New CCTV footage contradicts prison death evidence

The BBC has obtained previously unseen footage of a man who died after being restrained by prison officers; These images contradict the events claimed by the authorities.

BBC News took Scottish ministers to court earlier this year for refusing to provide CCTV footage of the moments leading up to the restraint incident in which Allan Marshall died.

Prison authorities had previously claimed that the 30-year-old, who was detained on charges of not paying a fine and disturbing the peace, destroyed his cell and covered it with feces.

New footage shows Marshall, from South Lanarkshire, walking calmly through the prison for four minutes, gently guided by three guards.

Marshall was held down by up to 17 prison officers while on remand at HMP Edinburgh in 2015. He died four days later.

As evidence of a fatal crash investigation, officers cited Marshall as acting erratically and aggressively and that they believed he was legally intoxicated.

He was being taken to the prison’s isolation unit for his actions overnight and officers told him he needed to take a shower after a dirty protest.

However, newly released footage shows Marshall walking topless through the prison corridors.

He did not appear to be covered in feces, as officers claimed, and he did not act erratically as he was taken to the shower room.

Footage of the restraint incident, which occurred outside the shower room approximately 20 minutes later, had been in the public domain for years.

But a lawsuit filed by Marshall’s relatives meant new footage of events before the restriction was submitted to the Court.

However, it took months of legal wrangling for the BBC to obtain the footage.

Lawyers for Scottish ministers have said on more than two occasions that previously seen restraint footage was the only CCTV they had.

A Scottish government spokesman said it apologized for the failures that led to Marshall’s death.

“Ongoing legal proceedings mean it is not appropriate to comment further,” he said.

The new footage shows Marshall leaving his cell accompanied by three prison officers at 07:25.

The photo shows him walking down several flights of stairs, wearing sweatpants and no shoes or top.

He looks clean and calm and walks without holding on at some points.

At other points, officers use a method described as “come on hold”; i.e. a light grip on the wrist.

The new footage airs until 7:29, when he enters the shower room.

Then there is a gap in the shower room because there is no camera.

Officers then enter the shower room at 07:48 and the restraint begins.

Footage previously shown shows Marshall being dragged face down from the shower room by multiple police officers and restrained by as many as 17 officers, some of whom used their feet.

Marshall’s aunt, Sharon MacFadyen, who has been campaigning for her nephew’s case for years, said the new footage “does not fit” with what officers said he was agitated, aggressive and covered in faeces.

“If he’s starting or fighting fair enough, but he’s doing what he’s told,” he told BBC News.

He thinks Marshall angered the officers by ringing the emergency buzzer several times throughout the night and was taken to the shower room for a lesson.

“There are no cameras. We just took their word for it because you don’t know what’s going on there,” he says.

Sarah Armstrong, professor of criminology at the University of Glasgow, said she was “shocked” to see how calm Marshall was in the footage.

“I don’t see anything in this video that indicates the use of force was necessary,” he says.

“There’s no sign of him resisting.”

Prof Armstrong added that there were no traces of faeces and officers did not take any action that would suggest the odor.

“This raises questions for me about the decision to put him in the shower, which is a room where there are no cameras,” he says.

“There are no physical signs required.

“These images appear to contradict all the publicly stated reasons for, firstly, getting him into the shower and secondly, applying restraint.”

All prison officers involved in the restraint of Allan Marshall were granted lifetime immunity in order to persuade them to testify at a fatal crash investigation.

This was a decision the Crown Office later admitted was a mistake.

Instead of attempting to obtain what she saw as justice for her nephew, Sharon MacFadyen filed a civil rights lawsuit against the authorities involved in his death and the subsequent investigation.

This was the first incident in Scotland where section 2 of the Human Rights Act 1998 (breach of the right to life) was used.

Police Scotland and the Crown Office agreed to pay compensation to the family last year but the prison service did not.

Judge Lady Ross is expected to make a decision on the amount of compensation they must pay next month.

The Scottish Prison Service admitted Marshall’s death was unlawful in September – 10 years after he died.

Last September, his family received an apology from the prison service, the Crown Office and Police Scotland after the High Court heard the level of force had gone beyond what was necessary.

This was the first time that all three parties publicly apologized, acknowledged it as an unlawful death, and acknowledged that the state had not adequately investigated.

A Scottish Prison Service spokesman said: “We sincerely apologize for the failures that resulted in Mr Marshall’s sad death and our thoughts and condolences are with his family.

“As proceedings regarding this matter are ongoing, it would be inappropriate to comment further.”