Wilma McCorkindale/Stuff
Grant Bowden was critically attacked at the Otago Corrections Facility near Milton in South Otago.
Footage of a brutal prison yard attack shows the moment a man was punched to the ground by a fellow inmate, leaving him with critical head injuries from which he would never recover.
In October 2017 Grant Steven Bowden, 47, was arrested on burglary charges and later remanded in custody to the Otago Corrections Facility, about 50km south of Dunedin.
The following month, on November 3, he was assaulted in the yard by Nyal Heke, causing him to hit his head on the concrete floor and suffer severe seizures.
He died in hospital more than 13 months later, on December 27, 2018.
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On the first day of an inquest into Bowden’s death held at the Dunedin District Court on Monday, Detective Hamish Fraser said he went to the prison following the attack.
CCTV footage of the assault was played to the court, the 40-minute video showing 10 inmates walking around and exercising in the tennis court-sized yard, with Bowden largely keeping to himself.
When Heke approached the pair appeared to exchange words and then blows.
A punch by Heke caused Bowden to fall heavily to the concrete floor, before Heke turned him onto his side. The exercise yard was cleared a few minutes later, guards offering medical support before nurses arrived.
Bodycam footage showed a bloodied Bowden was initially able to respond to medical staff.
Counsel Nathan Laws, on behalf of the coroner, said Bowden had suffered traumatic brain injuries from the attack, leaving him in a debilitating condition, including being unable to safely swallow food and solids.
He was later transferred to Auckland to be closer to his family.
The inquest heard that Bowden’s condition left him vulnerable to pneumonia, and late in 2018 he suffered multiple organ failure and died at Waitakere Hospital in Auckland.
Bowden, a twin, was one of four brothers and was ‘’bright, warm and affectionate’’, a relative said in a statement read by coroner Alexandra Cunninghame at the start of the hearing.
He enjoyed sport, writing, music and art, but developed schizophrenia in his late teens.
The inquest heard from a lawyer for the Department of Corrections that Bowden had requested to be transferred out of the at-risk unit to the remand unit at the Milburn-based prison.
Heke’s lawyer told the inquest that her client did not attack Bowden deliberately, and that the victim had been trying to pick a fight with him.
He was charged and sentenced over the attack.
The inquest heard that Heke still had nightmares about the incident, and had met Bowden’s family and apologised at a restorative justice meeting.
Bowden’s family, via a lawyer, noted he was struggling to be coherent in the days before the attack.
“Grant was dealt a pretty terrible hand,’’ said the family.
“He enriched our lives and brought us a great deal of joy.”
Dr Martin Sage, a senior forensic pathologist, said Bowden suffered a fractured skull and remained in a coma for several months.
The discharging clinician noted he died of pneumonia, but that was a direct consequence of the severe head injury, Sage said.
A delay in Bowden being attended by Corrections’ staff did not contribute to his death, he said.
The inquest continues.
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