Advertisement
Advertisement
It's for this reason that Godsi's skeptical that these sorts of couples couldn't necessarily thrive in the 'real' world. That's not to say that all don't, though—just take this female prison guard who says she married an inmate convicted of second-degree manslaughter. They first got together in 2002, before getting married about three years later. That case feels more like an anomaly, as far as Godsi's concerned.It's a relationship formed in a completely different boundary-setting that can't survive in the real world. Almost invariably, it's going to end in tears.
Advertisement
Advertisement
WATCH: Jailed for Life for Minor Crimes – the UK's Forgotten Prisoners
For women inmates, though, the power imbalance can be fraught with feeling pressure to create a transactional relationship based on the inmate earning perks and privileges. An inmate speaking anonymously to the Guardian in 2009 said that she'd regularly perform blow jobs in exchange for 'rewards"—namely vodka and drugs. When asked if the relationship was consensual, she replied: "In a way, I suppose. I knew what I was doing; but I wouldn't have looked at him on the outside and only did it for the burn and the vodka. He was a bit arrogant and there were times when I fantasized about biting his cock off."Another woman interviewed in the piece suggested that by not giving in to the staff's advances, she could scupper her chances of an being let out earlier. "It was part and parcel of prison life," she said. "If you are not going to buy into the approaches made by staff, you will not progress, you will not get the good jobs, or get on the courses that will help you get early release." Essentially, it's as Godsi says: "You can't give consent properly in a relationship where there's a power imbalance."As for Hinde, she'll be able to return to nursing in a year's time, but rest assured, there'll be more like her: high on power, fueled by fantasy, and in a complex emotional web that will endlessly make for red-top newspaper fodder.Follow Salma on Twitter