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The family of Allan Marshall - a Lanarkshire dad who died in custody - have blasted Scottish prison chiefs for halting the roll-out of 'pain-free' restraint techniques at all jails. Allan was on remand at HMP Edinburgh in March 2015 when he was brutally restrained face down by 17 prison officers after a mental health episode. The 30-year-old, from Carluke, was placed in a coma and died four days later as a result of brain damage caused by oxygen starvation and cardiac arrest. Allan was on remand for unpaid fines and breach of the peace charges, the Sunday Mail reports. The Scottish Prison Service piloted “non-pain-inducing control and restraint techniques” in three jails last year. But, despite reducing “violent incidents and floor restraints across all pilot sites”, its annual report reveals the roll-out has been derailed due to overcrowding and a lack of resources. Allan’s aunt, Sharon MacFadyen, said: “They blame overcrowding but they’ve known about overcrowding in prisons for years. "The techniques used on Allan were to deliberately inflict pain on prisoners and, if there is a pain-free alternative, why wouldn’t they use them? "The prison service has a duty of care to staff and prisoners and, if the pilot has proved successful… it should be -implemented as a priority across all prisons.” Allan was dragged naked and face down across a corridor during restraint, revealed in CCTV footage. At the Court of Session in -Edinburgh last month, SPS admitted a breach of human rights law by unlawfully causing his death. During a vigil outside Bute House in Edinburgh on Saturday, October 25, Allan’s relatives joined other -families whose loved ones died in state custody. The SPS said nine prisons are “now at red risk status, and this continues to place a strain on all areas of the organisation”. It added: “It has an increasingly destabilising effect on our establishments. We need to see a reduction in our population so we fully support people in our care, reduce their risk of reoffending, and help build the safer communities we want to see.” Sign up to our daily Glasgow Live newsletter here to receive news and features direct to your inbox Join Glasgow Live's WhatsApp community here and get the latest news sent straight to your messages.
