisoned. Jamie was taken from the UK to America illegally as a baby and he shares how it felt re-adjusting to life in the UK at age 64, when he was deported after release from prison, despite spending almost all of hi…
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You can be innocent and spend 17 years in prison
54:52
54:52
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Recently, the BBC aired a documentary about Andrew Malkinson, an individual from England who was wrongfully convicted of rape and spent 17 years in prison, until he was released in December 2020. Danny Barrs is the Chair of Promoting Prisoners Maintaining Innocence. Danny chats about majority verdicts in jury cases, how it can be difficult for inno…
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This is a 20-minute teaser of my full conversation with Cage and Andreea, released as this month's bonus episode. Subscribe here for $3.85 (£3) to listen to the full conversation and all monthly bonus episodes. Cage is currently serving a 50 year prison sentence in Texas for aggravated robbery while his wife, Andreea, lives in London. They met in 2…
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Chelsea Cameron wrote an open letter to her drug-addicted parents in 2017, thanking them for teaching her that life isn't all sunshine and rainbows. She shares the letter with us and tells us about the stigma of growing up with drug-addicted parents, whether prison helped her dad, and the issue with drugs in Scottish prisons, where 1 in 10 prisoner…
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40 years on death row and still in prison: William Noguera
32:07
32:07
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William Noguera spent 40 years on death row at San Quentin Prison for a murder he committed at age 18. Last year he was taken off death row but he is still in prison. He chats to us from his prison cell, telling us how a day on death row looked, how it felt to be given an execution date, how he feels about potentially being released one day into a …
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Bonus: Rob Parkes on being married to the black widow
21:08
21:08
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This is a 20-minute teaser of my full conversation with Rob Parkes, released as this month's bonus episode. Subscribe here for $3.85 (£3) to listen to the full conversation and all monthly bonus episodes. Rob Parkes was married to Victoria Breeden. Victoria is now serving a 9 year prison sentence for conspiracy to murder Rob. Rob speaks about being…
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Gang life, knife crime and 8 years in prison
1:05:30
1:05:30
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Carl Scott joined a gang at 13 years old and subsequently spent 8 and a half years in prison. He was a victim of a knife attack which almost killed him. Carl chats about how a life of crime leaves you always looking over your shoulder, how prison might seem like a holiday camp but that loss of control is the real punishment, and how he lost his bes…
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Bonus: Gen Glaister on working with traffickers and sex offenders as a prison officer
22:09
22:09
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This is a 20-minute teaser of my full conversation with Gen Glaister, released as this month's bonus episode. Subscribe here for $3.85 to listen to the full discussion and all monthly bonus episodes. Gen was a prison officer in England and had been eager to become one since age 15. She talks about the difficulty of comprehending how some people can…
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Why do prisons in California and Texas have so many gangs? Why didn't they exist prior to the 1950s? What happens to somebody who leaves the prison gang? How much influence do prison gangs have over people on the streets? I sat down with Professor David Skarbek who has published extensively on this topic. His book, The Social Order of the Underworl…
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Is inequality in our society responsible for crime?
59:21
59:21
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59:21
Marc Conway has served 10 prison sentences, stuck in the revolving door of crime until his final prison sentence in HMP Grendon, a therapeutic prison in England, made him think about why he'd been behaving the way he had. Marc discusses growing up with a distrust of police and how he feels that the government needs to do more to improve equality in…
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Bonus: Death, mental health and violence in prison
20:54
20:54
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20:54
This is a 20-minute teaser of my full conversation with Iain Smith, released as this month's bonus episode. Subscribe here for $3.85 to listen to the full discussion and all monthly bonus episodes. Iain was a prison officer in Australia for 15 years until 2020. He tells us about a number of experiences he had, from working with a prisoner who was i…
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Imprisoned for being a corrupt prison officer
1:14:36
1:14:36
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Lee Davies was a prison officer in England and was imprisoned in May 2010 for taking contraband, namely mobile phones and cannabis, into prison for prisoners. Lee tells us how he started taking contraband in, how he got caught, ways to limit corrupt staff taking contraband into prisons and the impact that corrupt staff have on the prison service. A…
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This is a 20-minute teaser of my full conversation with Brendan O'Friel, released as this month's bonus episode. Subscribe here for $3.85 to listen to the full discussion and all monthly bonus episodes. The Strangeways Prison riot is the longest recorded riot in British penal history, lasting 25 days in April 1990. Brendan O'Friel was the governor …
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The heavy burden of being a prison officer
52:44
52:44
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Bruce Perham is a social worker and therapist in Melbourne, Australia. He has provided counselling and debriefing to prison officers after traumatic incidents for many years. We hear ways in which the job takes its toll on prison officers, including hearing about an officer who was beaten, leaving him with a brain and spinal injury and unable to wo…
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Brianna Ghey, age 16, was murdered in England in February 2023 in a premeditated stabbing attack by two 15 year olds, Scarlett and Eddie. The court decided the offence was primarily motivated by sadistic tendencies. They were sentenced last week to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 22 years and 20 years respectively. I sat down with one of t…
