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Date: April 30, 2024 Tue
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Results for prison conditions
53 results foundAuthor: Wetton, Charlotte Title: Women in Prison: A Review of the Conditions in Member States of the Council of Europe Summary: This report presents data on the conditions of women in prison in the members states of the Council of Europe. The report gives the results and makes recommendations to the European institutions and their members on ways in which conditions for women in prison can be improved. A second part of this report comprises country reports which look in detail at the situation for women in thirteen Council of Europe member states: Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Norway, Romania, Russia, Scotland, Sweden, and the United Kingdom (England and Wales). Details: Brussels, Belgium: Quaker Council for European Affairs, 2007. 112p., app. Source: Year: 2007 Country: Europe URL: Shelf Number: 116726 Keywords: Female Inmates (Europe)Imprisonment (Women)Prison Conditions |
Author: Seattle University School of Law. International Human Rights Clinic Title: Voices from Detention: A Report on Human Rights Violations at the Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma, Washington Summary: This study examined the conditions at the Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma, Washington. It found violations of international human rights law, the Constitution and the Refugee Convention, including lack of due process, mistreatment of detainees (including strip searches), insufficient food and medical care and language barriers, among others. Details: Seattle: International Human Rights Clinic, Seattle University School of Law, 2008. 80p. Source: Internet Resource Year: 2008 Country: United States URL: Shelf Number: 118300 Keywords: Due ProcessHuman Rights ViolationsIllegal AliensImmigrant DetentionImmigrantsPrison Conditions |
Author: Prison Reform International Title: Life Imprisonment and Conditions of Serving the Sentence in the South Caucasus Countries Summary: This report examines the situation of lifetime prisoners in South Caucasus countries. In South Caucasus countries where the criminal justice institutions are in continuous development and the resources are far from comparable with European countries, the difficulties associated with lifetime prisoner's prison conditions and rights are serious ones. It has been reported by different international organizations that the prison conditions in the region are below international standards. The observations state that the lifetime prisoners are threateneed by the lack of possibilities to exercise their rights and possibilities for rehabilitative and other activities during imprisonment are missing as well. The main concerns are about the poor prison conditions in general, but lack of rehabilitation and lack of possibilities for contacts with the outside world are common as well. Details: Tbilisi, Georgia: PRI South Caucasus Office, 2009. 122p. Source: Internet Resource; Project Global action to Abolish the Death Penalty Year: 2009 Country: Europe URL: Shelf Number: 118672 Keywords: Life SentencePrison ConditionsPrisoners |
Author: Northern Ireland. Criminal Justice Inspection Title: Report of an Announced Inspection of Magilligan Prison: 29 March - 2 April 2010 Summary: This report presents the findings of a full announced inspection of Magilligan prison at the end of March 2010, at which time the prison held some 450 low and medium risk prisoners. Since our last inspection in 2006, when we criticised – amongst other things – some inadequate and unsuitable facilities, two new living units and a new health care building had opened. These physical changes had been complemented by a number of improvements to other areas of the prison. However, many of these developments needed to be consolidated and better integrated, and the entire regime was being adversely affected by ongoing industrial relations problems. Safety had improved, with few reported incidents of violence and most prisoners reporting that they felt safe. However, some prisoners still said they had been victimised, particularly because of their offence, and there was scope for further work to reduce bullying and support the vulnerable. Care for those at risk of self-harm was good. The segregation unit operated well and staff rarely had to resort to the use of force, although recording practices were poor. Security was now more proportionate, with a more appropriate emphasis on dynamic security, but further improvements were required, including a need to combat drug use more thoughtfully and effectively. The new buildings were a significant improvement but the physical environment remained marred by oppressive fencing and the continued use of the H-blocks which were difficult to supervise and had poor sanitary facilities. There was still no personal officer scheme, but relationships between staff and prisoners were generally positive. Diversity arrangements were underdeveloped and needed to be more comprehensive, although progress had been made in monitoring outcomes by religion and addressing issues that arose. The chaplaincy provided an effective service but still without a dedicated area in the prison for faith activities. In an important and progressive development since our last inspection, both the commissioning and delivery of prison healthcare had become NHS responsibilities. While most services were good, there was insufficient primary mental health provision to meet the evident need. This illustrated the necessity of conducting regular and comprehensive health care needs analyses to ensure that services kept abreast of the health problems in the prison population. At the time of the inspection, industrial action by the Northern Ireland Prison Officers’ Association (POA) was seriously limiting prisoners’ time out of cell and access to purposeful activity. Nevertheless, records suggested provision was usually reasonable, with enough activity places for the population. However, a more strategic approach to learning and skills was needed to ensure a coherent approach to meeting the needs of prisoners and to make sure that capacity and attendance were maximised. Some restrictive agreements with the POA also meant that not all potential education and training places could be used, which was a waste of valuable resources. Details: Belfast: Criminal Justice Inspection Northern Ireland, 2010. 130p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 13, 2010 at: http://www.cjini.org/CJNI/files/1a/1af49281-b68c-4e0a-9cda-96a531dea3bd.pdf Year: 2010 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://www.cjini.org/CJNI/files/1a/1af49281-b68c-4e0a-9cda-96a531dea3bd.pdf Shelf Number: 119788 Keywords: Medical Care, InmatesMental Health, InmatesPrison AdministrationPrison ConditionsPrisons (Northern Ireland) |
Author: Victoria. Ombudsman Title: Whistleblowers Protection Act 2001: Investigation into Conditions at the Melbourne Youth Justice Precinct Summary: This report investigates the Melbourne Youth Justice Centre and the Melbourne Youth Residential Centre at Parkville that draws conclusions about: unacceptable conditions; improper conduct; inadequate quality of care; and non‐compliance with operational and legislative provisions, including human rights responsibilities and working with children checks. The report makes 27 recommendations, all of which have been accepted by the Department of Human Services. Details: Melbourne: Victorian Government Printer, 2010. 97p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 14, 2010 at: http://www.ombudsman.vic.gov.au/resources/documents/Investigation_into_conditions_at_the_Melbourne_Youth_Justice_Precinct_Oct_20101.pdf Year: 2010 Country: Australia URL: http://www.ombudsman.vic.gov.au/resources/documents/Investigation_into_conditions_at_the_Melbourne_Youth_Justice_Precinct_Oct_20101.pdf Shelf Number: 119961 Keywords: Corrections OfficersJuvenile CorrectionsJuvenile Detention FacilitiesPrison AdministrationPrison ConditionsPrison Contraband |
Author: Barry, Colette Title: Death in Irish Prisons: An Examination of the Causes of Deaths and the Compliance of Investigations with the European Convention on Human Rights Summary: Death is a tragic and unfortunately unavoidable aspect of life in a prison. The death of a prisoner raises significant questions in relation to the conditions of confinement and the conduct of the prison authorities. Robust investigations into these deaths can enhance accountability by shedding light on deficits in both institutional and systemic practices, as well as providing families of the deceased with a sense of closure. In Ireland, the investigative responses to prison deaths are neither robust, nor do they allow for significant scrutiny of the circumstances surrounding the death. The causes of deaths in custody and the compatibility of the ensuing investigations with international standards have not been subjected to empirical analysis in this jurisdiction. The current study attempts to address this. Using data collected from coronial inquest files in the Dublin City Coroner’s district, the causes of prisoners’ deaths were subjected to a rigorous thematic analysis. The efficacy of the inquest process and its compliance with Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights were also examined. This study exposes a myriad of issues relating to both the causes of deaths and the resulting investigations. The findings highlight issues such as appropriate drug treatment strategies, deficits in medical practices, and the poor provision for family participation at the inquest proceedings. Most importantly, the research findings show that prisoners’ deaths are caused by a variety of factors, and as such there can be no ‘one size fits all’ approach to the problems. Details: Dublin: Dublin Institute of Technology, 2011. 60p. Source: Internet Resource: Masters Dissertation: Accessed September 17, 2012 at: http://arrow.dit.ie/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1026&context=aaschssldis Year: 2011 Country: Ireland URL: http://arrow.dit.ie/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1026&context=aaschssldis Shelf Number: 126357 Keywords: Deaths in CustodyHuman RightsPrison ConditionsPrisons (Ireland) |
Author: Amnesty International Title: The Edge of Endurance: Prison Conditions in California's Security Housing Units Summary: More than 3,000 prisoners in California are held in high security isolation units known as Security Housing Units (SHUs), where they are confined for at least 22 and a half hours a day in single or double cells, with no work or meaningful rehabilitation programs or group activities of any kind. Over 1,000 are held in the SHU at Pelican Bay State Prison, a remote facility where most prisoners are confined alone in cells which have no windows to the outside or direct access to natural light. SHU prisoners are isolated both within prison and from meaningful contacts with the outside world: contact with correctional staff is kept to a minimum, and consultations with medical, mental health and other staff routinely take place behind barriers; all visits, including family and legal visits, are also non-contact, with prisoners separated from their visitors behind a glass screen. Under California regulations, the SHU is intended for prisoners whose conduct endangers the safety of others or the security of the institution. Around a third of the current population are serving fixed SHU terms of SHU confinement (ranging from a few months to several years) after being found guilty through the internal disciplinary system of specific offences while in custody. However, more than 2,000 prisoners are serving “indeterminate” (indefinite) SHU terms because they have been “validated” by the prison authorities as members or associates of prison gangs. According to figures provided by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) in 2011, more than 500 prisoners serving indeterminate SHU terms had spent ten or more years in the Pelican Bay SHU; of this number, more than 200 had spent over 15 years in the SHU and 78 more than 20 years. Many had been in the SHU since it opened in 1989, held in conditions of extreme isolation and environmental deprivation. No other US state is believed to have held so many prisoners for such long periods in indefinite isolation. The main route out of the SHU for prisoners with alleged gang connections has been to “debrief”, a process requiring them to provide information on other gang members which many decline to undertake because of the threat of retaliation. Although prisoners may also be released from the SHU if they have been “inactive” as a gang member or associate for six years, many prisoners have been held long beyond this period. Until now, these prisoners have had no means of leaving the SHU through their own positive behaviour or through participating in programs. Many prisoners have spent decades in isolation despite reportedly being free of any serious rule violations and - if they are serving a “term to life” sentence – without any means of earning parole. Prisoner advocates and others have criticized the gang validation process as unreliable and lacking adequate safeguards, allowing prisoners to be consigned to indefinite isolation without evidence of any specific illegal activity, or on the basis of tenuous gang associations, on evidence often provided by anonymous informants. In March 2012, the CDCR put forward proposals which, for the first time, would provide a “step-down program” (SDP) for prisoners serving indeterminate SHU terms, using what the department has called a “behaviour-based model” to enable them to earn their way back to the general prison population. Amnesty International welcomes in principle plans to provide a route out of isolation through prisoners’ own behaviour. However, the SDP – which would take place in four stages, each lasting a minimum of one-year – does not allow any group interaction for at least the first two years. No changes to the physical conditions of confinement are proposed for the Pelican Bay SHU, where prisoners would spend at least two years in the same isolated conditions of cellular confinement as they are now. Prisoners could still be held in indefinite isolation if they fail to meet the criteria for the SDP. In continuing to confine prisoners in prolonged isolation – albeit with shorter minimum terms than under the present system – California would still fall short of international law and standards for humane treatment and the prohibition of torture and other ill-treatment. Amnesty International does not seek to minimize the challenges faced by prison administrators in dealing with prison gangs and individuals who are a threat to institutional security and recognizes that it may sometimes be necessary to segregate prisoners for disciplinary or security purposes. However, all measures must be consistent with states’ obligation under international law and standards to treat all prisoners humanely. In recognition of the negative effects of such treatment, international and regional human rights bodies and experts have called on states to limit their use of solitary confinement, so that it is imposed only in exceptional circumstances for as short a period as possible. As described below, Amnesty International considers that the conditions of isolation and other deprivations imposed on prisoners in California’s SHU units breach international standards on humane treatment. The cumulative effects of such conditions, particularly when imposed for prolonged or indefinite periods, and the severe environmental deprivation in Pelican Bay SHU, in particular, amounts to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, in violation of international law. Amnesty International’s recommendations to the California authorities, developed in more detail at the end of the report, include: Limiting the use of isolation in a SHU or similar environment so that is it imposed only as a last resort in the case of prisoners whose behaviour constitutes a severe and ongoing threat to the safety of others or the security of the institution. Improving conditions for all prisoners held in SHUs, including better exercise provision and an opportunity for more human contact for prisoners, even at the most restrictive custody levels. Allowing SHU prisoners to make regular phone calls to their families. Reducing the length of the Step down Program and providing meaningful access to programs where prisoners have an opportunity for some group contact and interaction with others at an earlier stage. Immediate removal from isolation of prisoners who have already spent years in the SHU under an indeterminate assignment. Details: London: Amnesty International, 2012. 58p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed December 7, 2012 at: http://www.amnestyusa.org/sites/default/files/california_solitary_confinement_report_final.pdf Year: 2012 Country: United States URL: http://www.amnestyusa.org/sites/default/files/california_solitary_confinement_report_final.pdf Shelf Number: 127135 Keywords: Pelican Bay State PrisonPrison ConditionsPrisonersPrisons (California, U.S.)Solitary Confinement |
