Evolving Prisons

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 work, and another officer recounts the impact of fin...

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 the UK's most respected forensic psychologists, Dr...

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 career where a prisoner escaped while on escort and a prison officer took their own life. We chat about riots and assaults, corrupt prison officers and the difficulty of fitting into society when you've spent your entire career behind bars. Order...

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 high profile true crime TV shows. Evolving Prison...

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 services. This is a remarkable story of two individuals...

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. You can connect with George Bannister here. Evolving Prisons links LinkedIn: kaigancarrie Instagram: @evolvingprisons Website: evolvingprisons.com

What is prison really like at Christmas? A former prisoner, prison officer and prison governor share some of their experiences. From playing a game of cricket on Christmas day to seeing your first dead body in custody, from Christmas lunch to karaoke for the governor's wife. There's a sprinkling of festive fun with a serving of sadness and trauma. Evolving Prisons links Linkedin: kaigancarrie Inst...

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. Evolving Prisons links LinkedIn: kaigancarrie Instagram: @evolvingprisons Web...

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 the Banged Up TV show experience. Evolving Prisons...

Alex South 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 Wormwood Scrubs. We talk about the impossible task of keeping on top of the contraband entering some prisons, the violence that occurs in prison, the dangers of Spice and drug psychosis, and the detrimental impact prison can have on p...

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 prisoner assaulted her and she required surgery fo...

Happy Halloween! We hear from two prison officers and five tour guides about paranormal activity within prisons in England, Canada and Australia. We hear of a murder mystery in Old Ottawa Jail, a frightening experience on a night shift in an English prison which is still in operation today, tales from Shepton Mallet prison (known as the world's most haunted prison), other beings within Kingston Pe...

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 episode of Evolving Prisons is released every mo...

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 the culture inside prison is in Iceland, where pris...

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 the problem with drugs coming into the prisons and w...

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 of DUIs, how two people can commit very simila...

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 Ireland over the years. Dom has also been involved in...

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 offenders, to ask some questions like: How can...

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 challenges preconceived notions about peopl...

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 half of his life in prison. Jesse's website Evo...

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 officers and prisoners. Louise highlights the import...

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 without a release date. We explore the psychologica...

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 facts and stats. For example, did you know it...

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 opening his confidential mail. Ian shares some of t...

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 people does not add any value to society. We discuss t...