Emotional prison officer admits breaking rules to help bullied alopecia-battling student Katie Allan who killed herself

12 January 2024, 08:48

A prison officer became emotional as she recalled breaking regulations by giving bandanas to an inmate with alopecia who later killed herself.

Katie Allan, 21, who has been jailed for 16 months for dangerous driving, was found dead in her cell on July 4, 2018 at Polmont young offenders institution.

A fatal accident inquiry (FAI) at Falkirk Sheriff Court is examining the circumstances of her death and that of William Brown, 16, also known as William Lindsay, who took his own life there four months later.

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Ms Allan had a history of self-harm, was worried about how she would be received back in the community when released, and was suffering from significant hair loss from the stress-related condition alopecia, the inquiry was told.

She had been bullied, taunted, called "a baldy bastard" by other lags, lost over a stone in weight, and had been having relationship difficulties with her boyfriend, before she was found hanged in her cell at Polmont Young Offenders' Institution, Stirlingshire, on June 4th 2018, the probe heard.

Ms Allan told family she felt 'like a piece of s***' after seeing a GP about alopecia and described Dr Fiona Collier, a GP and dermatologist who visited every eight weeks, as 'a cow', the inquiry heard.

An appointment scheduled for March 19 went ahead on May 4, when Ms Allan was told she would be given cream rather than steroid injections, which she had been given privately.

Dr Collier told the inquiry: "There's no clear evidence recurrence can be triggered by stress."

She said: "I don't remember her saying anything to indicate she was upset, I don't remember her arguing about it. I think I would have documented it if she had been very upset."

An adverse event report issued after Ms Allan's death noted: "The opinion of the family is this autoimmune condition was viewed as a matter of vanity.

"KA told her mother she was seen by a GP with a special interest in dermatology. She was upset at the treatment she received."

Prison officer Jennifer Wilson, 52, was described as “lovely” by Ms Allan during a family phone call, the inquiry heard.

Mrs Wilson, who is married to fellow prison officer Scott Wilson, admitted breaking SPS protocols to bring her bandanas to hide baldness, and told the court: “It was the right thing to do.

She told the probe she had tried to reassure Katie's wheelchair-bound grandmother, who was crying after a visit to her granddaughter.

She said: "I said I'd keep an eye on her." Weeping, Mrs Wilson revealed she had broken prison rules by bringing in bandanas for Katie to cover her hair loss.

She said: "It was the right thing to do. It's got to knock her self-confidence, a young girl, very pretty, losing her hair."

Solicitor Advocate Leanne Cross, for the Crown, asked her: "Is that something you'd have done ordinarily for a prisoner."

Mrs Wilson said: "Probably not." Ms Cross asked: "Is that something that was officially permitted - to bring in something from home for a prisoner?"

She replied, "No." Mrs Wilson added: "I didn't go through the proper channels. She wore them every day and gave me a wee wink when she passed."

Glasgow University chaplain Stuart MacQuarrie, who has since died, said in a statement that on his second visit to Ms Allan she disclosed she was being bullied and was scared of turning 21 in prison.

His evidence said: "Now she was 21 she was worried she could be moved upstairs at any time.

"Katie was telling me the bullying and abuse was continuing. There were two prisoners who would scream at her and threaten her, calling her a 'baldy bastard' and trying to make her an outcast.

"Most of the time Katie appeared OK. The abuse and bullying was always mentioned, and it did make her unhappy. She didn't want to report it, she was of the opinion it would make it more difficult."

His statement added: "She didn't appear to me to be a risk of suicide. I believe Katie wasn't managed at all during her time at Polmont and was just part of the process.

"Earlier on Thursday, mental health nurse Jo Brogan told the inquiry she was not aware of 'intel' regarding reports of bullying as only Scottish Prison Service (SPS) staff could access it.

She said Ms Allan was referred to her 'informally' by a prison officer.

The witness told the inquiry: "Intel reports were for SPS staff only, we wouldn't know what they were in for or how long the sentence was, or if they were on remand."

Antidepressants would not have been considered for issues with Ms Allan's 'mental wellbeing', due to her relatively short sentence, the inquiry was told.

She said she had no concerns about Ms Allan in terms of self-harm, adding: "I think Katie was an absolute delight, I think she was very open, she was very resilient, she was very capable, she was very engaging with the process, she listened, she discussed, she shared, in particular to her alopecia.

"I think she tried to contain her emotions and her emotional responses."