Criminal stabbed by murderer in prison kitchen wins £5.5m payout

Government lawyers had argued a multi-million-pound payout would be “out of accord with what society would perceive as being reasonable”, because serial offender Steven Wilson had “next to no history” of having earned an honest penny in his life.

But at the High Court yesterday, Judge Melissa Clarke awarded Wilson the payout and said the Government must pay his £546,000 lawyers’ bill.

Wilson, 36, suffered injuries including a torn liver, fractured spine and lacerated spinal cord when convicted killer Patrick Chandler attacked him “out of the blue” at Chelmsford prison with a nine-inch knife in 2018.

He later sued the Ministry of Justice, saying it failed to adequately assess whether lifer Chandler was safe for kitchen work, which gave him access to knives and sharp items.

The ministry admitted liability for the attack and agreed Wilson was due compensation. But it said because he had a 20-year criminal record, he should not get £5million-plus.

The court heard Wilson, of Clacton-on-Sea, Essex, was on remand for aggravated burglary when he was attacked by Chandler.

At the time, Chandler was only 24 days into a life sentence for a 2017 stabbing murder in Lawford, Essex.

Formerly “fit and fearless” Wilson told the court he was stabbed in the stomach with such force, it lifted him off the ground.

Chandler later admitted attempting to murder Wilson and received an additional life sentence and 10-year minimum term.

Court documents showed two weeks before the attack, Chandler allegedly told his supervisor he had “fantasised about violence and what he was going to do to people and about making weapons” – yet his overall risk rating was “medium”.

Giles Mooney KC told the judge Wilson, who was in hospital for more than two months, now needed a stick to walk, was plagued by chronic pain and could not work.

Wilson said his ordeal also triggered flashbacks, PTSD and nightmares of being chased by Chandler.

He told Judge Clarke: “I went in there a perfectly fit young man and came out in a wheelchair.

“When I see knives I feel cold. You don’t understand the chill I get when I see a knife.

“I can’t be in a kitchen or around knives because it reminds me of the attack.”

MoJ barrister Richard Wheeler KC said while Wilson should receive “fair, reasonable and just” compensation, he had a lengthy criminal record, including criminal damage, theft, driving, breach of community orders and violence.

The MoJ also said Wilson’s condition had improved and he did not need the level of care he claimed.

However, Judge Clarke said some experts called by the Government “departed from an initial fair and independent approach to Mr Wilson’s case” and she had called for “introspection” by its legal department.

She added: “I understand there has now been some such introspection and I shall say no more about it.”