Darwin prisoner Roy Lillis Young pleads guilty to escaping custody after walking away from hospital
A Darwin prisoner on a cocktail of antipsychotic medication and painkillers was able to walk out of custody. Read how it happened.
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A Darwin prisoner on a cocktail of antipsychotic medication and painkillers walked out of hospital after asking corrections staff to monitor him, a court has heard.
Judge Ben O’Loughlin said on Tuesday staff shortages at corrections had led to Roy Lillis Young walking out of Royal Darwin Hospital two months ago.
Young pleaded guilty to escaping from lawful custody from the hospital on June 5 this year.
The court heard the 29-year-old was located less than 24-hours later 6km away at the Airport Tavern car park.
His lawyer Josh Begbie said Young developed a painful infection on his feet while at Darwin’s Holtze Prison.
Mr Begbie said despite asking corrections staff to accompany him to the hospital, staffing concerns meant he was placed on a general leave permit with supervision.
Young — who the court heard was in prison for a serious violent offence — was handed over to hospital staff without corrections support.
Mr Begbie said the combination of serious painkillers and antipsychotic medication impacted his client and “in his confusion he left the hospital”.
“This wasn’t a sophisticated attempt, he didn’t work very hard to escape custody,” he said.
Mr O’Loughlin accepted that “staff shortages” contributed to Young’s escape from the hospital
He said compared to a fully fledged “prison break”, Young’s 24-hours on the run was a less serious example of offending.
The court also heard Young had previously breached suspended sentences five times.
He was sentenced to 14-days imprisonment, cumulative with his other longer prison terms.
“So that’s an extra two weeks for getting out for less than one day,” Mr O’Loughlin said.
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Originally published as Darwin prisoner Roy Lillis Young pleads guilty to escaping custody after walking away from hospital
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