Nicky Reilly gets life sentence
Nicky Reilly, who converted to Islam and was subsequently persuaded by extremists to become a suicide bomber has been sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum tariff of 18 years after being found guilty of attempted murder and preparing an act of terrorism. His attempt to become a suicide bomber failed when the bomb he was preparing to detonate in a restaurant exploded while he was alone in the restaurant toilet. Nobody else was hurt and he survived his injuries to stand trial.
Much has been made of the fact that he has Aspergers Syndrome and learning difficulties. His defence wanted him to be committed for psychiatric assessment befor sentencing. According to one newspaper report the judge
said Reilly had been planning his attack for months and added: “His mental illness played no part in his decision to do what he did and he has not hidden behind it.”
It is not clear whether the judge was referring to Aspergers Syndrome as a mental illness or to Reilly’s learning difficulties. There have also been references to obsessive compulsive disorder and depression. Kevin Brice at Swansea University scanned the press and wrote
This is the line that is taken in almost every single story about Reilly; mental health problems are mentioned continuously in almost all stories with various form of mental illness cited: Reilly had “a history of mental illness”, “he is mentally ill”, “has the mental age of a ten-year-old”, was “mentally disturbed”, “had learning difficulties”, “had a diagnosed mental illness”, “had been in residential treatment”, he was “sectioned under the Mental Health Act”, is a “former mental patient”, is “schizophrenic”, suffered from “Asperger’s Syndrome”, has “autism”, suffered from “an obsessive compulsive disorder”, “has psychiatric needs”, “has a very low IQ” and “can’t think for himself”. In other stories it is claimed that Reilly has a history of self-harm and has made several suicide attempts: Reilly “self harmed by slashing his wrists”, “ made two apparent suicide bids”, “he took an overdose when he was 16”, “he then stabbed himself in the stomach”, “had tried to commit suicide several times”,Some of these references may be exaggerated or completely unfounded. The reference to schizophrenia was made by a friend of the family. Press reports of low IQ and a mental age of ten are belied by the fact that his reported IQ of 83 is just outside the standard deviation from the norm. If there was a league table for intelligence Reilly’s score would put him in the bottom half but nowhere near the bottom.
I am glad that the judge decided that Reilly was responsible for his actions and should not go to Broadmoor for assessment. Once you are in that place it is very hard to get out. Ask Piers Bolduc.
This interview with Reilly’s mother makes it clear that he does have mental health problems that require professional help. The judge agrees that Reilly has a mental illness. He does not regard that as relevant to Reilly’s crime. But should it influence his punishment? Is Reilly fit to serve an 18 year sentence in a high security prison? Society is now protected from Reilly. But will he be protected in prison? Will he get the help he needs?
Probably not. According to his mother Reilly never received adequate treatment for his obsessive compulsive behaviour, his self harm or his suicide attempts when he was growing up. Why should prison be any different? It will probably be a lot worse. According to the Prison Reform Trust
Many prisoners have mental health problems. 72% of male and 70% of female sentenced prisoners suffer from two or more mental health disorders. One in five prisoners have four of the five major mental health disorders.
According to Primary Mental Health Care in Prison mental health services in prisons are not yet equivalent to the community services that have already failed Reilly and so many more of the 200,000 people who pass through the UK prison service every year.
Still, it is as well to remember that if Reilly had succeeded in his crime I would not be asking these questions now. And I guess that the dozens of people who survived his botched attempt at mass murder care little for the answers. But if we are to advance as a society we ought to care.
