14-YEAR-OLD boy who was the youngest person to die in a British prison in modern times was treated unlawfully by his guards hours before he hanged himself, an inquest heard.

Adam Rickwood’s mother, Carol Pounder, told jurors she would be locked up if she had treated him the way authorities had at the privately-run Hassockfield Secure Training Centre, near Medomsley, County Durham.

Assistant Deputy Coroner Jeremy Freedman, who is leading the second inquest into Adam’s death, said previous jurors were not told prison staff had acted “unlawfully and illegally” when they physically restrained him on August 9, 2004.

Hours before his body was found, the teenager, from Burnley, Lancashire, disobeyed an order to return to his cell and four officers were called to remove him – two holding his arms, one his head and one his legs.

He was placed in his cell face down and, because the officer holding his head feared Adam was trying to bite his fingers, he employed a “distraction method” involving a sharp blow to the nose to control his behaviour.

The manoeuvre left Adam’s nose swollen and bruised.

The High Court ruled a second inquest was necessary after the initial 2007 inquest.

Yesterday, Mr Freedman said previous jurors were not told “three important things”.

He said: “When they removed Adam from the free association area, in these circumstances, it was unlawful and illegal.

“Second, they weren’t told that the use of physical control in care in taking him into his cell in these circumstances was too, unlawful.

“And thirdly, they weren’t told that the use of the nose distraction technique was in any circumstances unlawful and illegal.”

He said the inquest would be a wide-ranging inquiryinto the way young people in custody are restrained.

“You will hear about matters which do not impact immediately on the circumstances of Adam’s death, but because of the context of this death and the issues which it has raised, it is necessary for there to be a more extensive inquiry than would otherwise be the case.”

Giving evidence at the inquest in Easington, County Durham, Mrs Pounder said: “The assault that Adam was subjected to in Hassockfield – if I’d have done that then I would have been arrested and locked up. I know my son was no angel, he had his problems.”

Hours after the assault, between 11.45pm and shortly after midnight, Adam, who was on remand on a wounding charge, was found hanged in his cell.

Mrs Pounder said her son developed behavioural problems after the deaths of three grandparents and his 17-yearold cousin when he was aged about nine.

She said: “He stopped sleeping.

He was breaking his own things and punching walls when he was angry.”

Mrs Pounder said Adam’s behaviour had deteriorated after he fell in with a bad crowd and started drinking, taking ecstasy and smoking cannabis.

After a series of run-ins with police, he was given an electronic tag and told to complete a supervision order.

Mrs Pounder spoke of her son’s distress at being sent to Hassockfield, operated by Serco, 150 miles from home.

She said: “He rang me every day when he was in there and he always ended up crying.

“He said he needed to be home with me and that he couldn’t cope.

“He said when there was a disturbance, staff were videoed, but they were never videoed when they were giving the lads a hiding.”

Adam requested a transfer from Hassockfield on July 20, 2004, to a centre nearer home, but despite the request being received by Lancashire County Council youth services eight days later, it was not processed in time.

Issues were also raised about the fact correct information was not passed on about Adam, who had been admitted to hospital seven times between 2001 and 2003 after self-harm and suicide attempts.

It meant no documentation of Adam’s troubled past was given to staff at Hassockfield.

The hearing, due to last four weeks, continues.