Author: Kerness, Bonnie, ed. Title: Torture in United States Prisons: Evidence of Human Rights Violations. 2nd Edition Summary: When prison doors close behind men and women they become our prisoners. If we are their family and friends, we may visit, write, call, and advocate on their behalf. If they are anonymous, we will likely dismiss them with the thought, “they broke the law—that was their choice— and now they must pay the penalty.” And we proceed about our daily lives without looking over the prison wall. It is time we did just that; prisons reflect the societies that create them. International treaties, conventions, and declarations provide basic guidelines for the treatment of prisoners. These guidelines are often ignored by the U.S. criminal justice system. Meanwhile, the United States continues to criticize other countries for violations of prisoners’ human rights. “Torture in United States Prisons” (Second Edition) provides primary evidence of such human rights violations. Its goal is to cast light on the torture and abuse of prisoners. For over three decades, the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) has spoken out on behalf of prisoners. Since 1975 AFSC has operated a Criminal Justice Program in Newark, New Jersey. During that time AFSC has received thousands of calls and letters of testimony of an increasingly disturbing nature from prisoners and their families about conditions in prison. The list of abuses is long and horrifying: use of stun guns and restraint devices, rape, prison chain gangs, inadequate medical care, isolation, “no touch torture” (lights on 24/7, deliberately startling sounds, menacing dogs), use of force, and other egregious violations of international human rights standards, including the Convention Against Torture, ratified by the United States in 1994. The concepts of human rights law must be upheld by the United States police, court, and prison justice systems. One way to foster this change is for prisoners, their families and loved ones, and prisoner rights advocates to weave the language of international standards and treaties into their arguments for humane prison conditions and treatment of prisoners. To that end, this document presents prisoners’ testimonies in five sections—Isolation, Health and Medical Services and Conditions, Use of Force and Devices of Torture, Racism, and Women in Prison—and introduces each section with a relevant international standard as stipulated in international human rights agreements. For example, Article 1 of the United Nations Convention Against Torture prohibits “physical or mental pain and suffering, inflicted to punish, coerce or discriminate for any reason.” Yet practices such as the indefinite use of shackles and other mechanical restraints, the administration of dangerous chemical treatments, and the practice of extended isolation continue in the United States. The practice of extended isolation in particular is of growing concern to many prison activists, both inside and outside the walls. The reports that come to AFSC about prisoners subjected to devices of torture have largely been from isolation cells—often called management control units or special management units—in which there are few witnesses. Ojore Lutalo is one such prisoner, and you can find his full story in the Appendix. There are thousands of similar stories as well, some of which are included here. Details: Newark, NJ: American Friends Service Committee, Northeast Region, Healing Justice Program, 2011. 100p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 22, 2013 at: http://afsc.org/sites/afsc.civicactions.net/files/documents/torture_in_us_prisons.pdf Year: 2011 Country: United States URL: http://afsc.org/sites/afsc.civicactions.net/files/documents/torture_in_us_prisons.pdf Shelf Number: 128082 Keywords: Human Rights ViolationsIsolationPrison ConditionsPrisonersPrisoners' Rights (U.S.)Solitary ConfinementTorture |
Author: Samuels, Julie Title: Stemming the Tide: Strategies to Reduce the Growth and Cut the Cost of the Federal Prison System Summary: The federal prison population has escalated from under 25,000 inmates in 1980 to over 219,000 today. This growth has come at great expense to taxpayers and other important fiscal priorities. As policymakers consider the array of options to stem the tide of inmates, our research concludes that a combination of strategies is the best way to make a real impact. In this report, we evaluate various policy options for cutting the size and costs of the burgeoning federal prison system. The short explanation for the rapid prison population growth is that more people are sentenced to prison and for longer terms. In fiscal year (FY) 2011, more than 90 percent of convicted federal offenders were sentenced to prison, while about 10 percent got probation. By comparison, in 1986, only 50 percent received a prison sentence, over 37 percent received probation, and most of the remainder received a fine. Though the number of inmates sentenced for immigration crimes has also risen, long drug sentences are the main driver of the population's unsustainable growth. In 2011, drug trafficking sentences averaged 74 months, though they have been falling since 2008. Mandatory minimums have kept even nonviolent drug offenders behind bars for a long time. The average federal prison sentence in 2011 was 52 months, generally higher than prison sentences at the state level for similar crime types. This difference is magnified by the fact that, at the federal level, all offenders must serve at least 87 percent of their sentences, while, at the state level, most serve a lower percentage and nonviolent offenders often serve less than 50 percent of their time. Federal prisons are currently operating at between 35 and 40 percent above their rated capacity; this overcrowding is greater in high-security facilities, which, in FY 2012, were operating at 51 percent over capacity, and medium-security facilities, which were operating at 47 percent over capacity. In both medium- and high-security facilities, most inmates have histories of violence. This crowding is projected to continue to grow, with the federal prison system over capacity by at least 50,000 inmates each year through 2020. Absent any new policy changes (including bringing new prisons online), we estimate overcrowding to rise to 55 percent by 2023. Prison staffing has not kept up with population growth. The ratio of inmates to staff has grown from four to one in FY 2000 to a projected five to one in FY 2014. The US Bureau of Prisons (BOP) has found that high inmate-to-staff ratios are closely connected to increases in serious assaults. Overcrowding makes it hard to provide programs designed to keep inmates from re-offending, and it strains essential prison infrastructure, such as plumbing, through overuse. Further, the average cost of keeping an inmate behind bars is $29,000 a year. Most of these costs are fixed, so one inmate more (or less) is a difference of $10,363. The federal prison system's budget request for FY 2014 is $6.9 billion, which is more than a quarter of the Department of Justice's (DOJ's) budget. That share is projected to grow, taking resources away from other public safety priorities. Options for reform include changes that reduce the number of people entering the BOP and their sentence length (front-end options) and changes that can lead to early release or transfer to community corrections for people already in BOP custody (back-end options). The estimated impact of each of the options described below is detailed in tables ES.1 and ES.2. The underlying assumptions and methodology for the estimates are summarized in the Methodology section at the end of this report and presented in more detail in Appendix B (available online: http://www.urban.org/publications/412932.html). The cost estimates for dollars saved are based on the average marginal cost of imprisoning one inmate for one year; they do not reflect cost savings that could accrue from averted prison construction or prison closures, including staffing changes or other structural changes within the BOP. Details: Washington, DC: Urban Institute, 2013. 63p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed November 7, 2013 at: http://www.urban.org/UploadedPDF/412932-stemming-the-tide.pdf Year: 2013 Country: United States URL: http://www.urban.org/UploadedPDF/412932-stemming-the-tide.pdf Shelf Number: 131604 Keywords: Federal PrisonsPrison ConditionsPrison OvercrowdingPrisons (U.S.) |
Author: University of Texas School of Law. Human Rights Clinic Title: Deadly Heat in Texas Prisons Summary: The Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) is currently violating the human and constitutional rights of inmates in Texas by exposing them to dangerously high temperatures and extreme heat conditions. Extreme heat in TDCJ-run correctional facilities has long caused heat-related injuries and deaths of inmates during the hot Texas summers. Since 2007, at least fourteen inmates incarcerated in various TDCJ facilities across the state of Texas have died from extreme heat exposure while imprisoned. Many of these inmates had preexisting health conditions or were taking medications that rendered them heat-sensitive, yet properly cooled living areas were not provided to them by the TDCJ. These fourteen victims, along with other TDCJ prisoners and even TDCJ personnel, were and continue to be exposed to dangerously high heat levels on a regular basis. This practice violates individuals' human rights, particularly the rights to health, life, physical integrity, and dignity. In spite of repeated, serious, and egregious incidents, the TDCJ has yet to implement measures that effectively mitigate heat-related injury in inmate housing. While the TDCJ has installed fans and allowed for ventilation in inmate living areas, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has proven these measures to be ineffective in preventing heat-related injuries in very hot and humid conditions, such as those present in TDCJ facilities. Despite these findings, TDCJ facilities largely do not provide air conditioning to the living areas of the general inmate population, many of whom are serving time for non-violent offenses. At the same time, the TDCJ has spent money on air conditioning for its warden offices and for its armories. Additionally, the TDCJ has not promulgated any maximum temperature policies for inmate housing, even though the Texas Commission on Jail Standards and numerous other state departments of corrections across the country have done so. As a result, TDCJ inmates continue to suffer through Texas summers, and are forced to risk heatstroke and other heat-related injuries while incarcerated with the TDCJ. This Report, prepared by the Human Rights Clinic of the University of Texas School of Law, concludes that current conditions in TDCJ facilities constitute a violation of Texas's duty to guarantee the rights to health, life, physical integrity, and dignity of detainees, as well as its duty to prevent inhuman or degrading treatment of its inmates. These duties have been affirmed by countless human rights bodies and instruments such as the United Nations Human Rights Committee, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, and the American Declaration on the Rights and Duties of Man, to mention just a few. Many international human rights decisions have found that extreme heat similar to situations in Texas contributes to a finding of inhuman or degrading prison conditions. The TDCJ's continued incarceration of inmates in extreme heat conditions violates its duties to inmates, and constitutes inhumane treatment of such prisoners in violation of international human rights standards. The Human Rights Clinic concludes that current extreme heat conditions in TDCJ facilities also violate inmates' constitutional right to be free from cruel and unusual punishment. The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has recognized time and again that extreme heat in prisons can constitute a violation of inmates' Eighth Amendment rights. In a 2012 case, a 63 year old Texas prisoner presented with a preexisting blood pressure condition, and was taking medication that would affect his body's ability to regulate temperature. The court decided that a reasonable jury could conclude that a failure to provide air conditioning, among other things, to an individual with these conditions was a violation of the prisoner's constitutional rights. Most recently, the Middle District of Louisiana issued a decision in 2013 condemning the extreme heat conditions in a Louisiana prison facility similar to those conditions present in TDCJ facilities as a violation of the Constitution. There is therefore clear and recent precedent for denouncing the hot conditions in TDCJ facilities as violating the guarantees and rights of inmates under the Eighth Amendment. Details: Austin, TX: University of Texas School of Law, Human Rights Clinic, 2014. 40p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 17, 2014 at: http://www.utexas.edu/law/clinics/humanrights/docs/HRC_EH_Report_4-7-14_FINAL.pdf Year: 2014 Country: United States URL: http://www.utexas.edu/law/clinics/humanrights/docs/HRC_EH_Report_4-7-14_FINAL.pdf Shelf Number: 132378 Keywords: Health CareHuman Rights ViolationsHumane TreatmentInmatesPrison ConditionsPrisoner HealthPrisoners (Texas)Prisoners Rights |
Author: Southern Poverty Law Center Title: Cruel Confinement: Abuse, Discrimination and Death Within Alabama's Prisons Summary: An investigation by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) and Alabama Disabilities Advocacy Program (ADAP) has found that for many people incarcerated in Alabama's state prisons, a sentence is more than a loss of freedom. Prisoners, including those with disabilities and serious physical and mental illnesses, are condemned to penitentiaries where systemic indifference, discrimination and dangerous - even life-threatening - conditions are the norm. Details: Montgomery, AL: Southern Poverty Law Center, 2014. 24p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed June 17, 2014 at: http://www.adap.net/Alabama%20Prison%20Report_final.pdf Year: 2014 Country: United States URL: http://www.adap.net/Alabama%20Prison%20Report_final.pdf Shelf Number: 132495 Keywords: DisabilitiesHealth CareMentally Ill OffendersPrison AdministrationPrison ConditionsPrisoners |
Author: American Civil Liberties Union Title: Warehoused and Forgotten: Immigrants Trapped in Our Shadow Private Prison System Summary: In rural Texas, 3,000 men are locked inside a "tent city," sleeping in bunk beds spaced only a few feet apart. The tents are crawling with insects and the smell of broken, overflowing toilets. This is Willacy County Correctional Center: a physical symbol of everything that is wrong with enriching the private prison industry and criminalizing immigration. More than 25,000 low-security non-U.S. citizens languish at thirteen private prisons like Willacy under Criminal Alien Requirement (CAR) contracts. For years, these for-profit prisons have been able to operate in the shadows, effectively free from public scrutiny. That ends now. Our report documents the ACLU's multi-year investigation into the five CAR facilities in Texas. We uncovered evidence of shocking abuse and mistreatment, families torn apart, and the excessive use of solitary confinement. The second-class prisoners in CAR facilities are trapped at the intersection of three disturbing trends: the national mass incarceration crisis, prison privatization, and the criminalization of immigration. This is the story of how and why things have gotten so bad. Details: New York: ACLU, 2014. 104p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed June 17, 2014 at: https://www.aclu.org/sites/default/files/assets/060614-aclu-car-reportonline.pdf Year: 2014 Country: United States URL: https://www.aclu.org/sites/default/files/assets/060614-aclu-car-reportonline.pdf Shelf Number: 132496 Keywords: Illegal ImmigrantsImmigrant DetentionPrison ConditionsPrivate PrisonsPrivatizationSolitary ConfinementUndocumented Immigrants |
