Prisoner loses battle to eat boiled sweets – 'Last shred of dignity'

A quadriplegic prisoner confined to his bed has failed in his battle to force his carers to allow him boiled sweets.

The man, who has been anonymised in court documents and is referred to as 'JJ', is being held in the healthcare wing of HMP Liverpool in Walton.

He is only able to move one finger as a result of a rare genetic condition and has no teeth – making him reliant on his carers to look after him and feed him.

The Court of Appeal heard that JJ's care is provided inside the prison by Spectrum Community Health CIC, and up until 2021 JJ was allowed to supplement his diet of soft, mushy food with snacks he ordered from the prison canteen – including hard-boiled sweets.

However the prisoner suffered "several episodes of choking" during this time and the care team “expressed concern” that JJ eating boiled sweets “gave rise to a risk of choking and aspiration” and staff were not prepared to accept responsibility for his decision to eat them.

In May 2021, JJ was subject to a speech and language therapy (SALT) assessment which concluded he was at high risk of death when eating hard food due to his horizontal position.

The therapist recommended that JJ finish his supply of hard-boiled sweets and then be restricted to a diet of soft and bite-sized food.

The court heard that Spectrum staff refused to provide JJ with anything not specified in his diet plan, including sweets, and he refused to eat any solid food in protest.

The court heard he did allow himself to be fed a liquid diet, "apart from one occasion when he ate cake, custard and ice cream without incident".

JJ refused to return to eating any solid food unless he be provided a written guarantee that after a "re-feeding" period he would be allowed to eat boiled sweets at his own risk.

However Spectrum refused, arguing that feeding JJ boiled sweets or other unsafe foods would open them up to prosecution for gross negligence manslaughter if he did choke.

In July last year, JJ applied for a judicial review of that decision, which was refused by a judge at the High Court.

He appealed that decision, telling judges that being able to eat what he wants represents his "last shred of humanity and dignity" after "losing almost everything".

But this week the Court of Appeal handed down a written judgement upholding the right of prison healthcare staff to refuse to provide JJ with boiled sweets due to the "high risk" of him choking to death.

Judge Lady Justice King said that “one can fully understand the dire situation JJ finds himself in” but concluded that it was “lawful for Spectrum to refuse to provide JJ with boiled sweets” as there was a “more than fanciful risk of prosecution… for gross negligence manslaughter."

What rights do prisoners have regarding food?

Prisoners in the UK are entitled to three meals a day and have access to drinking water at all times and facilities to prepare a minimum of four hot drinks a day.

Prisons are subject to checks to ensure food is healthy and safe to eat, and that inmates get enough food.

Menus are given to prisoners to choose their meals, with options for religious diets or special diets such as vegan or vegetarian meals.

Healthcare workers in prisons can prescribe treatment and special diets as part of a medical condition.