A mother caring for her son who was bashed and "left for dead" in Wellington prison has accused Corrective Services New South Wales of being "callous and having no regard for his life or wellbeing".
At 65, nurse Cathy Irvine has put off retirement and is working night shifts to help provide around-the-clock care in her home for her 36-year-old son Robin Irvine.
"He cannot stand or walk without the aid of a mechanic lifter or people helping him," she said.
Ms Irvine told the ABC he had difficulty speaking, swallowing and seeing.
The sustained assault in his cell, included being "stomped on" by a fellow inmate and resulted in extensive brain bleeds requiring surgery, fractured eye sockets, a broken nose. His mother said "it looked like he suffered a stroke at the same time".
Ms Irvine told the ABC no help came for an hour-and-a-half.
In 2015 Mr Irvine was sentenced to nine months' jail for negligent driving after he crashed into a cyclist, causing the woman's death.
He was refused bail pending an appeal and within a week-and-a-half in prison he was assaulted by a prisoner with a violent criminal history.
"No-one expected Robin to live for at least the first couple of weeks, he was so badly brain damaged," Ms Irvine said.
Injured man given maximum compensation of $5k
She said that while her son was in intensive care, nurses had to convince Corrective Services officers not to handcuff him to the bed and guards were on the door.
"They were more vigilant when he was in hospital, than when he was in prison," she said.
Ms Irvine said she had been ignored by Corrective Services NSW but received some help from the National Disability Insurance Scheme [NDIS].
"Robin was just recently given the maximum in victims compensation which is all of $5,000," she said.
The family's solicitor, John Anthony, said Mr Irvine was lucky to have a supportive family.
"Imagine if he didn't have a supportive family, where would he be now, in an institution ? It's very sad," he said.
"Maybe they just need to spend a little more at Corrective Services and have more staff and separate those awaiting on an appeal from violent offenders who are in custody.
"One-person cells were expanded to two-person cells and of those some have three persons, and given the amount of time that inmates are confined within those cells, you can imagine the tensions that would arise."
'If we don't go for compensation, Robin will have no hope'
Ms Irvine is suing Corrective Services to fund her son's future care.
The ABC has spoken to another mother left to care for her son in his 20s. He has a permanent brain injury after also being assaulted in Wellington Correctional Centre.
Director of the Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research Don Weatherburn told the ABC from 2013 to 2017, the number of assaults in NSW prisons had risen by 63 per cent.
In 2015-2016, 81 prisoners were assaulted.
"The rate of growth in prison has been so vast it's been impossible to build prisons to keep up with the numbers and a result we've got more people per cell. That tends to create tension," Dr Weatherburn said.
Corrective Services would not comment specifically on Mr Irvine's case but in a statement to the ABC said it "... regrets every assault that occurs in prisons. Our staff are trained and equipped to prevent violence, but on occasion it still occurs".
"Better policing and tougher sentencing has resulted in an unprecedented surge in inmate numbers. The NSW Government is investing $3.8 billion over four years to create additional capacity within the prison system and hire new staff to manage the increasing inmate population," it said.
Inspector of Custodial Sentences Fiona Rafter said her office "... continues to recognise overcrowding as the major challenge for the adult correctional system in NSW".
