What do you call a man who is serving a double life sentence for organising the cold blooded slaughter of two grandparents?
There’s probably plenty of names that come to mind, which can’t be printed in a family newspaper.
But let me add mine: crime underworld boss Colin Gunn should be referred to as ‘Mr’. That’s right, Mr Colin Gunn – aka serial gangster whose criminal notoriety led to his (and my) home city of Nottingham becoming known as Shottingham.
Despite his grotesque CV, Colin Gunn has won the right to force prison officers to call him ‘Mr’ after complaining he was not being treated with sufficient respect which, to my mind, is absolutely right.
This is not political correctness gone haywire. Nor am I in any way suggesting that Mr Gunn’s crime – arranging the revenge killing of Joan and John Stirland who were shot in a police ‘safe house’ on the Lincolnshire coast – is anything less than monstrous.
However, guidelines, introduced by the last government, instruct prison officers to abide by inmates’ wishes on how to address them – and Colin Gunn’s chosen form of title was ‘Mr’. So when prison officers didn’t oblige, and persisted in using his surname, he made a formal complaint.
Why all the fuss? Why can’t prison officers follow their own very simple guidelines? How hard can it be? If they don’t like them, then they need to petition the government to change them.
But there is a further benefit in dropping the default position of surname-only titles. We need to remind ourselves that the function of a prison sentence may well be punitive – but it’s also remedial.
By treating prisoners with respect – regardless of their crime – we hope to instill in them a degree of decorum that can only benefit society in the long run.
It’s so easy to expect all recourse to civility to be abandoned within the walls of a prison. That bearpit morality would subjugate any semblance of common decency.
Yet once inside jail, once justice has been dispensed, the playing field is level.
And ironically this is an opportunity for inmates to regain their dignity and respect.
Colin Gunn and his like should be addressed the way they want to be.
Not only will this stymie the possibility of further appeals which are a huge drain on the public purse. But who knows? Treating criminals like human beings may be the best chance they have of behaving like one.
Addressing my thanks to the Royal Mail
CONGRATULATIONS to the Royal Mail.
All we ever read about is their incompetence: 11 million householders don’t get their post before 10am, millions of Christmas presents went missing in the post last year and many of us no longer rely on a first class stamp meaning a first class service.
So imagine my surprise and joy when an envelope dropped onto my doormat at home, addressed to N Freeman, Office.
Think I may send Royal Mail a Christmas card – and on this form, it may even arrive on time.
Fat chance of Mary winning The X Factor
TOO close to call who’s going to win this weekend’s X Factor but it was never going to be Mary.
Let’s be honest, fat folk get our sympathy but not our vote.
Mary’s magnificent talent was always going to be eventually camouflaged by her waist line. And if this sounds brutal, who remembers pop idol winner Michelle McManus?
I rest my case.
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Nope totally disagree - these so called men lost all their rights (in my eyes) when they commiteed their crimes- and most certainly in this case. Does Nick realise he may have to call the Moors Murderer Brady Sir now?!
World has gone mad.
Correction - meant to say MR not Sir.
Let's start the respect campaign off by calling fat folk pleasantly plump. Fat is usually used as a derogatory term towards larger than life people.
How does Mr. Freeman plan to help victims of people like Gunn regain their dignity and respect?
Well well well there's a surprise! One of Britains greediest lawyers supporting another lawyers decision to make prison a suchier place for criminals! Of course he will! the less frightening prison is made the more likely people are to offend and the more money the lawyers can make!
The titles which people are given goes back centuries based on etiquete (no surprise that lawyers don't know their manners!). The convention in the BBC is that up until conviction the accused is given the title Mr, but following conviction that title is removed and just the surname is used.
Why stop there though why not address the prisoners as 'Sir' if you want them to get used to normal life, and why not put mini bars into what will inevitably become little more than hotel rooms?
There is another side of the arguement which Mr Greedy doesn't want people to see, that of harsher treatment, I'm sure that the thought of the chain gang breaking rocks in a quarry would have more deterrent than a stay in a nice 'hotel' with staff waiting on you. But then that isn't what the greedy lawyers want.
Mr Freeman, I went through my entire schooldays being addressed by my surname; and never, once, did it cross my mind that teaching staff were being less respectful to me by doing so.
Many, many readers of this website, who have served their country in the armed forces, have spent careers being addressed in such a manner, and I would wager few - as in 'any' - have ordered an 'hit' on a defenceless couple of pensioners.
Many of today's criminals, and wannabee gangstas (sic), could not spell 'respect'. And if they could, it's not any type of respect most decent people would recognise.
