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'It鈥檚 a hostile environment in here. Same as Afghanistan'

On a landing in Maghaberry, Stephen is reunited with a prisoner he last saw in a young offenders centre. He meets a murderer who, despite pleading guilty, now says he didn鈥檛 do it.

Stephen Nolan is reunited with a young man he met previously while filming in a young offenders centre. Having vowed he would never to return to jail, he鈥檚 back, this time in an adult prison. How do we stop people reoffending? And how difficult is it for people to divorce themselves from a life of crime? Some simply refuse to acknowledge the pain they have caused. In a tense interview inside another prisoner鈥檚 cell, Stephen meets a man who pleaded guilty in court to killing his girlfriend, yet now denies carrying out the murder. It鈥檚 an encounter that leaves Stephen determined to establish the truth.

If prison is meant to rehabilitate offenders, Stephen sees first-hand the scale of that challenge. He speaks to a former soldier with a string of violent and troubling convictions. He claims the post-traumatic stress he suffered after serving in Afghanistan has left him unable to cope either inside jail or beyond its walls. He argues that he is not getting the psychiatric help he needs.

Many prisoners simply want to get out - one inmate faces an anxious wait to discover his sentence and how long he will stay in Maghaberry. The court鈥檚 decision leaves him shaken.

29 minutes

Credits

Role Contributor
Series Producer Austen Irwin
Director Austen Irwin
Executive Producer Mary McKeagney
Executive Producer Chris Buckler

Broadcasts

  • Mon 18 Sep 2023 22:40
  • Tue 19 Sep 2023 22:00
  • Tue 17 Oct 2023 22:00