Author: Northern Ireland Criminal Justice Inspection Title: The Safety of Prisoners held by the Northern Ireland Prison Service - 22 October 2014 Summary: The safety of prisoners is not just about preventing deaths in custody. It is a significant issue in the prison setting and vulnerable individuals need to be protected and supported in a therapeutic environment. Effective strategies are required to address the inter-linked areas of suicide and self-harm, the availability of illicit and prescription drugs, bullying, and the access to healthcare. This inspection found that the NIPS and the SEHSCT needed to work closely together to strengthen the strategic approach to, and the operational management of, these areas to improve safety and outcomes for prisoners. Northern Ireland's prisons house a complex mix of prisoners. The health profile of prisoners, the high levels of mental ill-health, personality disorder, drug and alcohol addiction, the proportion of prisoners on medication, and in numerous cases a combination of these factors, all create a concentration of need within the prison establishments. This requires a high degree of communication, co-ordination and joint action between the NIPS and the SEHSCT to deliver the appropriate levels of prisoner care, safety and healthcare provision. Inspectors would wish to comment on the work of prison officers and healthcare staff who, on a daily basis, deal with some very difficult and damaged individuals. Many caring interactions were witnessed with the most vulnerable prisoners, and Inspectors are aware of a number of occasions where prison and healthcare staff acted quickly and decisively to save the lives of prisoners in critical and potentially life-threatening situations. The procedures to protect and support prisoners at risk of suicide or self-harm are governed through the Supporting Prisoners at Risk (SPAR) process and an associated safer custody meeting structure. The report highlights concerns about the management and implementation of safer custody at therapeutic arrangements for the most vulnerable prisoners are managed by the NIPS and the SEHSCT. Bullying is a significant issue in the prison environment. It can be due to a number of factors including drugs and may be offence-related. Bullying and anti-social behaviour can take a variety of forms, much can be subtle and most is unreported. Many prisoners lack confidence in the investigation process. It is the view of Inspectors that the strategy needs to be reviewed to more effectively challenge bullying, to implement a robust process to investigate allegations and reported incidents, to address under-reporting, and increase confidence in the system. The quantity and availability of drugs within prisons is concerning. Drugs are a high value currency in prisons. They have been responsible for a number of deaths in custody and other serious incidents, and are a cause of a significant proportion of the bullying which takes place. This is true both for illicit and prescription drugs. The NIPS is in the unenviable position of being powerless to totally prevent illicit drugs entering prisons until the development of search technology which allows the safe and effective detection of drugs which have been swallowed or secreted within a body cavity. A recent initiative with the police at Maghaberry Prison has had success detecting smuggled drugs. This inspection report highlights that more needs to be done to address this issue, and recommends that the NIPS, in conjunction with the SEHSCT, should review the strategy to more effectively address areas of supply reduction, demand reduction and throughcare. The report makes comment about the prescribing and management of medicines. It found that these areas needed to be reviewed to take account of the risk-assessment process for prisoners' in-possession medications; the control of medications to prevent diversion; the supervised-swallow arrangements for benzodiazepine stabilisation or withdrawal; and the recording and use of the SEHSCT's management information. The complexity and health needs of the prison population demand a co-ordinated response from the two principal organisations responsible for prisoner safety and care. The inspection found that the newly-introduced formal governance structures between the NIPS and the SEHSCT were effective at the more senior levels, but communication and joint-working at landing-level needed to be developed to increase effectiveness and improve outcomes for prisoners. Details: Belfast: Criminal Justice Inspection Northern Ireland, 2014. 57p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 27, 2014 at: http://www.cjini.org/CJNI/files/67/677ac123-4a48-43c3-8170-c2c73d2282a4.pdf Year: 2014 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://www.cjini.org/CJNI/files/67/677ac123-4a48-43c3-8170-c2c73d2282a4.pdf Shelf Number: 133819 Keywords: Prison ConditionsPrisonersPrisons (Northern Ireland) |
Author: Prison Reform Trust Title: Bromley Briefings Prison Factfile: Autumn 2014 Summary: The facts and figures about the deteriorating state of our prisons and the poor state of people in them present a stark and disturbing picture. Strip away the political rhetoric, public relations gloss, and popular media misrepresentation. Discount the vested interest of those who profit from growing a market in incarceration. And you are left with a public prison service cut by $263million in three years, struggling to cope with the loss of more than 12,500 (28%) of its staff since 2010 and an ever-rising prison population. Warning signs reveal a prison system under unprecedented strain. There has been a sharp drop in individual prison performance and a marked increase in staff sickness levels. Detailed reports by HM Chief Inspector of Prisons chart a decline in standards and much reduced opportunities for rehabilitation and resettlement. Serious assaults, prisoner on prisoner and prisoner on officer, have risen in adult male establishments along with concerted indiscipline. Saddest of all, for the first time in over five years, the number of deaths by suicide has risen drastically. Every effort is being made to reverse what could so easily become a trend, rather than a spike, in numbers of tragic self-inflicted deaths. People in prison are particularly vulnerable. Compared to the general population where 6 percent have attempted suicide, 21 percent of men and 46 percent of women in prison have tried to kill themselves at some point in their lives. No one wants to see the painstaking gains made by safer custody staff and prisoners working as Samaritan listeners, improved support, training, first night arrangements, better assessment and management of risk, all swept away by reduced staffing levels, harsher regimes and increased uncertainty and hopelessness. The scale and driving pace of change in the justice system mean that mistakes are inevitably being made at every level. Prison population figures are being hastily recalculated upwards to reflect the rise in custodial remand and the increased numbers of sexual offenders sentenced by the courts as well as the unquantifiable impact of a Justice Secretary determined to promote 'proper punishment' and increased use of imprisonment. A rushed benchmarking process followed hard on the heels of the massive work and pay restructuring exercise curiously entitled 'fair and sustainable'. Outcomes are as yet untested because so many prisons are operating well below new minimal staffing levels due to a combination of unfilled vacancies and long term absence on sick leave. Too many establishments, particularly in London and the South East are reliant on a small army of reservists, former staff recruited from the North who will not know their prisoners in the jails into which they are parachuted, and remaining exhausted, governors and staff working excessive hours. From the outside it looks as if the prison service is taking a pounding in return for its disciplined approach and capacity to cope with adversity. From the inside, people in prison endure worsening conditions, less time out of cell, reduced contact with staff, new mean and petty restrictions and unjustified curbs on release on temporary license. Overcrowding means that people awaiting trial are mixed in with sentenced prisoners regardless of their innocent until proven guilty status and young people are held with adults notwithstanding their developmental stage. One young man told the Prison Reform Trust's advice and information service that "he is hearing voices and they are scaring him. He says he phones his mum sometimes when the voices are scaring him, but can't always get to phone when she's around." Prisons are less safe and less decent than they were even a year ago when we published our Autumn 2013 compendium of facts and figures. An incoming administration of government in May 2015 must not accept this deterioration in prison standards and conditions as the new normal. It should rebuild confidence in a vital public service and acknowledge painstaking gains made by staff and the responsible prisoners who manage to effect reform from within. It must turn its attention to the new demographic and changing needs of a rapidly ageing prison population. It must re-establish the defining principle that people are sent to prison as a punishment rather than for punishment. And from the wreckage it must create a just, fair and effective penal system. Details: London: Prison Reform Trust, 2014. 84p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 3, 2014 at: http://www.prisonreformtrust.org.uk/Portals/0/Documents/Bromley%20Briefings/Factfile%20Autumn%202014.pdf Year: 2014 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://www.prisonreformtrust.org.uk/Portals/0/Documents/Bromley%20Briefings/Factfile%20Autumn%202014.pdf Shelf Number: 133949 Keywords: Correctional InstitutionsInmatesPrison ConditionsPrison ReformPrisonersPrisons (U.K.) |
Author: Victoria. Ombudsman Title: Investigation into the rehabilitation and reintegration of prisoners in Victoria Summary: As this paper notes, Victoria's prison population has grown exponentially in the past few years, and with the impact of recent parole and sentencing reforms further growth is inevitable. In short, the prison population of 4,350 in June 2009 is projected to reach 7,169 in June 2015. The short and medium term consequences of that growth are equally inevitable. Although a massive building program has begun to increase bed capacity across the prison system, the expansion in prisoner numbers has resulted in backlogs in assessment, and affected the availability of programs and support both before and after release. It is also apparent that the reforms to the parole system are having unintended consequences - with the increasing difficulty in obtaining parole, an increasing number of prisoners are leaving without it, at the end of their full sentences, and therefore without the monitoring and reporting requirements that parole would impose. Nor will they necessarily have attended programs designed to reduce offending behaviour, one of the requirements for parole. It is not surprising, when a prison system is required to expand to the degree we are seeing in Victoria today, that the aspirations of the system as reflected in guidelines and procedures are not always met. This is in no way a reflection on the leadership of Corrections Victoria or the many dedicated people who work within the system. Details: Melbourne: Victorian Ombudsman, 2014. 31p. Source: Internet Resource: Discussion Paper: Accessed November 12, 2014 at: https://www.ombudsman.vic.gov.au/getattachment/280f4a06-5927-4221-bf64-d884ba6abaf9//publications/discussion-papers/discussion-paper-investigation-into-the-rehabilita.aspx Year: 2014 Country: Australia URL: https://www.ombudsman.vic.gov.au/getattachment/280f4a06-5927-4221-bf64-d884ba6abaf9//publications/discussion-papers/discussion-paper-investigation-into-the-rehabilita.aspx Shelf Number: 134064 Keywords: Correctional ProgramsPrison AdministrationPrison ConditionsPrisoner ReentryPrisonersPrisons (Australia)Rehabilitation |
Author: Amey, Abigail Title: Perspectives from inside: A report from HMP Grendon and HMP Barlinnie Summary: How far do UK prisons meet the best human rights standards as set out in the Council of Europe's European Prison Rules? This was the question the Centre for Crime and Justice Studies sought to answer as part of an eight country European Prison Observatory study funded by the European Union. In 2014 the Centre held events at two prisons, HMP Grendon and HMP Barlinnie, to discuss human rights in UK prisons. Prisoners, prison staff, voluntary sector providers and researchers took part in the events, although those noting down comments paid particular attention to the observations and opinions of those who were serving sentences. Each of the one day events at Grendon and Barlinnie were divided into three workshops focused on the themes of health; work and education; and security and resolving conflicts in prison. This report brings together the main issues raised during the workshops. The Centre would like to thank Ian Whitehead and Jamie Bennett, Governors of Barlinnie and Grendon respectively, as well as the staff from both prisons for helping to run the events. Details: London: Centre for Crime and Justice Studies, 2015. 26p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 19, 2015 at: http://www.crimeandjustice.org.uk/sites/crimeandjustice.org.uk/files/Perspectives%20from%20inside%20A%20report%20from%20HMP%20Grendon%20and%20HMP%20Barlinnie_0.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://www.crimeandjustice.org.uk/sites/crimeandjustice.org.uk/files/Perspectives%20from%20inside%20A%20report%20from%20HMP%20Grendon%20and%20HMP%20Barlinnie_0.pdf Shelf Number: 134983 Keywords: Correctional InstitutionsPrison AdministrationPrison ConditionsPrisons (U.K.) |
Author: Birckhead, Tamar R. Title: Children in Isolation: The Solitary Confinement of Youth Summary: Every day in prison settings around the world, young people are held in solitary confinement. They are alone for up to twenty-three hours a day in unfurnished cells. They do not see, have physical contact with, or speak to other people. The cells are small, often no larger than a horse's stable, and are illuminated by artificial light. Food is passed through narrow openings in heavy metal doors. These adolescents are denied education, counseling, and other services that are necessary for their growth, rehabilitation and well-being. If a parent were to confine her child under similar conditions, it would be abuse; yet when the government does so, often for weeks and months without due process, it is condoned. The paradox of solitary confinement is that it is not reserved only for the most culpable offenders. Juvenile and immigration detention centers as well as adult jails and prisons place adolescents in isolation to protect them - arguably - from each other or from adults; when they are perceived to be a threat; and to punish them for misconduct and rule-breaking. These rationales for the solitary confinement of youth fail to recognize, however, that prolonged isolation harms young people in ways that are often more profound than its impact on adults. This Article is the first to provide a comprehensive comparative analysis of the solitary confinement of youth in the United States and across the globe. The Introduction describes a typical scenario under which an adolescent may be subjected to isolation and explores why the practice persists today despite widespread condemnation. Part I reviews the literature detailing the varieties of harm that young people suffer as a result of solitary confinement. Part II discusses the rationales that correctional facilities use to justify solitary confinement and the prevalence of the practice internationally. Part III analyzes the history of solitary confinement and the legal response within the U.S. and the international community. Part IV addresses strategies for reform, including legislation, federal regulations, and litigation; the adoption of best practice standards; and the role of the juvenile defender and other advocates for incarcerated youth. The Appendix presents the author's original research documenting the current practices of the fifty-seven countries that legally condone or employ the solitary confinement of youth. Details: Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2014. 71p. Source: Internet Resource: UNC Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2512867 : Accessed March 20, 2015 at: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2512867 Year: 2014 Country: United States URL: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2512867 Shelf Number: 134988 Keywords: IsolationJuvenile DetentionJuvenile InmatesPrison ConditionsSolitary Confinement |
