Prison shame

Italian police arrested 13 prison guards on Monday on suspicion of torture and abuse of detainees since 2022 in a Milan young offenders prison. Eight other officers have been suspended while four are under investigation, which in total covers half the staff at the Cesare Beccaria juvenile detention centre. The police inquiry stemmed from reports from the prisoners’ rights ombudsman and used testimonies from detainees as well as wiretaps and camera footage, according to prosecutors. The abuse reportedly included stripping the boys naked and locking them up; kicking, punching and whipping them until they bled; and threatening and insulting them with racist slurs. Italy has had repeated problems in its prisons, with watchdogs reporting high suicide rates, massive overcrowding and poor living conditions for inmates. The UK is not in a better position: Nick Hardwick, the former chief inspector of prisons, described Britain’s overcrowded prisons as a “tinderbox” this week.