The prisoner’s family learned through rumors of his death in Mount

An investigation has revealed that the family of a man who died in prison first learned of his death through a rumor.

James Bailey, 24, took his own life on March 1, 2022 at HMP The Mount in Bovingdon, Hertfordshire, days after being transferred from HMP Bedford, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

A Investigation by the Prisons & Probation Ombudsman His aunt learned the news the next day when she called the prison after hearing rumors about his death.

A Prison Service spokesman said: “We have accepted and implemented the Ombudsman's recommendations. This includes reminding staff of the importance of ensuring all relevant information is included when transferring prisoners.”

The Ombudsman found that officers from Hertfordshire Constabulary, rather than a family liaison officer from the prison, had agreed to break the news to Mr Bailey's aunt.

The address officers went to, which was given to them by the prison, was incorrect. They only discovered the correct address after Mr Bailey's aunt called the prison to confirm the news.

Prison staff were unaware that police had been unable to speak to Mr Bailey's aunt and had informed Mr Bailey's father, who was also detained at HMP The Mount, of his death.

A Hertfordshire Police spokesman said the delay in contacting Mr Bailey's next of kin was “due to a data entry error”.

The Ombudsman found that Mr Bailey received “disturbing news” about his partner's pregnancy while in custody at HMP Bedford on 26 February, but the information was not passed on to HMP The Mount.

Mr Bailey was sentenced to nine years and six months in prison in 2015 for charges including assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.

He was prescribed antidepressants at HMP Bedford and on arrival at The Mount in February he asked a nurse for a referral to the psychiatric team, which was granted.

However, the Ombudsman found that the nurse had not asked Mr Bailey about the reasons for his self-referral for psychiatric reasons.

It said that in the future, the prison's health director should “ensure that the reasons for referrals for mentally ill patients are clearly documented so that staff can assess any potential risks.”

The report recommended that the prison's family liaison officer should stay in touch with police to keep updated on when officers are speaking to next of kin.

The Ombudsman expressed his “disappointment” at the prison’s refusal to provide evidence to his investigation.

The prison had requested a recording of a phone call from the day of Bailey's death. In that call, he allegedly told his aunt that “he was going to take his own life.” However, the prison did not have a recording of that.

There was also a delay in calling an ambulance because the first officer on the scene called for help without entering the appropriate emergency code on her radio, which was out of battery.

The ombudsman said the delay was unlikely to have affected Mr Bailey's chances of survival, but similar delays in another emergency could “make a difference to the outcome”.