Author: Keehn, Emily Title: Evaluation of South Africa's Judicial Inspectorate for Correctional Services: Assessing its independence, effectiveness and community engagement Summary: The Judicial Inspectorate of Correctional Services (JICS) is a vital watchdog body that oversees South Africa's correctional system, mandated to inspect and report on the treatment of inmates. The correctional system faces many challenges such as overcrowding, high levels of HIV and Tuberculosis (TB), violence, and short staffing. The mass corruption and administrative struggles of the Department of Correctional Services (DCS) that were documented in the 2006 report by the Jali Commission of Inquiry highlighted that the situation was so dire that the Department was arguably no longer governable. Abuse and rights violations remain in South Africa's prisons even though DCS has improved its performance in some respects, for example, by providing access to anti-retrovirals and condoms. The McCallum case, in which Bradley McCallum and a group of inmates in St. Albans prison were physically and sexually assaulted in a manner amounting to torture, and the riots and deaths in Groenpunt and St. Alban's prisons in early 2013, are examples of serious mismanagement and abuses that continue. In order for JICS to be an effective oversight body, it requires institutional independence, and cooperation and support from other public entities, particularly from DCS. JICS currently faces challenges in both these areas. This paper analyses these and other challenges, and explores ways in which the independence and success of JICS can be strengthened, drawing lessons from similar watchdog bodies in South Africa and various other countries including the United Kingdom, Canada, Mauritius and Zambia. Certain features of these institutions might serve as examples for how JICS could potentially be restructured to strengthen its ability to carry out its mandate. Lastly, JICS has also been a critical bridge between an often non-transparent correctional system and community organisations, other stakeholders, and the general public. Considering DCS' positioning of inmate rehabilitation as a community responsibility, there is a distinct role for civil society and community organisations to play in supporting JICS. Hence this paper outlines ways in which stakeholders can lend capacity. Details: Cape Town, South Africa: Sonke Gender Justice Network, 2013. 42p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 20, 2015 at: http://www.genderjustice.org.za/publication/evaluation-of-south-africas-judicial-inspectorate-for-correctional-services/ Year: 2013 Country: South Africa URL: http://www.genderjustice.org.za/publication/evaluation-of-south-africas-judicial-inspectorate-for-correctional-services/ Shelf Number: 134995 Keywords: Correctional AdministrationCorrectional ProgramsCorrections (South Africa)Prison ConditionsPrisonersPrisons |
Author: Day, Mark Title: Strangeways 25 years on: achieving fairness and justice in our prisons Summary: Half of all men (49.7%) at HMP Manchester (Strangeways) are held two to a cell designed for one, a new Prison Reform Trust report reveals. Almost one quarter (23.6%) of people held across the prison estate in England and Wales are in so-called "doubled accommodation". Twenty five years after the Strangeways riot began on 1 April 1990, chronic overcrowding driven by a near doubling of the prison population over the past two decades continues to undermine standards of decency in prisons and restrict opportunities for rehabilitation, the report says. Half of people released from prison reoffend within one year of release; rising to 60% for those serving sentences of 12 months or less. When the Strangeways riot began the prison population was 45,000; today it stands at 84,000. England and Wales now has the highest rate of imprisonment in Western Europe, imprisoning 149 people for every 100,000. At the end of February 2015, 71 of the 118 prisons in England and Wales were overcrowded. Successive governments have poured taxpayers' money into expensive prison building programmes while closing smaller prisons and opening vast prisons in order to meet the demands of a growing prison population. More than four in 10 prisoners are now held in supersized jails of over 1,000 or more. HMP Manchester currently holds 1,114 men. The Strangeways prison riot, which left two men dead and 194 injured, was one of the most serious in British penal history. The riot took place against the background of a prison system which was perceived by prisoners as increasingly arbitrary and unfair and lacking in basic standards of decency. Lord Woolf's inquiry into the causes of the disturbances constituted a wide-ranging examination of conditions in Britain's prisons and represents the most important analysis of the penal system for the past 100 years. Lord Woolf, who now chairs the Prison Reform Trust, will deliver a lecture on the 25th anniversary of the Strangeways riot on 1 April 2015 at the Inner Temple in London. Lord Woolf's main recommendations and 204 proposals on matters of detail set out an agenda for comprehensive reform of the prison system. These included an end to "slopping out", whereby prisoners had to urinate and defecate in buckets in their cell; the appointment of a prisons ombudsman; and the introduction of telephones on landings so prisoners could keep in closer touch with their families. Lord Woolf also called for an enforceable limit on overcrowding and the division of prisons into smaller and more manageable secure units of 50-70 places, with no establishment exceeding 400 places. The report assesses progress made against Lord Woolf's 12 main recommendations for a more fair and just prison system. It says that many of the factors which contributed to the unrest have resurfaced today. Although the Prison Service is better able today to ensure control and security, this has threatened to set back decades of painstaking progress it has made to improve treatment and conditions. Over the past two years, independent prisons inspectorate reports and Ministry of Justice statistics reveal a marked increase in deaths in custody, a rising tide of violence and acts of concerted indiscipline, and falling rates of purposeful activity. The justice committee, in its recent report into the current government's approach to prison policy and planning, said that moves to cut costs in the prison system in England and Wales, as well as tougher prison regimes, had "made a significant contribution to the deterioration in safety." Measuring progress against Lord Woolf's recommendations, the report reveals a prison service which has made heroic strides in some areas but disturbing lapses in others. Although the official end to 'slopping out' was announced nearly 20 years ago, by the former prisons minister Ann Widdecombe, some establishments still suffer from a lack of in cell sanitation. HM inspector of prisons 2013-14 annual report said: "We continued to find - and be critical of - 'night sanitation' systems in some prisons, such as Blundeston and Coldingley, where there were no in-cell toilets and prisoners used an electronic queuing system to access external toilets. These systems sometimes break down, leaving prisoners little option than to use buckets." In 2010 there were 1,973 prison places without in-cell sanitation or open access to toilet facilities. The report says that better arrangements for monitoring prison performance could be improved by more robust and comprehensive standards and a truly independent prisons inspectorate accountable directly to Parliament Details: London: Prison Reform Trust, 2015. 40p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 2, 2015 at: http://www.prisonreformtrust.org.uk/Portals/0/Documents/woolf25250315FINALilo.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://www.prisonreformtrust.org.uk/Portals/0/Documents/woolf25250315FINALilo.pdf Shelf Number: 135149 Keywords: Prison AdministrationPrison ConditionsPrison Over-crowdingPrisons (U.K.) |
Author: Northern Ireland. Criminal Justice Inspection Title: Report on an unannounced inspection of Magilligan Prison 27 May-5 June 2014 Summary: Magilligan Prison is a medium security prison with a semi-open annex, 'Foyleview'. It holds 571 adult men from across Northern Ireland serving sentences ranging between less than one year to life, most of whom have been transferred from Maghaberry Prison and are being prepared for release. This unannounced inspection was led by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Prisons in England and Wales on behalf of, and with the support of Criminal Justice Inspection Northern Ireland, and with the support of the Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority and the Education and Training Inspectorate. Our last inspection in March/April 2010 found the prison was performing reasonably well against all our healthy prison tests and was the strongest performing of all the Northern Ireland prisons. Magilligan still has significant strengths that compare favourably with other prisons in Northern Ireland - but this inspection found that the prison had slipped back in some important areas and action was now required to prevent a further decline. For most prisoners Magilligan was reasonably safe. Relationships between staff and prisoners were much better than we normally see in Northern Ireland, and these underpinned good dynamic security. Reception and first night procedures were good, the number of violent and self-harm incidents were low and there had been no self-inflicted deaths in the prison for many years. There was 'free-flow' movement around the prison without causing difficulty. Support for those with a substance abuse problem was good. However, there was a degree of complacency about safety which was not underpinned by solid processes that focused on outcomes for prisoners. In addition, the prison culture was risk averse and this sometimes manifested itself in an unwillingness to challenge poor behaviour. Vulnerable prisoners felt much less safe than the population as a whole, and a lack of CCTV coverage on the house blocks created insecurity. Levels of drug use were high and there were no disciplinary consequences for a positive test result. The prison had tried to tackle trading in prescribed medicines by introducing 'supervised swallow', but we were told prisoners frequently went to the washrooms to regurgitate the drug for onward sale when they returned to the units and this was not challenged by staff. We did not find evidence that this led to large scale violence and bullying - it may be that supply was so easy that it was not a source of conflict - although some prisoners told us they or their families had been subject to intimidation in relation to drugs. The prison's strategy for reducing violence was poor and insufficiently informed by analysis of data. Links with drug reduction and security strategies were weak. The regime was too often curtailed by 'suspensions in movement around the prison to manage incidents which were isolated on wings and did not require a wider response. Use of segregation was high although stays were short; governance of this was poor and we saw little evidence of any efforts to address the behaviour of the prisoners concerned. In practice this meant prisoners spending a few days lying on their bunks, in dirty cells, with nothing to do - and with no discernible effect. Use of force was low but we were also concerned that governance of this was weak and there was insufficient assurance that its use was always necessary and proportionate. Measures to prevent self-harm were not proportionate to risk and focused on the procedure rather than the prisoner. Humiliating anti-ligature clothing that consisted of baggy green tear-proof shorts and a top was used frequently. The older 'H-Block' accommodation which had no in-cell sanitation was very poor and needed to be replaced but the newer accommodation was much better. For most prisoners, good standards of cleanliness, a decent although rather bleak external environment, good time out of cell, combined with good relationships between staff and prisoners mitigated many of the weaknesses in the prison. Catholic prisoners reported more negatively than Protestant prisoners and there was some evidence to reflect worse outcomes. The prison needed to do more to understand and address this. Support for other prisoners whose needs were different from the majority also needed to be improved. Health services were good. Although prisoners had plenty of time out of the cells, there was insufficient constructive activity and little incentive for them to take advantage of the opportunities that were available. Quantity and quality of activities were very poor. Forty per cent of prisoners were unemployed, much of the work that did exist was mundane and the range of training and education was limited, unrelated to the labour market, and offered only low level qualifications. Prisoners who were working hard in some of the better workshops complained, with justification, that because the wage structure was heavily linked to the behaviour management scheme, a well behaved prisoner received practically the same 'wage' whether they worked or not. Prisoners at Magilligan were poorly prepared for work after they left the prison. In sharp contrast, real progress had been made in resettlement with some excellent and joined-up offender management driven by both the prison and probation staff. Good use was made of home leave to support re-integration and family contacts, and some decent practical resettlement support was offered. Children and families, work and the range of interventions available were particularly strong. More focus was needed to realise the potential of the semi-open Foyleview unit which, in conjunction with a linked unit in Belfast, had the potential to be a very important and innovative resettlement resource. However, that potential was not yet realised. Progress in this area should provide managers with a template of what could be achieved in improving purposeful activity, given sufficient attention and resources. Overall, this is a much more mixed picture than the last inspection. It is important that the strengths of the prison - very good relationships, reasonable levels of safety and good resettlement work - are not undermined by a risk averse culture, insufficient purposeful activity and an unwillingness to challenge poor behaviour. The prison's work on resettlement shows what can be done and provides a standard to which the prison as a whole should aspire. Details: Belfast: Criminal Justice Inspection Northern Ireland, 2015. 109p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 15, 2015 at: http://www.dojni.gov.uk/index/ni-prison-service/nips-publications/nips-cjini-inspection-reports/cjini-report-on-an-unannounced-inspection-of-magilligan-prison-27-may-to-5-june-2014.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://www.dojni.gov.uk/index/ni-prison-service/nips-publications/nips-cjini-inspection-reports/cjini-report-on-an-unannounced-inspection-of-magilligan-prison-27-may-to-5-june-2014.pdf Shelf Number: 135234 Keywords: Correctional InstitutionsPrison AdministrationPrison ConditionsPrisonersPrisons (Northern Ireland) |
Author: Mangan, Fiona B. Title: Prisons in Yemen Summary: Summary - Since the 2011 crisis sparked by the Arab Spring, Yemen has been in a critical political transition. Improving government institutions and rule of law are key goals. Reforming the prison system must be at the core of any strategy for improving rule of law institutions. - Security is universally weak across central prisons. Facilities lack both the physical infrastructure and technical expertise to counter the serious security and terrorist threats they face. Prison breaks are frequent, resulting in serious consequences for broader rule of law and citizen security. - Most facilities have no proper classification and segregation systems in place, and thus detainees held for lesser crimes often mix with serious offenders, and pre-trial detainees with sentenced prisoners. is practice not only violates detainee rights but also enables criminalization, radicalization, and recruitment throughout the detention system. - Overcrowding and substandard prisoner care both result in physical and psychological damage and contribute to frequent rioting and security incidents. - Most guards have no training before taking on their positions is lack has a negative eject on treatment of detainees, security, and prison guards themselves. Prison guards showed signs of psychological strain, fear, and stress, in part due to managing roles they have not been adequately prepared for. - Within the scope of challenges facing Yemen is a risk that reform of detention and prison facilities might not be prioritized. However, given the centrality of a safe and strong detention system for law enforcement and antiterrorism, a failure to do so would be a mistake. - A number of simple, often not costly, reforms-such as establishing basic training for prison leaders, reinforcing a prison order and routine, establishing secure key control and prisoner classification, and baseline security protections-would address many of the most serious rights violations and security concerns. Details: Washington, DC: United States Institute of Peace, 2015. 103p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 13, 2015 at: http://www.usip.org/sites/default/files/PW106-Prisons-in-Yemen.pdf Year: 2015 Country: Yemen URL: http://www.usip.org/sites/default/files/PW106-Prisons-in-Yemen.pdf Shelf Number: 135624 Keywords: Correctional InstitutionsPrison ConditionsPrison ReformPrisonsPrisons (Yemen) |
