Convicted killer Venod Skantha died at Otago Corrections Facility this week. PHOTO: STEPHEN JAQUIERYThe death of killer Dunedin doctor Venod Skantha has forced a review of how courts communicate with prisons. Questions have been raised as to how Otago Corrections Facility staff were not aware a Court of Appeal decision rejecting Skantha’s appeal bid had been released on Wednesday. Corrections conducts risk assessments with inmates in certain situations, such as when they receive an adverse court judgement. Between 2014 and 2019, there were 32 apparent suicides in prisons, including two in Invercargill Prison and two in the Otago Corrections Facility.

Source: Otago Daily Times April 16, 2021 16:30 UTC