Burglar awarded more than £5m damages after being stabbed in prison canteen

A burglar who suffered “life-changing” injuries aft helium was stabbed portion helium worked successful a situation canteen has been awarded much than £5 cardinal successful damages by a High Court judge.

Steven Wilson, 36, sued the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) aft helium was struck aggregate times with a nine-inch weapon by a chap captive arsenic helium carried retired room duties wrong HMP Chelmsford successful Essex successful July 2018.

A hazard appraisal of Mr Wilson’s attacker, who was serving a beingness condemnation for murder, said it was “unknown” if helium could beryllium near unsupervised but helium was inactive deployed to enactment successful the room with entree to knives.

The MoJ admitted liability implicit the incidental but challenged the level of Mr Wilson’s assertion for damages.

In a ruling connected Friday, Judge Melissa Clarke awarded Mr Wilson £5,404,559.05 successful damages.

I anticipation that contempt his challenges, helium is capable to prosecute to the fullest grade with each the therapies that I person recovered helium requires, truthful that his beingness is arsenic afloat and progressive arsenic it tin be

Judge Melissa Clarke

In a written judgment, she said: “There is nary uncertainty that Mr Wilson’s beingness has been radically and permanently affected by the carnal and psychiatric/psychological injuries caused by that unspeakable onslaught successful the situation kitchen.

“I anticipation that contempt his challenges, helium is capable to prosecute to the fullest grade with each the therapies that I person recovered helium requires, truthful that his beingness is arsenic afloat and progressive arsenic it tin be.”

In the 112-page ruling, the justice said the injuries Mr Wilson sustained included lacerations to his liver and stomach, penetrating wounds to his abdomen and thorax wall, and an incomplete spinal lesion.

The justice said arsenic a effect of the injuries, Mr Wilson needed a self-propelled wheelchair, “walking instrumentality and walking framework to mobilise, depending connected his levels of symptom and fatigue”.

Judge Clarke said that during the proceedings successful April, Mr Wilson described however helium “felt precise susceptible successful prison” aft the incidental and “was frightened that would beryllium attacked again, and this clip beryllium incapable to support himself oregon get retired of occupation owed to his constricted mobility”.

Mr Wilson was connected remand for aggravated burglary astatine the clip of the stabbing.

He was aboriginal convicted and sentenced to 9 years, discounted to six-and-a-half-years imprisonment connected relationship of his injuries, and was released successful June 2021.

Judge Clarke said that the MoJ “very rapidly accepted liability” implicit the attack, but disputes arose implicit Mr Wilson’s information and the level of attraction that helium would require, arsenic good arsenic the interaction connected his aboriginal nonaccomplishment of earnings.

In challenging Mr Wilson’s damages claim, the MoJ highlighted that helium had a transgression grounds with much than 31 convictions and 22 cautions betwixt 1999 and 2018.

Judge Clarke told the tribunal the prison’s work/activity hazard appraisal for Mr Wilson’s attacker disclosed that the questions “Sufficiently trustworthy to beryllium near unsupervised?” and “Temperament to enactment safely without causing disruption to others?” had been answered “unknown”.

The justice added: “Nonetheless the suspect had deployed him to enactment successful the situation with acceptable entree to knives.”

The justice said Mr Wilson was taken to the Royal London Hospital by aerial ambulance and placed successful intensive attraction for 9 days successful an induced coma aft exigency surgery.

He remained astatine the infirmary for 7 weeks until helium was discharged to a specializer rehabilitation unit

The justice said that aesculapian grounds successful the proceedings described however Mr Wilson would “likely necessitate 24 hours enactment and full-time usage of a wheelchair for mobility some indoors and outdoors with trouble with transfers and assistance with idiosyncratic attraction and apt tegument attraction astatine night” by the clip helium was 60 years old.

The damages by Judge Clarke included an grant of much than £2.4 cardinal to enactment Mr Wilson’s aboriginal attraction needs.