Author: Liebling, Alison Title: Birmingham prison: the transition from public to private sector and its impact on staff and prisoner quality of life - a three-year study Summary: A three-year quality of life study was conducted at HMP Birmingham following its transfer from the public sector to G4S in 2011. The Prisons Research Centre team conducted detailed surveys of staff and prisoners; perceptions of their quality of life, interviews and observations, in 2011, 2012 and 2013, in order to evaluate the impact of this transition. The study found that, after an initial decline in quality of life, particularly for staff, the prison showed signs of positive progression by 2013. Seven prisoner quality of life dimensions showed statistically significant improvements from 2011 to 2013. Key findings - Seven of the 21 prisoner quality of life dimensions improved significantly from 2011 to 2013: respect/courtesy; humanity; decency; care for the vulnerable; staff-prisoner relationships; fairness; and personal autonomy. - Prisoners' overall "quality of life" score improved each year of the study, but it remained low compared to other local prisons. - In 2012 there were ten significant differences between dimension mean scores for White and Black/Minority Ethnic (BME) prisoners, where BME prisoners reported lower scores, primarily concentrated in the "harmony" and "professionalism" categories, suggesting perceived discrimination. In 2013, the only significant difference was in the overall quality of life score. Both of these groups rated their quality of life higher in 2013 than in 2012 and 2011. - For all staff, 17 of the 18 dimension mean scores moved in a positive direction from 2012 to 2013, 13 of them at a statistically significant level. In particular; attitudes towards the senior management team; recognition and personal efficacy; safety, control and security; and relationships with line management; all improved from 2011 and 2012 levels in 2013. - Overall staff quality of life improved particularly significantly from 2012 to 2013, reflecting a settling down, a stabilising of the workforce, and growing confidence in their leadership. - These improvements were accomplished against a low baseline, and major challenges in the delivery of a constructive regime remained. Details: London: National Offender Management Service, 2015. 8p. Source: Internet Resource: Analytical Summary: Accessed July 30, 2015 at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/449351/birmingham-prison-3-study.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United Kingdom URL: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/449351/birmingham-prison-3-study.pdf Shelf Number: 136261 Keywords: Correctional InstitutionsPrison ConditionsPrisonersPrisons |
Author: Correctional Association of New York Title: Clinton Correctional Facility: 2012-2014 Summary: Clinton Correctional Facility is a maximum security prison that has a Main compound and an Annex, and is located in Dannemora, NY, in the northernmost part of the state. Established in 1845 and sometimes referred to as "Little Siberia" because of the harsh weather conditions and intimidating environment, Clinton is the third oldest Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) prison in New York State. Clinton has a massive foreboding stone and cement wall on its perimeter, immediately adjacent to the Main Street of Dannemora. Like many other maximum security prisons in the state, the Main is lined with long corridors of stacked tiers of cells, while the Annex has dorm-style housing. Throughout its long history, parts of Clinton had at various stages operated as a "mining prison" where incarcerated persons were forced to work in the mining and manufacturing of iron, a site for the death penalty by electrocution, a tuberculosis ward, a state mental hospital for people declared insane after conviction, a mental health treatment center, one of the largest employers in the area, and always a prison for incarcerating people convicted of the most serious crimes. Clinton has also had an infamous history of violence, brutality, and abuse by correction officers, as well as unrest, violence, organizing, and lawsuits by people incarcerated at the facility. Incidents within this history have ranged from what has been classified as one of the largest prison rebellions in New York State history in 1929, to a series of successful brutality lawsuits in the 1990s, to more recent alleged staff assaults, incarcerated person fights, and facility-wide lockdowns. In the mid- 1990s, for example, the New York Times went so far as to report that Federal judges "have repeatedly found that excessive force by guards has violated [incarcerated persons'] civil rights," that corrections experts found the settling of 10 brutality lawsuits at Clinton to be "extraordinary, since [incarcerated persons'] rarely win such cases and officials rarely settle them," that Clinton had an "internal culture that tolerates a higher level of violence than others, and where guards are more likely to test the boundaries of what is considered acceptable force," and that vast racial and cultural disparities between incarcerated persons and staff exacerbated conflicts. Today, Clinton is the largest DOCCS prison in the state, with a total capacity of 2,956 people in the Main and Annex combined. As discussed in detail below, the facility continues to be plagued by violence and staff brutality at a level that is among the worst of DOCCS prisons. In addition to its general confinement in the Main and Annex, at the time of our visit Clinton operated two unique residential programs separated from the rest of the facility, Merle Cooper and the Assessment and Program Preparation Unit (APPU), as well as a residential Intermediate Care Program (ICP) for people with serious mental health needs, and a Special Housing Unit (SHU) and additional SHU and long-term keeplock isolated confinement cell blocks. Details: New York: Correctional Association of New York, 2015. 86p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 20, 2015 at: http://www.correctionalassociation.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/Clinton-Correctional-Facility-Final-Draft-2.pdf Year: 2014 Country: United States URL: http://www.correctionalassociation.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/Clinton-Correctional-Facility-Final-Draft-2.pdf Shelf Number: 136508 Keywords: Correctional InstitutionsMaximum Security PrisonsPrison ConditionsPrison ViolencePrisons |
Author: Correctional Association of New York Title: 2014 Updated Correctional Association Report on Attica Summary: Attica Correctional Facility, a 2,000-bed maximum security prison in western New York, continues to operate as a symbolic and real epicenter of state violence and abuse of incarcerated persons in the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) state prison system 43 years after the 1971 prison uprising and violent suppression by state authorities. The CA spent this past year investigating the level of violence and staff abuse at Attica and has just issued its 2014 Updated Correctional Association Report on Attica describing its observations and recommendations about the level and causes of violence and abuse, supplementing its 2011 report. Unfortunately, the current situation mirrors much of the abuse we documented then, including excessive violence, harassment, threats, retaliation, pervasive racism, warehousing of incarcerated persons, excessive use of solitary confinement, and high rates of suicide. Details: New York: Correctional Association of New York, 2014. 45p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 20, 2015 at: http://www.correctionalassociation.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Attica-2014-CA-Updated-Report-Final1.pdf Year: 2014 Country: United States URL: http://www.correctionalassociation.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Attica-2014-CA-Updated-Report-Final1.pdf Shelf Number: 136509 Keywords: Correctional Institutions Prison ConditionsPrison Violence Prisons |
Author: Correctional Association of New York Title: Greene Correctional Facility: 2012-2014 Summary: Greene C.F. has one of the highest concentrations of young people in any New York State prison, and also some of the highest reported allegations of staff violence, harassment, and intimidation against incarcerated persons. The Correctional Association of New York (CA) Prison Visiting Project (PVP) visited Greene C.F. on November 8 and 9, 2012, and received updated information about Greene from incarcerated persons and staff in 2014. The median age of people incarcerated at Greene is 22, there were over 40 children aged 16 or 17 at the prison as of October 2014, and 82% of the people incarcerated at Greene were Black or Latino. Although a medium security prison, Greene ranked as one of the worst CA-visited prisons on almost all indicators of safety and alleged physical abuse of incarcerated persons by security staff. Worse still, staff physical abuse, intimidation, racial and verbal harassment, retaliation, and use of solitary confinement were reportedly most directed at young people at Greene, including teenagers and youth into their early twenties. The CA did find some positive aspects at Greene, including a large number of programs. Yet, the levels of reported abuse of young people are unacceptable and far overshadowed any positive aspects. DOCCS and state policy-makers must stop all abuses taking place, remove all 16- and 17-year-olds from Greene and all adult prisons and jails, and create a more supportive, developmentally-appropriate environment for young people into their mid-twenties, and indeed for all people incarcerated. Details: New York: Correctional Association of New York, 2014. 57p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 20, 2015 at: http://www.correctionalassociation.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Greene-C.F.-Report-Final.pdf Year: 2014 Country: United States URL: http://www.correctionalassociation.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Greene-C.F.-Report-Final.pdf Shelf Number: 136510 Keywords: Correctional InstitutionsCorrections OfficersPrison ConditionsPrison GuardsPrisonsYoung Adult Offenders |
Author: Holt, Daniel W.E. Title: Heat in US Prisons and Jails: Corrections and the Challenge of Climate Change Summary: This paper addresses two important but largely neglected questions: How will increased temperatures and heat waves caused by climate change affect prisons, jails, and their staff and inmate populations? And what can correctional departments do to prepare for greater heat and minimize the dangers it poses? Some 2.2 million inmates are currently incarcerated in around 1,800 prisons and jails across the United States. Nearly half a million correctional employees work in these facilities. Indoor environmental conditions in prisons and jails therefore have a direct impact on the health of well over 2.5 million people. Extreme heat is the most common cause of weather-related death in the US. Over the next several decades, heat will become an even graver threat, as climate change brings rising temperatures and increasingly harsh extreme-heat events. These changes will jeopardize the health of inmates and correctional officers alike, and will stress the physical plant of the correctional sector. Many correctional departments are already unable to maintain healthy indoor temperatures during the summer months. Summertime heat already harms both inmates and correctional officers. Heat-related illness has claimed the lives of numerous inmates in recent years. Correctional departments will soon have to confront the urgent challenge of adapting their systems and facilities to greater heat and other impacts of climate change. The success or failure of their adaptation efforts will be measured in human lives as well as public dollars. Until now, the implications of climate change for corrections have been largely disregarded by both correctional administrators and public officials working on climate adaptation policy. Heat in US Prisons and Jails begins the process of connecting the discussions of climate policy and correctional policy. It provides the first systematic analysis of the correctional sector's structural and legal vulnerabilities to high temperatures caused by climate change. It also offers recommendations for adaptation to address unique challenges that climate change poses for corrections. Adapting corrections to heat and other impacts of climate change is not a task for correctional departments alone. Just as correctional administrators should begin educating themselves about climate change and how it will affect their departments, so should policymakers, academics, and others who are already working on adaptation widen their compass to include corrections. Details: New York: Sabin Center for Climate Change Law, Columbia Law School, 2015. 144p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 24, 2015 at: https://web.law.columbia.edu/sites/default/files/microsites/climate-change/holt_-_heat_in_us_prisons_and_jails.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: https://web.law.columbia.edu/sites/default/files/microsites/climate-change/holt_-_heat_in_us_prisons_and_jails.pdf Shelf Number: 136861 Keywords: Climate ChangeCorrectional InstitutionsPrison Conditions |
Author: Isaacs, Caroline Title: Assessment of Riots in Management & Training Corp Kingman Prison 2015 Summary: On July 1st, 2015, a riot erupted in a prison in Kingman, Arizona operated by the for-profit prison company, Management and Training Corporation (MTC). The next day, a second reportedly occurred. Six prison guards were injured and the facilities were so badly damaged that over 1,000 prisoners had to be transferred elsewhere. Governor Doug Ducey ordered the Director of the Arizona Department of Corrections (ADC) to investigate the cause of the riots. While we welcome any and all information coming from the Department in regards to these incidents, the American Friends Service Committee has serious concerns about the ADC's ability to impartially assess all the factors that contributed to the riots-most significantly its own failure to properly monitor its contractors. This report represents an effort to provide first-hand documentation from prisoners and staff, as well as a larger analysis informed by over 15 years of monitoring the for-profit prison industry and the Arizona Department of Corrections. Details: Tucson, AZ: American Friends Service Committee, Arizona,2015. 22p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 8, 2015 at: https://afscarizona.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/afsckingmanassessment2015.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: https://afscarizona.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/afsckingmanassessment2015.pdf Shelf Number: 136963 Keywords: Prison ConditionsPrison RiotsPrivate Prisons |
Author: Prison Reform Trust Title: Bromley Briefings Prison Factfile. Autumn 2015 Summary: "Prison is a place where people are sent as a punishment, not for further punishments...Human beings whose lives have been reckoned so far in costs-to society, to the criminal justice system, to victims and to themselves-can become assets- citizens who can contribute and demonstrate the human capacity for redemption." Not the introduction to the latest Prison Reform Trust annual report, but the words of the incoming Secretary of State for Justice, Michael Gove, in July 2015, and a welcome reassertion of principles which should underpin any civilised penal system. So far so good. But he has inherited both a system that is deteriorating on internal and external measures, and a requirement to carve anything from 25% to 40% out of its budget over the next five years. The prison service will be clinging to the hope that the worst is over, that after three years of drastic cuts prisons will slowly settle into diminished routines and staffing levels-a new impoverished normality. The evidence of this briefing gives little cause for optimism. Violence and disorder have risen sharply. Suicides continue to rise, and the reductions achieved through so much effort in the previous decade have been reversed. Levels of purposeful activity were judged unacceptable in three-quarters of prisons inspected. Some individual prisons buck the trend. The Mount, Peterborough, Kirklevington Grange and others have received warm praise from inspections in 2015. Even HMP Oakwood, heavily criticised after its opening in 2013, was judged to have turned a corner. But the worst reports conjured up images of almost Dickensian squalor. Longstanding structural flaws remain. More than a quarter of prisoners live in overcrowded prisons. One in four of the country's prisoners comes from an ethnic minority-compared to one in 10 of the general population. 82% of women are in prison for non-violent offences. 20% to 30% of prisoners have a learning disability or difficulty that interferes with their ability just to understand the criminal justice system. A staggering 12,000 prisoners do not even know when they will be released. During a period when crime has fallen sharply, average sentence length has increased by a third. We continue to use prisons in implausibly remote locations. The population of prisoners over 60 has tripled, while we build prisons designed (and priced) to contain the most determined escapee. There are new threats. The introduction of a year's mandatory post release supervision for short sentences guarantees a higher turnover in the most overcrowded prisons as inadequately prepared ex-prisoners fail to keep to their licence conditions. In prisons struggling with staffing reductions and reduced regimes, the advent of new psychoactive substances could hardly have come at a worse time. Above all, the government's determination to reduce the national fiscal deficit will hit unprotected departments-including the Ministry of Justice- with disproportionate force. That extraordinary challenge, however, represents an opportunity to rethink our approach both to the use of imprisonment and to the experience it should represent. The answer to the dilemma lies in one of the few success stories of recent years. The number of children (under-18s) in custody has fallen by over two-thirds in the last seven years. Yet at the same time, the crime committed by children has also plummeted, with proven offences down by 72% from their peak in 2005-06. The number of young adults (18-20 year olds) sent to prison has also started to decline, as the conveyor belt from child offender to young adult prisoner has slowed. If we translate that determination to make imprisoning children genuinely a last resort into the adult sphere, and reverse the sentence inflation which accounts for two-thirds of the population growth of the last two decades, the possibility of making dramatic savings is real. A prison population at the level it was the last time there was a Conservative majority government would save its current successor around $1bn a year. Increasing sentence lengths has been a comfort blanket for every government of the last 20 years. To make matters worse, prison is still seen as a free good so far as local communities are concerned- the trade off between money spent on prison officers rather than nurses or teachers remains invisible to the local taxpayer. The uncomfortable truth is that most of that expensive additional prison time is both unnecessary and wasted. The litany of frustration, depression and idleness described in this publication's statistics has its physical expression in underused facilities and long, pointless, hours behind cell doors. Reinvesting a fraction of the saving from closing prisons to create a custodial experience that is both purposeful and properly intense would be a practical legacy worthy of the new Secretary of State's visionary rhetoric. Details: London: PRT, 2015. 76p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed November 28, 2015 at: http://www.prisonreformtrust.org.uk/Portals/0/Documents/Bromley%20Briefings/Factfile%20Autumn%202015.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://www.prisonreformtrust.org.uk/Portals/0/Documents/Bromley%20Briefings/Factfile%20Autumn%202015.pdf Shelf Number: 137362 Keywords: Correctional AdministrationPrison AdministrationPrison ConditionsPrisonersPrisons |