Gunn, is a violent, manipulative, career criminal, who should never be allowed to return to mainstream 'society'. There are already (more than) enough of his ilk, operating in our towns and cities, inflicting their bullying regimes over beaten-down communities.
I was always taught that respect had to be earned and, if Gunn wants 'respect' from prison staff, perhaps he should set about changing his ways... I don't expect to hear about this about-face any time soon.
It's telling that someone needs to be addressed as Mr to feel.respected.
Colin Gunn is just another one with self esteem and control issues, which is probably why he's a criminal. I suppose if he was clever about it, he'd have gone into a professional role, like a policeman or a judge or a solicitor for instance, to get the respect they crave, don't you agree MR Freeman?
as soon as you are found guilty of a crime you should loose all human rights.
far too many criminals today play on the human rights issue to make their lives more easy even when they have been banged up.
all thanks to letting our previous government run away with the softly softly approach. all the while they've been waffling on about the "tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime".
again, keep repeating it and hopefully it'll brainwash some people!
Personally,I would give them all a number and refer to this number when addressing them! This would be a great leveller, would introduce consistency and non discrimination, Prisoners deserve neutral respect!
What a truly tedious and pointless bit of waffle. Only the terminally stupid care a jot what people are reffered to in Prison. But wait!! There was a point. Get somebody who is almost universally hated by the rank and file to pen a column that will be almost universally disagreed with - and that way, hopefully nobody will notice that the four biggest stories of the day have been completely sidelined and hidden away by the MEN - Operation Payback, Julian Assange and Wikileaks, Uk Uncut and the student protests in London following and preceding the biggest, most dishouranble and nauseating lie ever told by one gang of politicians to the nation. Hey Ed, you see, at least one of us is paying attention out here.
Who paid for the court case? Im guessing it was us. The tax payers of this once great nation. We are letting lawyers and crooks take this country to the dogs.
In my opinion people like Freeman or should it be Mr Freeman are not much better than scum like Gunn. ( I will not call him Mr because he doesn't deserve that respect).
The country really need to start standing up to these people. The problem is most of the government are lawywers or involved with law firms, so they are never going to vote for christmas are they.
The reason why I never became a lawyer is that I'm uncomfortable with the idea that in order to get ahead in your career you need not be concerned with the truth or justice but rather your main priority is to get your client off the hook, or at the very minimum, the best deal possible. Freeman's comments about The Right Honourable Sir Colin Gunn are a prime example of this mentality; using rules and technical loopholes to ensure that insecure madmen who are driven to murder to prove they are the biggest, baddest waste of space on 'their' council estate continue to feel important and get their ego caressed.
Yes, we all understand that prison is supposed to rehabilitate, but do you suggest we do this by making it as comfortable as possible? Surely the fact that prisons in this country are little more than stayover social clubs for criminals must be a factor in the high rate of reoffending?
You have to earn respect - not get it because you are lowlife
What's the problem calling somebody mr? I'm all for calling Christmas Christmas and a spade a spade relax Joe public or should I say Joseph. ?
Strange really that Freeman is selected for his experience of traffic offences. Many of his clients are the rich and favoured and he is probably on first name terms with them. Highly unlikely that Freeman has spent any time inside a prison recently otherwise he would side with the officers.
It does make you realise what a nerd Freeman is, commenting on FAT people. Does this apply when a famous FAT bloke wants to get off a traffic summons. Bet that sympathy is only available if it comes with the ability to pay his fees.
After a diatribe about respect Mr Freeman, you then go on to say "Fat chance of Mary winning The X Factor...TOO close to call who’s going to win this weekend’s X Factor but it was never going to be Mary....Let’s be honest, fat folk get our sympathy but not our vote...was always going to be eventually camouflaged by her waist line"
Not very respectful at all.....you are indeed right "brutal"....but the edicts for you appear different to those you expect prison officers to follow.
In reply to Mr Freeman's comment 'who remembers pop idol winner Michelle McManus?', if he Googles her name I think he'll find she's carved out a very successful TV career.
Having had my account "borrowed" by stranger(s) on Thursday, whilst distracted, it is coincidental that they referred to "that Chakrabati woman". I am reminded by Andrew Marr (BBC this morning) that they were referring to Shami Chakrabati from the Respect party, who once stated in this paper that "bad people" should have the same rights as "good people". Makes you wonder how the word "Respect" should be defined nowadays. Answers on a postcard......
PS. Never open your e-mail account in public places!