‘It’s a very unfair system’: family of man who took his own life criticise indefinite sentences

Francis Williams had built a successful business as a fitness coach and was determined to start afresh. Photograph: supplied

On the last day of his life, Francis Williams feared he was about to be sent to prison. Williams, 43, had committed no recent crime but when he was kicked out of a hostel in Bognor Regis after a drinking relapse, he guessed what was coming next.

An arcane sentence for a street robbery 18 years earlier meant homelessness and addiction would be enough to send Williams back inside. He had been given an imprisonment for public protection (IPP) sentence and could be recalled to prison if he was deemed to be a risk, even though he had served his time.