Author: Union of Canadian Correctional Officers Title: A critical review of the practice of double bunking within corrections. The implications on staff, inmates, correctional facilities and the public Summary: There is an increasing prevalence of double bunking within the Correctional Service of Canada. This paper seeks to investigate the impact double bunking has on the health and safety of staff, inmates and the public, as well as the impact it will inevitably have on the physical condition of institutions. Through a review of available research from academic and correctional professionals, this paper addresses and refutes the prevailing notion that further double bunking and overcrowding will have little impact in and on the field of corrections. Details: St. Leonard's, ONT: UCCO, 2015. 17p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 9, 2016 at: http://ucco-sacc-csn.ca/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Double-Bunking-Research-Paper-08-03-201111.pdf Year: 2015 Country: Canada URL: http://ucco-sacc-csn.ca/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Double-Bunking-Research-Paper-08-03-201111.pdf Shelf Number: 138140 Keywords: Correctional AdministrationDouble BunkingPrison ConditionsPrison Overcrowding |
Author: Cate, Matthew Title: Beyond Litigation: A Promising Alternative to Resolving Disputes Over Conditions of Confinement in American Prisons and Jails Summary: In 1976, Governor Jerry Brown and the California Legislature passed a series of laws creating the state's determinate sentencing structure. Over the next 30 years, a tough-on-crime mindset drove legislators and voters to lengthen sentences and reduce opportunities for parole, resulting in a prison system packed to more than 200 percent of its design capacity. By 2006, overcrowding in California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) facilities was so bad that more than 168,000 inmates were packed into a prison system designed for only 84,000.To cope with the population boom, the state built 22 mega-prisons and hired staff at a rapid rate. But those new prisons immediately became overcrowded as well, and it became increasingly difficult for the state to properly care for inmates while maintaining order and discipline. As a result, the CDCR became the target of a series of class-action lawsuits focusing on nearly every aspect of its treatment of inmates in prison and on parole. As these cases were filed, the state chose to defend itself primarily through traditional prison litigation strategies. The approach was largely unsuccessful. Details: Stanford, CA: Stanford Law School, Stanford Criminal Justice Center, 2014. 14p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 14, 2016 at: https://www-cdn.law.stanford.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Beyond-Litigation-Cate-and-Weisberg-Final.pdf Year: 2014 Country: United States URL: https://www-cdn.law.stanford.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Beyond-Litigation-Cate-and-Weisberg-Final.pdf Shelf Number: 138673 Keywords: Prison ConditionsPrison OvercrowdingPrisons |
Author: Great Britain. HM Chief Inspector of Prisons Title: Report on an unannounced inspection of HMP Lewes Summary: HMP/YOI Lewes is a medium sized local prison with an uncrowded capacity of 617. At the time of the inspection it held just over 640 prisoners, including a substantial number awaiting trial or sentence. A third of the population were convicted of sexual offences, many with long or indeterminate sentences, and about 15% were in the last three months of their sentence and located at Lewes for pre-release resettlement support. As with other establishments, the number of older prisoners was rising and there was also a significant population of young adults. This complex mix presented considerable challenges and risks, exemplified by the first night centre. Sex offenders were held there because there was nowhere else to put them, and this meant that other new arrivals were placed wherever a space could be found in the prison. Some were even placed in the segregation unit, which is a particularly inappropriate location for someone new to prison. Most staff on other units were unaware of who the new arrivals were and could not therefore provide first night support and monitoring. Moreover, during our night visit, we found that some staff did not have anti-ligature knives and could not assure us that they would act appropriately in the event of a serious self-harm incident. This was in the context of over a quarter of prisoners in our survey reporting feeling depressed or suicidal on arrival, and a third saying they had mental health problems. Levels of violence and use of force were high and oversight of both was poor. Although we have seen rising violence in most prisons inspected over the last year, at Lewes the number of assaults was even higher than at other establishments recently inspected. However, the general picture on violence was complex and needed careful analysis; prisoners reported feeling relatively safe and selfharm was also lower than we see in other prisons. The safer custody structures that could have helped to understand and address such findings were lacking; violence reduction procedures were not being implemented and safer custody staff had no time to undertake the role. Most of the prison was clean and in good condition - a considerable achievement given that it was over 160 years old. Good relationships between staff and prisoners, many of whom were from the local area, were a strength that underpinned much of the positive work in the prison. The reassurance provided by the experienced staff group may help to explain why prisoners felt safe despite the high levels of violence. Health care was reasonably good but far too many external hospital appointments were missed as a result of a lack of escort staff. The increased number of hospital visits reflected the rise in older prisoners, approximately 10% of whom were over 60, more than double the figure at the last inspection. The oldest prisoner was over 90. However, despite creditable work by paid carers, provision for older and disabled prisoners was inadequate. Overall arrangements for equality and diversity were also poor. There was little systematic support for prisoners with protected characteristics and those from black and minority ethnic backgrounds and foreign national prisoners were much more negative than others about their treatment. Purposeful activity outcomes had dipped since the last inspection, although they were improving. More short education courses were provided, which better met the needs of many prisoners, and completion and success rates on short courses and in vocational training were high. The library was well run and access to PE was good. However, far too many prisoners were still without purposeful activity. Despite a very recently introduced new regime, on some units people were routinely locked up for 23 hours and we found half of the population in their cells during our spot checks over the course of the working day. There were not enough activity places and some of the available places were unused. Details: London: HM Chief Inspectorate of Prisons, 2016. 119p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 28, 2016 at: https://www.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/hmiprisons/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2016/04/Lewes-web-2015.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United Kingdom URL: https://www.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/hmiprisons/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2016/04/Lewes-web-2015.pdf Shelf Number: 138835 Keywords: Correctional Institutions Correctional ProgramsPrison AdministrationPrison Conditions Prison ViolencePrisoners Prisons |
Author: Western Australia, Office of the Inspector of Custodial Services Title: Thermal conditions of prison cells Summary: It is critical that acceptable temperatures are maintained in a custodial environment. Prisoners are an 'at-risk' group for temperature related illnesses due in part to their poorer health outcomes: - One-third of prisoners report having a chronic health condition; - 59 per cent of adult prisoners and 65 per cent of juvenile detainees are affected by mental illness; and - A substantial proportion of the prison population are on prescribed medications that increase susceptibility to temperature extremes. Compounding these health vulnerabilities is a prisoner's impaired capacity to make behavioural adaptations to mitigate the temperature conditions they face. Outside prison, someone experiencing hot temperatures may seek a cooler environment (e.g. air-conditioned shopping centre), wet their body and clothes with water, and move away from structures that radiate heat. These actions may not be possible for those restricted to a prison cell. For example, at Roebourne Regional Prison temperatures can reach 50C. The majority of prisoners are locked overnight in cells that are not air-conditioned and that do not have showers. It is not possible for prisoners to seek a cooler environment. Prisoners get through the night by drinking from water bottles chilled prior to lockup, sleeping on the floor, and splashing themselves with water from sinks. Through the day, towels are draped over windows to reduce sunlight entering the room, though this has the disadvantage of inhibiting any beneficial breezes that may be present. These behavioural adaptations reduce risk to a far lesser extent than what is possible in the wider community. Creative behavioural adaptations have also been observed in winter as heaters are not a uniform feature of prisoner accommodation and additional clothing and bedding may be subject to limitations in availability. In the 2001 unannounced inspection of Eastern Goldfields Regional Prison it was noted that prisoners attempted to prevent draughts of cold air by covering cracks in the wall with paper mache bonded with their own saliva. At other prisons the use of paper to cover up ventilation vents has been commonly observed, restricting the flow of fresh air into the cell. At Bandyup Women's Prison, prisoners in the self-care accommodation reported leaving ovens on at maximum temperatures during the day in an effort to warm their house. This Office is aware of two oven doors exploding in the winter of 2014 due to this practice. Prisoner efforts to achieve comfortable temperatures within the limitations of the prison environment can therefore be creative but are unlikely to be fully effective, and can increase other risks such as restricted air flow. For prisoners who are too old, unwell, or mentally ill to undertake these behavioural adaptations, the prison environment poses an acute risk of temperature related ill-health. Details: Perth: Office of the Inspector of Custodial Services, 2015. 72p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 5, 2016 at: http://www.oics.wa.gov.au/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Thermal-conditions-review-final.pdf Year: 2015 Country: Australia URL: http://www.oics.wa.gov.au/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Thermal-conditions-review-final.pdf Shelf Number: 138939 Keywords: Correctional InstitutionsHealth CarePrison Conditions |
Author: MacNamara, Catherine Title: Improving Prison Conditions by Strengthening the Monitoring of HIV, HCV, TB and Harm Reduction Summary: This report, published April 2016, forms part of the EU co-funded project "Improving Prison Conditions by Strengthening Infectious Disease Monitoring" implemented under the lead of Harm Reduction International in 2015 and 2016. The project aims to reduce ill-treatment of persons in detention and improve prison conditions through improved and standardised monitoring and inspection mechanisms on HIV, HCV and TB. The current report, written by Catherine MacNamara, Lorraine Varley and Patricia Mannix McNamara, presents the mapping situation in Ireland. Prisons and other places of detention are high-risk environments for the transmission of these diseases. This is related to the over-incarceration of vulnerable and disadvantaged groups who carry a disproportionately high burden of disease and ill-health; the criminalisation of drug users and high levels of injecting drug use; overcrowded and substandard prison conditions; inadequate health care; and the denial of harm reduction services. Over the past 20 years, from an Irish perspective, there has been significant improvement in medical services for the prison population. The Irish Prison Service (IPS) has made significant investment since 1999 in better healthcare facilities for prisoners. In 2001 the IPS introduced drug treatment plans and healthcare plans, Hep B vaccine was made accessible to prisoners, nurses were employed, drug free units were expanded, and methadone treatment was implemented. In 2006 the IPS published a drugs policy Keeping drugs out of prison. However, there still remains a lack of information available that would assist public authorities in making decisions with regards to these services. While some progress has been made in the adoption of monitoring mechanisms for infectious diseases in Irish prisons, this progress is arguably less than sufficient or consistent in meeting the standards of human rights-based prison monitoring. The absence of adequate medical services in prisons can contribute to, or even constitute, conditions that meet the threshold of ill treatment. Presently, to our knowledge, inspection of infectious diseases is not formally included in the criteria for inspection of places of detention. Prison monitoring is often separated from health care inspection guidelines, leaving gaps in terms of coherent recording and monitoring. This separation is less than optimal in terms of services being positioned to provide an effective and coherent national response to prisoner need.This report is part of a larger international project that seeks to address this gap. Details: Dublin: Irish Prison Reform Trust, 2016. 48p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 11, 2016 at: http://www.iprt.ie/files/PrisonProjectReport_Ireland_web_A41.pdf Year: 2016 Country: Ireland URL: http://www.iprt.ie/files/PrisonProjectReport_Ireland_web_A41.pdf Shelf Number: 139600 Keywords: Prison ConditionsPrison Health ServicesPrisoner Health |
