Liberty will bring 'anger, resentment, and isolation'

Published on Monday 7 January 2008 21:30

Experts express concern for Richey as one of the Birmingham Six, Paddy Hill, tells The Scotsman what lies ahead

HE'S going to find it very hard, believe me.

The anger is going to be the worst thing for Kenny to deal with.

The first few months are a whirlwind, but the joy at being free is quickly replaced by anger at the years of your life that have been taken from you. It just eats you up.

When you are released, after a while, you don't want to be here. You want to go back into jail because that's what you're used to.

You can handle that. For me, almost every aspect of the outside world was extremely difficult to handle.

He's been on Death Row for 20 years, so he's been in lock-down for 23 hours a day.

Even when he was released for exercise, it was inside a cage. So just being in open space is going to freak him out.

I wanted to go out only at night because it's dark, there are few people around and nobody pays you any attention.

He's going to find it so hard adjusting to simple interaction with people. Sleeping will also be difficult.

Hopefully, we can get him some counselling. He's definitely going to need it. Unfortunately for people like Kenny, there is no official support provided when you are released. You're put out on the street and that's it. Hopefully, through our experiences, people like myself will be able to help Kenny.

When I came out, I was living in the front room, sleeping in the front room, eating in the front room. I forgot about the rest of the flat.

I was just so used to living in a cell, I couldn't adjust to having so much space. It's likely to be the same for Kenny.

His own physical health is probably the most important issue. As we've seen with other people who have suffered a miscarriage of justice, like Stuart Gair, who died not long after he was released from prison, the stress of adjusting to life outside can be too much.

It's vital that Kenny gets a proper health check, as he's got a heart problem and diabetes.

For months, nothing will be certain for Kenny. Even just going to the shop to buy a paper is going to be just so weird.

People have no idea how difficult it is, after so much of your life is robbed from you. Only time will tell how difficult it's going to be for Kenny.

&#149 Paddy Hill is one of the "Birmingham Six", who were each jailed for 16 years for a pub bombing they did not commit.