A 70-year-old man serving a life sentence who expected to die in prison fulfilled the prophecy by his own hand in such an unusual manner it has been suppressed by the coroner.
Donald Gisborne was serving a life sentence at Whanganui Prison for killing his Thai-born wife, Kanok-On Gisborne, in 2008 at their home in Kawerau.
He was transferred from Waikeria Prison to the low-medium security Te Moenga Unit at Whanganui in July 2010.
On the morning of January 8, 2011, he was found dead, curled in the foetal position on the floor of his cell. The manner of his death, by electrocution, was so unusual Coroner Tim Scott has suppressed details of how he killed himself so as not to publicise a lesser-known method.
At the end of the hearing into Gisborne's death, he asked the Department of Corrections' lawyers to file submissions or evidence relating to the feasibility of reducing potential danger from electrical outlets without jeopardising prison management and relative inmate comfort.
In his report, Coroner Scott noted that Gisborne was alone, saw no likelihood of ever leaving prison, and had difficulty coming to terms with his offending.
He had no recorded prison visits from family or anyone else.
Coroner Scott said he found it sad Gisborne had no visitors, but considered it unsurprising and meant no criticism toward his family.
Gisborne's prison record referred to him being unable to recall his crime, believing he was poorly represented by his lawyers, and that his crime was a side-effect of a prescription drug.
He had expressed suicidal intentions previously, but had made no attempt to take his own life and there had been no recent talk of suicide around his time of death.
He had been asked the night before he died if he was okay, to which he said he was.
The day before he died, Gisborne got into an argument with another inmate and was given a firm telling off by a senior prison officer.
The incident was the only unusual event leading up to Gisborne's death and, combined with his failure to come to terms with his offence, lack of outside support and the fact that it was his first prison sentence and he anticipated that he would not be released within his natural lifetime, may have been the final thing that triggered the idea in him to take his own life, Coroner Scott said.
As a result of Coroner Scott's request for more information about electrical systems in the prison, the department's technical advisers noted that Gisborne's cell was one of at least 40 per cent of all cells in the New Zealand prison system have a circuit breaker electrical system.
It was unclear if this was tripped by his suicide, but was thought not to have been because the circuit breaker did not appear to have reset. However, Gisborne had some electronic expertise and could have defeated the system.
The department had an ongoing programme to control future electric risk by installing residual current device (RCD) protected circuits with all new, upgrading or renewal work, and to survey current distribution circuit stock with a view to installing RCD protected circuits.