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Bonus: Vanessa Frake on escapes, riots and prison officer mental health
20:14
20:14
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This is a 20-minute teaser of my full conversation with Vanessa Frake, released as this month's bonus episode. Subscribe here to listen to the full discussion and all monthly bonus episodes. Vanessa Frake worked for the prison service in England for 27 years and was awarded an MBE in 2012 for her work. Vanessa shares her biggest regret in her caree…
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Why do so many people have a fascination with serial killers? What's it like to meet one? How do serial killers justify their crimes? Can they be rehabilitated or is prison merely for their containment? Dr Scott Bonn answers these questions and more. He is a criminologist, author of 'why we love serial killers' and he provides expert commentary for…
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Tony Attwood has 25 years of lived experience with addiction and crime. Peter Ross was a judge who sentenced him to a period of imprisonment and subsequently to a rehabilitation treatment centre. Tony later founded Hope and Vision Communities with Peter, providing people with a home to stay at after they successfully leave addiction treatment servi…
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George Bannister served time in prison in England for an attempted robbery on a post office to fund his drug addiction. He talks about learning the value of karma, respect and gratitude in prison, and how connection is key to a life free from addiction. One bonus episode of Evolving Prisons is also released each month. You can only view and listen …
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Prison as a criminogenic need and desistance from crime
34:19
34:19
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Joe Arvidson is a criminologist and desistance advocate from the United States of America. Joe shares with us how he feels the media portrays a narrow view of corrections, and how prison can cause more harm than good. He also shares the importance of self-regulation, identity, resilience and social support in desistance. One bonus episode of Evolvi…
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Mental health struggles of a prison officer
49:26
49:26
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Alex McClintock was a prison officer at HMP Perth in Scotland for 19 years and he featured on Channel 4's Banged Up. Alex shares how his mental health declined to the point he had a breakdown and intended to take his own life. He tells us how his PTSD manifests itself, we discuss how prison officers can look after their wellbeing and we chat about …
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Bonus: Alex South on strength, suffering and survival in prison
20:33
20:33
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This is a 20-minute teaser of my full conversation with Alex South, released as this month's bonus episode. Subscribe here to listen to the full discussion and all monthly bonus episodes. Alex is the author of the incredible book, Behind These Doors. She worked for the prison service in England for 10 years in HMP Whitemoor, HMP Belmarsh and HMP Wo…
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Female leadership in prison, assault and the Banged Up experience
45:08
45:08
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45:08
Clare Pearson spent almost 22 years working in prisons in England. She governed 4 public prisons and was the director of a private prison. Clare also appeared as the governor on Channel 4's TV series 'Banged Up'. We chat about the difference between working in a male and female prison and how Clare's leadership style varied across each, the time a …
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Prison officer wellbeing and power in Finland
26:38
26:38
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Why is there a high risk of suicide in Vantaa Prison in Finland? What values are needed to be a good prison officer? Do some prison staff join the service with a power complex or does the job create this within them? Minna Liukkonen works in Vantaa Prison, Finland's largest prison. She recruits, inducts and mentors new prison officers. One bonus ep…
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Imprisoned by choice: a researcher in Icelandic prisons
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40:14
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Professor Francis Pakes has spent the last decade researching prisons in some Nordic countries, including Iceland. He spent a week as a quasi-prisoner in two open prisons there to better understand life in prison in Iceland. We discuss how he felt going into prison, some of the experiences he had as a quasi-prisoner there and how vastly different t…
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Anni Karnaranta is Governor (also known as Head of Unit) at Hämeenlinna Prison in Finland, a smart prison for women. We discuss Anni's 17 years in the prison service and the many different areas staff can train in, including becoming a lawyer which Anni also did. We discuss what crimes people tend to go to prison for in Finland, how staff combat th…
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Jackie Dunn's son Lucas began an 18 year prison sentence in March 2022 for DUI manslaughter in Florida, USA. Jackie and I discuss the circumstances surrounding his conviction, whether him doing an 18 year sentence is really better for society than him doing the alternative which was a 10 year sentence with a lifetime of educating about the dangers …
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Political prisoners and officer safety in Northern Ireland
47:57
47:57
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Dom Kelly is a former prison officer within Northern Ireland and now works in forensic psychology services within the same service. He shares his experiences of working with political and sexual offenders, and details the stark differences between working with these two groups. We also discuss the dangers prison officers have faced in Northern Irel…
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Lucy Letby, age 33, was convicted last week of murdering 7 babies and attempting to murder 6 more while working as a nurse on the Neonatal Unit at the Countess of Chester Hospital in England. I sat down with one of the UK's most respected forensic psychologists, Dr Naomi Murphy, who has 25 years experience working with violent and sexually violent …
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Imprisoned for shooting my sister's ex-boyfriend
50:54
50:54
