A prison worker who accessed the personal records of some of the UK's most notorious killers, including Lucy Letby, Harold Shipman, and Rose West, has been jailed for 21 months. Courtney Harrison, 27, admitted misconduct in public office and unauthorised computer access at Sheffield Crown Court.
Grave breach of trust
Harrison, who worked as an administrative officer at HMP Moorland in Doncaster, searched the files of Britain's most prolific serial killer Harold Shipman, child murderer Rose West, infant-killer nurse Lucy Letby, and Damien Bendall, who killed two women and children with a claw hammer. Judge Jeremy Richardson KC described her actions as a 'grave breach of trust'.
In addition to her 'nosiness' about high-profile prisoners, Harrison also passed confidential details about convicted cash machine raider George Tunney to a friend, which ended up on Tunney's mobile phone in his cell. Tunney later absconded from prison but was recaptured.
Sentencing and mitigation
Harrison wept in the dock as she was sentenced. Judge Richardson said: 'Prison officers, and officers within the prison, have reposed within them a very considerable responsibility and trust. When an individual breaches that trust, punishment must follow, and an example has to be made of them.' He noted that while no tangible harm resulted from accessing the notorious criminals' records, her behaviour was 'comprehensively wrong'.
The judge considered her youth at the time of the offences (she was 23) as a mitigating factor, but stressed the seriousness of sharing Tunney's details. He stated there was no evidence she assisted his escape, saying: 'It would be a very serious matter if there was any evidence revealing that you had materially assisted a prisoner to abscond. Your prison sentence would be measured in several years.'
Discovery and consequences
Harrison's actions were discovered, leading to her arrest. She accessed records in 2022 and 2023, including those of a Category A prisoner. Judge Richardson concluded: 'You were, in effect, dancing around the edge of a volcano. That volcano erupted, and here you are in the Crown Court facing a sentence.'
