Young man left bleeding after suicide attempt in Lotus Glen prison in Far North Queensland

Footage has captured the moment a suicidal inmate was left bleeding for more than 40 minutes in a NQ jail cell. Then, it happened again. WARNING: Disturbing content.

A young man was left bleeding for more than 40 minutes when he tried to take his own life in a North Queensland jail cell.

Then, it happened again.

On one of the occasions he suffered significant blood loss but was not taken to hospital.

Months after one of the suicide attempts he was moved to another prison where health workers discovered the 21-year-old had lost so much blood he needed a transfusion.

Disturbing CCTV and body cam footage recorded in a cell under 24-hour observation inside the Lotus Glen prison in Far North Queensland captures two concerning incidents in the second half of 2020 involving the young male prisoner who had serious mental health problems.

The incidents highlight the lack of adequate resources available to staff to respond to self harm cases where prisoners are armed with weapons.

In one clip a large contingent of guards and other prison staff gather outside the cell for more than 40 minutes.

Blood seen seeping out of the prisoner’s room as he was left bleeding after trying to take his lfie.

The group intermittently tell the prisoner to stop hurting himself, but do not intervene.

“Can you stop cutting your bloody arm,” one guard says through the cell’s window.

“What are you trying to do, I think you’ve made your point mate … I think you’ve probably made a big enough mess … you’ve proved your point.”

In the recording staff can be heard deciding not to enter the cell until the prisoner surrenders a blade. In the same clip, the group waiting outside the cell can be heard only contacting the on-site psychology unit to alert them to the incident about 35 minutes into the recording.

“He’s slashed the f--k out of himself,” a voice can be heard saying.

“If he passes out, give us a yell,” one guard says as he walks away.”

After almost an hour, guards enter the cell. A large amount of blood can be seen in the cell.

A guard holding a large perspex shield puts his weight on top of the prisoner who is laying face down on the floor before the man is handcuffed.

In another incident just a few months later CCTV shows multiple guards and other staff walking past the prisoner’s cell as blood leaks under the door and pools in the hallway outside.

In the clip it is unclear in this case if the inmate had a bladed weapon.

Time stamps on the internal footage shows the inmate left in his cell bleeding for a period from about 8.49am to 9.28am.

When a guard looks through the cell’s window at 8.50am, correlating footage recorded inside the cell shows a pool of blood already forming.

The prisoner in his cell following the suicide attempt.

Body-cam footage captures guards’ interactions in the moments after medical staff take the 21-year-old for treatment after one of the suicide attempts.

Members of the group are captured laughing and complaining they will need new boots because they stood in the prisoner’s blood.

“I have got it all over my f-cking boots,” one guard says. “I’ve got to swap those c-nts out,” he continues.

The group laughs as another guard says his co-worker is due for new boots as his are worn out from “kicking too much arse”.

The man’s lawyer Zoe Navarro said the footage of her client’s treatment spoke for itself.

“People don’t have a lot of sympathy for prisoners,” she said.

“But, he is a human being and anyone can be in that situation.”

A Queensland Corrective Services spokesman said responding to self-harm incidents was one of the most challenging, confronting and potentially dangerous aspects of an officer’s work.

“Custodial Correctional Officers are trained in first aid and have protocols for obtaining medical assistance for prisoners who require it,” the spokesman said.

“Officer safety is absolutely paramount. To ensure their safety and the safety of their colleagues, officers are required to only enter a cell once a prisoner is compliant with directions and not presenting a risk to officers or medical staff.

“First aid is provided and medical assistance sought as soon as the situation is safe to do so.”

Due to the Corrective Services Act 2006, the QCS spokesman said the organisation did not discuss the individual management of prisoners.

The incident occurred at Lotus Glen prison in Far North Queensland. PICTURE: STEWART McLEAN

Defence argues man was failed by system

The case has highlighted a string of problems in the state’s criminal justice system behind bars and in the courtroom.

His defence lawyer Zoe Navarro of Navarro Lawyers told the Bulletin the 23-year-old was failed by the system.

She says it is one of the worst “failures” she has seen in more than a decade of criminal law.

When finalising his charges before a magistrate in March, Ms Navarro expressed her “significant concern” about the man’s former legal representatives.

She said when she took over the case earlier this year, the man told her he had not been contacted by his lawyer for about seven months.

Ms Navarro said failures by the government-funded Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Service led to the young man staying locked up longer than he should and missing out on the opportunity to apply for parole.

“He went into custody when he was 18 years old and he has been in custody the entire time,” she said.

“He swallowed a battery so he could be taken to the hospital.

“Clearly his mental health at the time was in a very bad state. “

While behind bars the young man attempted suicide at least three times, Ms Navarro said.

She said he had a history of assaulting staff but that this behaviour ceased in September 2020 when he received treatment for his mental health for the first time.

The man’s case lapsed in the court system without progression for more than a year between November 2020 and March 2022.

The man’s lawyer says the incident was one of the worst “failures” she has seen in more than a decade of criminal law.

Ms Navarro said ATSILS lost the file of police evidence in the case and took months to ask for another, leading to months of delay with the new file only ready in June 2021.

“There have been over 10 adjournments of this matter,” she said.

“One of the reasons for the delay was them losing the first brief of evidence.

“Another reason put forward for an adjournment was they were obtaining a mental health assessment.”

Ms Navarro said a mental health assessment was never obtained and that ATSILS had known it would not get one since August 2021.

“I had a significant amount of concern about the delay in this matter which was through no fault of (his),” she said.

Her concerns were accepted by a police prosecutor and the sentencing magistrate who said there was about 12 months where “pretty much nothing really happens”.

Ms Navarro said there was no reason for the delay considering the prisoner tried to plead guilty when he first faced court.

“He had tried to plead guilty at the very beginning,” she said.

“He should have been sentenced a year before he was, if not more.

“This is the worst and most obvious example of a failure because of legal representation that I have seen.”

Ms Navarro said ATSILS should look closely at what went wrong.

“It is disheartening to see that the representation was by an organisation like ATSILS that should really be assisting people as vulnerable as (him),” she said.

“I am sure it is not a reflection of the organisation as a whole and all the lawyers that work there but this particular example is very concerning.”

ATSILS declined to comment.

Originally published as Young man left bleeding after suicide attempt in Lotus Glen prison in Far North Queensland