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Joshua Holi went to prison in the United States for attempted murder after shooting his sister's ex-boyfriend. We discuss how Joshua began a life of drug dealing after getting a $700 fine, spending 13 months on the run after shooting his sister's ex-boyfriend and his time in prison. Through Joshua's warm and positive energy, this conversation chall…
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Jesse Crosson went to prison just after his 18th birthday. He was sentenced to 32 years in prison for committing a robbery and a separate, non-fatal shooting. Jesse shares how he turned his life around in prison, how he was unexpectedly released after serving 19 years, and the difficulty of reintegrating back into society after spending more than h…
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Conspiracy to supply and relationships in prison
48:36
48:36
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48:36
Louise Ashton spent five years in prisons in England for conspiracy to supply Class A drugs. She shares her story of how she met and married a man involved in drug dealing, before she was arrested. She discusses her time in prison, maintaining contact with her incarcerated husband, and the prevalence of inappropriate relationships between prison of…
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Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) sentences were implemented in England and Wales in 2005 to detain offenders who posed a very serious risk to the public, but many non-violent offenders have also been given this sentence. Despite the abolition of the IPP sentence in 2012, there are still nearly 3,000 people in prison on IPP sentences today w…
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Paul Bridges is a volunteer at Amnesty International UK and is Chair of the Anti-Death Penalty Project. The purpose of the project is to raise awareness about the death penalty with Amnesty members, the public and politicians. In this episode, Paul shares arguments for and against the death penalty with us, but debunks the 'for' arguments with fact…
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Governing a prison, hostage taking and working with sex offenders
1:02:48
1:02:48
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Ian Gunn was a Governor in four prisons in Scotland over a 22 year period. He worked with male prisoners, female prisoners and in a prison which held only sex offenders. He shares some of the lessons he learned during his service, from how to respond when sex offenders tell him they're innocent, to being taken to court by a prisoner for staff openi…
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Elizabeth Franklin-Best has been a Criminal Defence Lawyer in the United States of America for over 20 years. Elizabeth recounts one of her most challenging death penalty cases where it appears the prosecutor was excluding jurors based on race. She shares why she finds death penalty cases particularly difficult and why she feels that executing peop…
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Former prison officers, Ella and Harriet, speak about the difficulty of working in a prison system that often causes harm to prisoners. They share their stories of joining the service with hopes of making a difference, only to discover a reality that was far different than what they expected. They discuss the challenges of working in a system where…
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Death in custody and transforming prisons
52:24
52:24
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Dean Williams is the former Executive Director of the Colorado Department of Corrections and Commissioner of Corrections in Alaska. Dean talks about the preventable deaths in custody that happened in Alaska before he took over which cemented his decision to take over the role, and the reforms he made towards a more humane prison system. He also sha…
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Andy West talks about the power of teaching Philosophy in prison. Drawing on his personal experiences, Andy shares how teaching Philosophy to prisoners can help with their personal growth and emotional wellbeing. He discusses how he became aware of prisons from a very young age, as his father, brother and uncle all served time in prison. We also ex…
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Did you know that research suggests around 80,000 innocent people are in prison in the United States? Claudia and Sydnie are both Senior Staff Attorney Fellows at the California Innocence Project (CIP). They share stories with us about people CIP have helped to free from prison and how they were wrongfully convicted, they tell us the main reasons w…
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Martin Lockett is a substance abuse counsellor, author, public speaker, and advocate for reducing driving under the influence fatalities. He spent 17.5 years in prison for a driving under the influence fatality that claimed two lives and severely injured another. In an impassioned vow to his victims’ families and friends at his sentencing, Martin d…
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Laura Bevan is the Prisoner and Family Service Manager at Prisoners Abroad. Prisoners Abroad is a human rights and welfare charity providing humanitarian aid, advice and emotional support to people affected by overseas imprisonment. They assist British citizens during their incarceration, when they return to the UK and need access to resettlement s…
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Mike Oulton has spent 15 years in prison in Mexico and Canada. He was a career criminal but his positive outlook on life and growth has enabled him to break free from a life of crime. Mike talks about first being arrested at the age of 10. He tells us about his 10 year prison sentence in Mexico for drug smuggling, and his imprisonment in Canada the…
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Is Florida's prison sentencing too harsh?
39:06
39:06
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Megan Michals is a social worker in Florida, USA. She shares her experience of working in a prison there to improve the wellbeing of incarcerated people and how she felt the work she was doing wasn't supported by the staff within the prison. Megan also tells us about recidivism in Florida and the 'three strikes and you're out' law which can see peo…
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Corruption, prison conditions and working undercover
48:40
48:40
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Anthony Stephen Malone has a very varied career history. Among many things, he is a former paratrooper, special advisor and CIA agent. In this episode he speaks about the time he spent 3 years working undercover in a prison in Afghanistan and the 4 year prison sentence he served in prisons in England. Anthony tells us about some of the problems fac…
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