Author: Martynowicz, Agnieszke Title: Prison Litigation Network Project: National Report on Ireland Summary: This report was prepared as part of the Prison Litigation Network Project, which is a European project looking at national systems of judicial and non-judicial mechanisms for the protection of the rights of prisoners. IPRT is the Irish national project partner to the Prison Litigation Network Project. The report find that while significant improvements have been made to physical conditions in Irish prisons in recent years, a number of concerns remain. Additionally, the complaints system available to prisoners, while improved since the introduction of a new policy in 2014, continues to face questions over its independence and effectiveness, and appears to be significantly underused by prisoners at present. The establishment of an Office of a Prisoner Ombudsman appears unlikely in the near future, and Ireland is still yet to ratify the Optional Protocol for the UN Convention against Torture and introduce the National Preventive Mechanism envisaged by the Protocol. In these circumstances, prisoners often rely on raising any issues regarding their treatment or prison conditions through their legal representatives. This is far from easy, especially considering the limited level of legal aid in prison cases. Other barriers to litigation include: the "chill factor" relating to the potential of intimidation or victimisation; the perceived reluctance of the courts to interfere in the running of the prisons; and potential evidential issues. Faced with such difficulties, many potential issues that could be considered by the courts are mediated before they reach that stage, improving the individual situation of the prisoner who raises them. In these circumstances, while there have been a number of very significant prison cases taken in Ireland over the years, the Report finds the impact of prison litigation in Ireland on systemic changes to the system is difficult to measure. Details: Dublin: Irish Penal Reform Trust, 2016. 68p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 11, 2016 at: http://www.iprt.ie/files/PLN_Ireland_National_Report_combined.pdf Year: 2016 Country: Ireland URL: http://www.iprt.ie/files/PLN_Ireland_National_Report_combined.pdf Shelf Number: 139602 Keywords: Prison Conditions |
Author: Great Britain. Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Prisons Title: HM Chief Inspector of Prisons for England and Wales: Annual Report 2015-2016 Summary: Any improvement is welcome, but it is far too soon to say whether these improvements will be maintained. They are, in any event, still at historically low levels, and in all bar one area far below where they were five years ago. Year on year comparisons are also notoriously tricky as we do not inspect the same institutions each year, and we deliberately skew our inspection programme towards those places where we assess the risk to be greatest. These are usually announced rather than unannounced inspections, designed to help the establishment make improvements within a short timeframe. There is thus a risk in placing reliance in year on year comparisons. What I have seen is that despite the sterling efforts of many who work in the Prison Service at all levels, there is a simple and unpalatable truth about far too many of our prisons. They have become unacceptably violent and dangerous places. During 2015 there were over 20,000 assaults in our prisons, an increase of some 27% over the previous year. As if that were not bad enough, within that huge increase, serious assaults have risen by even more, by 31%, up to nearly 3,000. It is hardly surprising that in the face of this surge in violence, the number of apparent homicides between April 2015 and March 2016 rose from four to six. In the face of this upsurge in violence, we should not forget the dangers faced by staff who work in our prisons and other places of detention. The tragic death of court escort officer Lorraine Barwell, killed by a prisoner at Blackfriars Crown Court in June 2015, serves as a stark reminder of this. The picture in respect of self-harm and suicide is equally shocking. Over 32,000 incidents of self-harm in 2015 is an increase of 25% on the previous calendar year, and the tragic total of 100 selfinflicted deaths between April 2015 and March 2016 marks a 27% increase. It is clear that a large part of this violence is linked to the harm caused by new psychoactive substances (NPS) which are having a dramatic and destabilising effect in many of our prisons. In December 2015 we published our thematic report Changing patterns of substance misuse in adult prisons and service responses. The report pointed out that these synthetic substances, often known as 'Spice' or 'Mamba,' were becoming ever more prevalent in prisons and exacerbating problems of debt, bullying, self-harm and violence. The effects of these drugs can be unpredictable and extreme. Their use can be linked to attacks on other prisoners and staff, self-inflicted deaths, serious illness and life-changing self-harm. The Prisons and Probation Ombudsman has recently identified 39 deaths in prisons between June 2013 and June 2015 that can be linked to the use of NPS. The situation has shown no signs of improvement since June 2015; in fact quite the reverse, and tragically the death toll will inevitably rise. During my visits to prisons I have met prisoners who have 'self-segregated' in order to escape the violence caused by these substances, and I have talked with members of staff who have described the terrifying effects they can have on those who take them. Some prisons are making every effort to mitigate the impact of these drugs by trying to disrupt the supply routes and lessen demand for them through education and targeted interventions. However, in other places the response has been more patchy, with no clear strategy in place. Details: London: HM Inspectorate of Prisons, 2016. 121p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 22, 2016 at: https://www.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/hmiprisons/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2016/07/HMIP-AR_2015-16_web.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United Kingdom URL: https://www.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/hmiprisons/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2016/07/HMIP-AR_2015-16_web.pdf Shelf Number: 139792 Keywords: Prison ConditionsPrisonersPrisons |
Author: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the Inspector General Title: Review of the Federal Bureau of Prisons' Monitoring of Contract Prisons Summary: The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP), which is the component of the Department of Justice (Department) responsible for incarcerating all federal defendants sentenced to prison, was operating at 20 percent over its rated capacity as of December 2015. To help alleviate overcrowding and respond to congressional mandates, in 1997 the BOP had begun contracting with privately operated institutions (often referred to as "contract prisons"), at first on a smaller scale and later more extensively, to confine federal inmates who are primarily low security, criminal alien adult males with 90 months or less remaining to serve on their sentences. As of December 2015, contract prisons housed roughly 22,660 of these federal inmates, or about 12 percent of the BOP's total inmate population. These contract prisons were operated by three private corporations: Corrections Corporation of America; GEO Group, Inc.; and Management and Training Corporation. The BOP's annual expenditures on contract prisons increased from approximately $562 million in fiscal year (FY) 2011 to $639 million in FY 2014. In recent years, disturbances in several federal contract prisons resulted in extensive property damage, bodily injury, and the death of a Correctional Officer. The Office of the Inspector General (OIG) initiated this review to examine how the BOP monitors these facilities. We also assessed whether contractor performance meets certain inmate safety and security requirements and analyzed how contract prisons and similar BOP institutions compare with regard to inmate safety and security data. We found that, in most key areas, contract prisons incurred more safety and security incidents per capita than comparable BOP institutions and that the BOP needs to improve how it monitors contract prisons in several areas. Throughout this report, we note several important corrective actions the BOP has taken, in response to findings and recommendations in our April 2015 audit of the Reeves County contract prison, to improve its monitoring of contract prisons, including in the areas of health and correctional services. The BOP's administration, monitoring, and oversight of contract prisons is conducted through three branches at BOP headquarters and on site. According to the BOP, at each contract prison, two BOP onsite monitors and a BOP Contracting Officer, in cooperation with other BOP subject matter experts, oversee each contractor's compliance with 29 vital functions within 8 operational areas, including correctional programs, correctional services, and health services. The BOP monitors contractor performance through various methods and tools that include monitoring checklists, monitoring logs, written evaluations, performance meetings, and regular audits. Results in Brief We found that in a majority of the categories we examined, contract prisons incurred more safety and security incidents per capita than comparable BOP institutions. We analyzed data from the 14 contract prisons that were operational during the period of our review and from a select group of 14 BOP institutions with comparable inmate populations to evaluate how the contract prisons performed relative to the selected BOP institutions. Our analysis included data from FYs 2011 through 2014 in eight key categories: (1) contraband, (2) reports of incidents, (3) lockdowns, (4) inmate discipline, (5) telephone monitoring, (6) selected grievances, (7) urinalysis drug testing, and (8) sexual misconduct.3 With the exception of fewer incidents of positive drug tests and sexual misconduct, the contract prisons had more incidents per capita than the BOP institutions in all of the other categories of data we examined. For example, the contract prisons confiscated eight times as many contraband cell phones annually on average as the BOP institutions. Contract prisons also had higher rates of assaults, both by inmates on other inmates and by inmates on staff. We note that we were unable to evaluate all of the factors that contributed to the underlying data, including the effect of inmate demographics and facility locations, as the BOP noted in response to a working draft of this report. However, consistent with our recommendation, we believe that the BOP needs to examine the reasons behind our findings more thoroughly and identify corrective actions, if necessary. The three contract prisons we visited were all cited by the BOP for one or more safety and security deficiencies, including administrative infractions such as improper storage of use-of-force video footage, as well as more serious or systemic deficiencies such as failure to initiate discipline in over 50 percent of incidents reviewed by onsite monitors over a 6-month period. The contractors corrected the safety and security deficiencies that the BOP had identified. As a result, the BOP determined that each prison was sufficiently compliant with the safety and security aspects of its contract to continue with the contract during the period covered by our review. However, we concluded that the BOP still must improve its oversight of contract prisons to ensure that federal inmates' rights and needs are not placed at risk when they are housed in contract prisons. Our site visits also revealed that two of the three contract prisons we visited were improperly housing new inmates in Special Housing Units (SHU), which are normally used for disciplinary or administrative segregation, until beds became available in general population housing. These new inmates had not engaged in any of the behaviors cited in American Correctional Association standards and BOP policies that would justify being placed in such administrative or disciplinary segregation. When the OIG discovered this practice during the course of our fieldwork, we brought it to the attention of the BOP Director, who immediately directed that these inmates be removed from the SHUs and returned to the general population. The BOP Director also mandated that the contracts for all contract prisons be modified to prohibit SHU placement for inmates unless there is a policy-based reason to house them there. Since that time, the BOP informed us that the practice of housing new inmates in the SHU is no longer occurring in the contract prisons and that the BOP has not identified any further non-compliance to date regarding this issue. Finally, we found that the BOP needs to improve the way it monitors contract prisons. We focused our analysis on the BOP's Large Secure Adult Contract Oversight Checklist (checklist) because, as described by BOP operating procedures, it is an important element of the BOP's Quality Assurance Plan, as well as a mechanism BOP onsite monitors use to document contract compliance on a daily basis. We believe onsite monitors are best positioned to provide the BOP's quickest and most direct responses to contract compliance issues as they arise. We found that the checklist does not address certain important BOP policy and contract requirements in the areas of health and correctional services. As a result, the BOP cannot as effectively ensure that contract prisons comply with contract requirements and BOP policies in these areas and that inmates in contract prisons receive appropriate health and correctional services. For health services, the checklist does not include observation steps to verify that inmates receive certain basic medical services. For example, the observation steps do not include checks on whether inmates received initial examinations, immunizations, and tuberculosis tests, as BOP policy requires. We also found that monitoring of healthcare for contract compliance lacks coordination from BOP staff responsible for health services oversight. For correctional services, the checklist does not include observation steps to ensure searches of certain areas of the prison, such as inmate housing units or recreation, work, and medical areas, or for validating actual Correctional Officer staffing levels and the daily Correctional Officer duty rosters. Details: Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, 2016. 86p. Source: Internet Resource: Evaluation and Inspections Division 1 6-06: Accessed August 29, 2016 at: https://oig.justice.gov/reports/2016/e1606.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: https://oig.justice.gov/reports/2016/e1606.pdf Shelf Number: 140070 Keywords: Correctional AdministrationFederal Bureau of PrisonsPrison ConditionsPrivate PrisonsPrivatization |
Author: Amnesty International Title: "It Breaks the Human":Torture, Disease and Death in Syria's Prisons Summary: The experiences faced by detainees in Syria's detention system are often lethal. An estimated 17,723 people were killed in custody across Syria between 2011 and 2015, with the real number likely to be even higher. Of the 65 former detainees interviewed by Amnesty International for this report, most had witnessed at least one death in custody. All had been tortured and/or otherwise ill-treated. This report charts the journey of detainees through what the UN Commission of Inquiry, among others, considers to be Syria's most lethal detention facilities, including Saydnaya Military Prison and the detention centres operated by Syria's four intelligence services - Air Force Intelligence, Military Intelligence, Political Security and General Intelligence. Based on the evidence presented in this report, as well as prior research by Amnesty International and the documentation of credible national and international monitoring groups, Amnesty International considers that the torture and other ill-treatment of detainees carried out by the Syrian government since 2011 has been perpetrated as part of a widespread and systematic attack against the civilian population, pursuant to a state policy, and therefore amounts to a crime against humanity. This report calls on the international community to pressure the Syrian authorities to abide by their international obligations and end the use of torture and other ill-treatment, arbitrary detention and enforced disappearances, and prevent further deaths in custody. Details: London: AI, 2016. 73p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 2, 2016 at: https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/mde24/4508/2016/en/ Year: 2016 Country: Syria URL: https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/mde24/4508/2016/en/ Shelf Number: 140117 Keywords: Detention FacilitiesPrison ConditionsPrisonersPrisonsTorture |
