<p>Think Cracker; think offender profiling; think the real CSI.<br /><br />People in the Isle of Man will have the chance to hear first-hand from a “Cracker” style expert, when he seeks answers as he confronts two men, who between them have served over 50 years in prison for serious violent crime, including murder.</p><p>Professor David Wilson is the country’s leading criminologist and an expert on murder and serial murder. His books and television series, including Banged Up and Serial Killers Behind Bars, give benchmark insights into the minds of those who present the greatest danger to society. Chances are when there is a particularly heinous murder somewhere in the country that is baffling the police it will be Professor Wilson who is asked to offer help and advice. </p><p>Noel “Razor” Smith is a reformed serial armed bank robber who served a total of 33 years inside some of the UK’s most secure prisons. Unable to read or write when he entered prison, self-taught Smith, once labelled “Public Enemy Number One” by the police found redemption through writing. His best-selling autobiography A Few Kind Words and a Loaded Gun charts how and why he turned his life around, and its sequel A Rusty Gun explains how therapy enabled him to come to terms with his past and make the changes he had to make to finally live a crime free life among civilised society. </p><p>Erwin James is an acclaimed Guardian columnist and author who served twenty years of a life sentence in prison for murder. Following a childhood described as “brutal and rootless” by a prison psychologist following the death of his mother when he was 7 his dysfunctional life journey eventually led him to the Number 1 Court at the Old Bailey facing two murder charges. James entered prison an ill-educated, inarticulate brute, only to emerge twenty years later an arts graduate with a successful professional writing career, whose two books on prison life A Life Inside and The Home Stretch have become classics of the genre. </p><p>The evening is guided by Professor Wilson, posing probing and challenging questions. What causes crime? Are there some people who are just born bad? Is rehabilitation an insult to victims? He will also field questions from the audience. </p><p>John Wannenburgh of the IoM Sporting and Dining Club:</p><p>“This will be a great evening’s entertainment, albeit with a very different, but compelling theme. To hear a leading criminologist in action, presents a thought provoking opportunity for anyone who has a social conscience, and should make for a fascinating evening.”</p><p>The Sporting & Dining Club is also presenting “An Evening with Paddy Ashdown” on Wednesday 27 March, sponsored by Lloyds Banking Group.</p><p>The event will take place on Thursday 19th September 2013 at the Gaiety Theatre in Douglas, with tickets from ?15. Doors 7pm, Starts 7.30pm.</p><p>Tickets available online <br />Tickets are available in person from the Sea Terminal or Villa Marina reception, or by telephone 6000555. <br />Online <a href="http://www.gov.im/villagaiety/ViewNews.gov?page=lib/news/villagaiety/crimenightwithpr.xml&menuid=11570">http://www.gov.im/villagaiety/ViewNews.gov?page=lib/news/villagaiety/crimenightwithpr.xml&menuid=11570</a> <br /></p>
Tuesday 29th, January 2013 11:04pm.
