Man (23) suspected of concealing drugs found dead three days after being committed to prison

Seán McCárthaigh

A young Limerick man suspected of concealing drugs in his body was found dead in a close supervision cell just three days after he had been committed to Limerick Prison for his role in the burglary of the home of an elderly pensioner, an investigation has revealed.

A report by the Office of the Inspector of Prisons into the death of Edward Woodland (23) in Limerick Prison on January 12th 2023, found several large gaps between checks on the prisoner, which were meant to be carried out at 15-minute intervals, including one of up to 70 minutes in the 24 hours before his death.

The OIP said prison records which showed that Mr Woodland was “asleep” when checked twice after he had been found unresponsive in his cell were “patently false” and had been scribbled over by pen.

As a result of its investigation, the OIP report has called for prisoners suspected of internally concealing drugs to be provided with healthcare and “not security observation.”

The State’s prison watchdog also urged the Irish Prison Service to explore the potential of using technology that remotely monitors an individual’s vital signs in prisons.

“Kicking the bottom of a cell door is not a reliable method to verify signs of life,” the OIP remarked.

The OIP also observed that it had made similar recommendations before in relation to another death in custody in 2020.

Mr Woodland was sentenced to five years in prison with the final 12 months suspended by Ennis Circuit Criminal Court in January 2023 for the burglary of an isolated farmhouse at Ballyveskill, Timermaclane, Co Clare on January 5, 2018.

The accused with an address at Greenmount Avenue, Ballinacurra Weston, Limerick as well as his father, Patrick Woodland and uncle, John Woodland and another relative, Paul Kiely, all pleaded guilty to the burglary of the home of a 93-year-old male.

Although Mr Woodland is not named in the OIP report, it revealed that a prison officer who went to his cell on the morning of January 10, 2023 to inform him that he was being moved to a landing where he could mix with other prisoners got “a strong smell of weed.”

Three tablets and 7g of a substance suspected to be cannabis resin were subsequently found on Mr Woodland when he was searched but he was placed in a close supervision cell (CSC), where he was subject to checks at 15-minute intervals, as he was suspected of having further contraband concealed internally.

He was also provided with specialist “refractory” clothing to reduce the risk of self-harm.

On January 11th 2023 Mr Woodland denied to the assistant governor that he had more contraband on his person at a disciplinary hearing.

The assistant governor told the OIP that the prisoner had a history of bringing “stuff” into the prison but that he had no concerns for his wellbeing at the time as he had “presented perfectly.”

A prison doctor examined Mr Woodland on the same day and offered to refer him to hospital but the prisoner declined.

The report outlined how he was found unresponsive in his cell at 6:15am the following morning.

The OIP noted that prison records to document checks on prisoners under special observation contain a pre-printed list of times at 15-minute intervals.

While the records show Mr Woodland was checked at the specified times, the OIP found CCTV footage showing that some checks were conducted at gaps that “far exceeded” a 15-minute interval.

There were seven gaps ranging between 23 and 27 minutes and one of one hour and ten minutes, while there were nine other checks that were conducted at intervals of 10 minutes or less.

In its recommendations, the OIP called for the practice of the routine placement of prisoners accommodated in CSCs in refractory clothing to be brought to an end immediately as there is no systematic justification for it.

It also called for the introduction of a new healthcare-focused policy which would clarify the roles and responsibilities of management, prison officers and healthcare staff in decision-making regarding the care and supervision of prisoners suspected of concealing contraband in their bodies.

The OIP claimed it was crucially important that prison staff should have rapid access to reliable information about the composition of any drugs found in a prison.

It repeated a recommendation contained in several previous reports on deaths in custody that efforts to prevent and detect contraband getting into prisons should be intensified.

The OIP said the Irish Prison Service should also ensure that staff understood the importance of accurate records and the consequences of creating inaccurate records as well as requiring prison officers to record the actual time of checks on prisoners kept under special observation.

The IPS said it accepted a majority of the OIP’s eight recommendations and noted that several were already implemented.

However, it rejected calls to cease the use of refractory clothing for prisoners in a CSC cell claiming decisions on the use of safety clothing were made by both healthcare staff and prison governors.