Author: Correctional Association of New York Title: Voices From Clinton: First-Hand Accounts of Brutality, Torture, and Cover-Up from People Incarcerated at an Infamously Abusive New York State Prison Summary: New York State prisons are plagued by a pervasive and entrenched culture of staff brutality, violence, abuse, racism, dehumanization, and intimidation, as well as the routine infliction of solitary confinement. As Correctional Association of NY (CA) reports on Clinton, Attica, Greene, Fishkill Correctional Facilities and other prisons have long documented, these abuses and their cover-ups are regular and typical practices in Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) prisons. An underlying culture and environment of abuse - not the acts of a few individual bad actors - drive the dehumanization and brutalization taking place. This culture is undergirded and fueled by racism, staff impunity, a lack of meaningful programs, a history of violent repression (especially at Attica and Clinton), and a reliance on force, punishment, and disempowerment. In the mid-1990s, the New York Times reported that federal judges "have repeatedly found that excessive force by guards has violated [incarcerated persons'] civil rights," that corrections experts found the settling of 10 brutality lawsuits at Clinton to be "extraordinary, since [incarcerated persons] rarely win such cases and officials rarely settle them," that Clinton had an internal culture that tolerates a higher level of violence than others, and where guards are more likely to test the boundaries of what is considered acceptable force," and that vast racial and cultural disparities between incarcerated persons and staff exacerbated conflicts. As reported in the CA's 2014 Clinton report, as well as in its August 2015 documented investigations, officers at Clinton have engaged in the most horrific violence against incarcerated people long before the June 2015 escape, in its immediate aftermath, and still today. People incarcerated at Clinton have given first-hand accounts of being suffocated by plastic bags, physically beaten so severely as to result in broken bones, and other forms of brutality, harassment, and abuse. The June 2015 escape and its aftermath only exacerbated the abusive conditions and provided opportunities for staff to utilize longstanding tactics of dehumanization, racism, and brutality. The following narratives provide an in-depth look at the ongoing brutality, torture, and cover-up at Clinton C.F. Based on over 40 interviews, as well as correspondence with over 75 people, the narratives are a representative sample of the experiences, insights, and analyses of people incarcerated at Clinton in 2015. These narratives paint a picture of several recurring themes of staff violence and abuse at Clinton, including: 1) suffocation of people during interrogations; 2) severe and widespread brutality in the aftermath of the June 2015 escape; 3) longstanding and ongoing brutality at Clinton to this day; 4) people with special needs targeted for abuse by staff; 5) widespread use of solitary confinement, including for years and decades; 6) a lack of transparency and accountability for abuses; 7) the denial of the most basic rights and living conditions; and 8) racism and dehumanization at the core of all abuses. Something must be done to stop these human rights violations - at Clinton and across New York State prisons. Due to its infamous history and ongoing horrors, the state should close Clinton, along with Attica, to send a clear message that New York State will no longer tolerate staff brutality, torture, and abuse. Details: New York: Correctional Association of New York, 2016. 40p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 26, 2016 at: http://www.correctionalassociation.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/Voices-From-Clinton-FINAL-6-2016.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://www.correctionalassociation.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/Voices-From-Clinton-FINAL-6-2016.pdf Shelf Number: 140458 Keywords: Prison ConditionsPrisoner AbusePrisonersPrisons |
Author: Great Britain. House of Commons. Justice Committee Title: Prison safety Summary: In this report we examine the Government's response to the ongoing and rapid deterioration in prison safety in England and Wales which began in 2012. We took evidence from the Prisons Minister and the Chief Executive of the National Offender Management Service on prison safety in December 2015, and statistics published in January and April 2016 showed higher rates of self-harm and assaults than in the previous 12 months, and significant growth in the number of incidents compared to the previous quarter. We wished to reflect on the progress made by the Ministry of Justice and NOMS in their efforts to stabilise the rise in assaults against prisoners and staff, incidents of self-harm and self-inflicted deaths, and obtained the views of several key stakeholders in writing. The MoJ and NOMS have sought to improve prison safety through a wide range of legislative, operational and staff recruitment measures, including the creation of new offences of possession of new psychoactive substances and knife possession in prison and action to address violence through the use of body-worn cameras and to improve safeguarding procedures. Notwithstanding these considerable efforts, together with those of staff in prisons striving to keep prisoners and themselves secure and unharmed, overall levels of safety in prisons have not stabilised as the Ministry hoped, let alone improved and continue to deteriorate significantly. We say that this is a matter of great concern, and improvement is urgently needed. Our central recommendation is that the Ministry and NOMS together produce an action plan for improving prison safety, addressing the factors underlying the rises in violence, self-harm and suicide. Of particular concern is a major issue with staff retention which resulted in a net gain of only 440 prison officers last year following the recruitment of 2,250. This is against the fact that there are 7,000 fewer officers than in 2010, when the prison population was about 2,500 lower than it is now. We also say that we wish to receive quarterly reports over the remainder of this Parliament containing data which will enable progress against the plan to be evaluated. We will also continue discussions with HM Inspectorate of Prisons on scrutiny of NOMS' performance in managing prison safety. Details: London: House of Commons, 2016. 32p. Source: Internet Resource: Sixth Report of Session 2015-16, HC 625: Accessed October 19, 2016 at: http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201516/cmselect/cmjust/625/625.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201516/cmselect/cmjust/625/625.pdf Shelf Number: 145897 Keywords: Prison AdministrationPrison ConditionsPrison ViolencePrisons |
Author: Human Rights Watch Title: No Equal Justice: The Prison Litigation Reform Act in the United States Summary: The Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA), passed by Congress in 1996, creates a separate and unequal legal system for the more than 2.3 million incarcerated persons in the United States. The PLRA singles out lawsuits brought by prisoners in federal courts for a host of burdens and restrictions that apply to no other persons. As a result of these restrictions, prisoners seeking the protection of the courts against unhealthy or dangerous conditions of confinement, or a remedy for sexual assault and other injuries inflicted by prison staff and inmates, have had their cases thrown out of court. These restrictions apply not only to persons who have been convicted of crime, but also to pretrial detainees who have not yet been tried and are presumed innocent, and to children in juvenile facilities. Human Rights Watch is not aware of any other country in which national legislation singles out prisoners for a unique set of barriers and obstacles to vindicating their legal rights in court. Drawing on interviews with former corrections officials, prisoners denied remedies for abuse, and criminal justice experts, No Equal Justice examines the effect of the PLRA on prisoners' access to justice. It concludes with specific recommendations for reform of the law to help restore the rule of law to US prisons, jails, and juvenile facilities. Details: New York: HRW, 2009. 55p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 8, 2017 at: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/us0609webwcover.pdf Year: 2009 Country: United States URL: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/us0609webwcover.pdf Shelf Number: 144757 Keywords: Grievance Procedures Prison ConditionsPrison Litigation Reform Act Prisoners |
Author: Council of Europe Title: Report to the Government of the United Kingdom on the visit to the United Kingdom carried out by the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) Summary: The CPT's 2016 periodic visit to the United Kingdom provided an opportunity to review the treatment of persons held in adult and juvenile prisons and police custody in England for the first time since 2008. It also looked at immigration detention. Further, the visit had a specific focus on in-patient adult psychiatry and medium and high secure forensic psychiatry establishments in England. A good level of co-operation was received from both the national authorities and the staff at the establishments visited. However, on a few occasions, access to places of detention was delayed, and the CPT underlines that better coordination is needed to ensure that access to all establishments is rapid and information about the Committee's mandate is disseminated more widely. More generally, in light of the principle of co-operation, the CPT trusts that prompt and effective action is now taken to address long-standing recommendations such as prison overcrowding. Law enforcement agencies The CPT's delegation found that most people deprived of their liberty by the police were treated in a correct manner. It did, however, receive some allegations of verbal abuse from officers towards detained persons at the moment of apprehension and during transport to custody suites and of handcuffs being applied excessively tightly at the time of arrest. The CPT recommends that the United Kingdom authorities make it clear that verbal abuse towards detained persons is unacceptable and that handcuffs should never be applied excessively tightly. The CPT notes that there appeared to be no uniform approach to the use of means of restraint across the 43 police forces in England and Wales and it recommends that the safety of the use of 'spit helmets', velcro fixation straps and Emergency Response Belts in police custody suites be reviewed. Moreover, the CPT recommends that 'Pava' spray should not form part of the standard equipment of custodial staff and should not be used in confined spaces. In general, persons deprived of their liberty by the police were afforded the safeguards laid down in PACE Code C. However, several deficiencies were observed such as a protection vacuum when arrested persons had to wait for up to two hours in holding rooms before their detention was formally authorised and before they were informed of their rights by custody sergeants. The CPT recommends that all detained persons should be fully informed of their rights as from the very outset of their deprivation of liberty (and thereafter of any authorised delay) and current deficiencies impeding the complete recording of the fact of a person's detention should be rectified. Access to a lawyer and a doctor or nurse was generally being facilitated promptly in all police establishments visited. However, there was a lack of respect for lawyer-client confidentiality during consultation by telephone at Southwark and Doncaster Police Stations. As regards custody records, the CPT recommends that whenever a person is deprived of their liberty this fact is formally and accurately recorded without delay and without misrepresentation as to the location of custody, which was not the case at the TACT suite at Paddington Green Police Station. The material conditions of the custody cells in the police establishments visited were generally of a good standard. There was, however, a lack of access to natural light in many cells and most establishments visited were not equipped with proper exercise yards. The conditions at Paddington Green 'TACT' Suite, in particular, were inadequate and needed upgrading. Adult and juvenile prisons The CPT welcomes the recent recognition of the need for profound reform of the prison system at the highest political level. The CPT's delegation discussed the nature and scope of the prison reform agenda with the authorities, where it stressed the problem of violence in prisons. In the view of the CPT, taking resolute action to tackle the problem of violence in prisons in England and Wales is a prerequisite for the successful implementation of other elements of the authorities' reform agenda. The CPT recalls that the adverse effects of overcrowding and lack of purposeful regime have been repeatedly highlighted by the Committee since 1990. Over the last 25 years, the prison population has nearly doubled, and almost all adult prisons now operate at or near full operational capacity and well above their certified normal capacity. The CPT emphasises that unless determined action is taken to significantly reduce the current prison population, the regime improvements envisaged by the authorities' reform agenda will remain unattainable. The CPT's delegation received almost no complaints about physical ill-treatment of inmates by staff in the prisons visited. Nevertheless, it did receive a few complaints about verbal abuse and observed tense relations between staff and inmates. It was, however, deeply concerned by the amount of severe generalised violence evident in each of the prisons visited, notably inter-prisoner violence and attacks by prisoners on staff. Injuries to both prisoners and staff, documented over the previous three months, included inter alia cases of scalding water being thrown over victims and 'shank' (make-shift knife) wounds, and frequently required hospitalisation and in one case resulted in the death of an inmate. The CPT examined the violence through the prism of three criteria: recording incidents of violence, responding to such incidents and specific measures taken to reduce violence. Despite the considerable number of instruments established to capture data regarding violent incidents, there were systemic and structural weaknesses in the documentation process. At both Doncaster and Pentonville Prisons, the delegation gained the impression that the actual number of violent incidents appreciably exceeded the number recorded. This issue appeared to be particularly acute at Doncaster Prison, where the delegation established that some violent incidents had either not been recorded or recorded as being less serious than they were in practice. Moreover, the delegation observed first-hand that violent incidents were not always reported by staff. While the number of recorded violent incidents at all prisons visited was alarmingly high, the CPT believes that these figures under-record the actual number of incidents and consequently fail to afford a true picture of the severity of the situation. Further, inmates at both Doncaster and Pentonville Prisons complained that staff responded slowly to violent incidents. This fuelled a feeling of fear and a perception of a lack of safety among inmates. The consequence was a lack of trust in the staff's ability to maintain prisoner safety. As a start, the CPT recommends that the time taken to respond to inmates' call bells be improved. The CPT is also not convinced of the effectiveness of the specific ongoing measures initiated to reduce and prevent violence and recommends that a far greater investment in preventing violence be undertaken. The CPT's findings in the establishments visited indicate that the duty of care to protect prisoners was not always being discharged given the apparent lack of effective action to reduce the high levels of violence. The cumulative effect of certain systemic failings was that none of the establishments visited could be considered safe for prisoners or staff. The CPT recommends that concrete measures be taken to bring prisons back under the effective control of staff, reversing the recent trends of escalating violence. At Cookham Wood YOI, the high levels of violence were managed primarily through locking juveniles up for long periods of time, on occasion for up to 23.5 hours per day; greater investment in establishing more small specialised units to manage juveniles with complex needs should be made. The CPT underlines that many aspects of prison life are negatively affected by the state of overcrowding in the prison system. For example, living conditions in the prisons visited, in particular Pentonville Prison, were adversely affected by the chronic overcrowding: cells originally designed for one prisoner now hold two. Equally, overcrowding also significantly affects the regime. The delegation found that the regimes in all prison establishments visited were inadequate, with a considerable number of prisoners spending up to 22 hours per day locked up in their cells. Many inmates stated that the long lock-up times contributed to a sense of frustration. The CPT recommends that steps be taken to ensure that inmates attend education and purposeful activities on a daily basis, with the aim that all inmates on a normal regime spend at least eight hours out-of-cell. At Cookham Wood YOI, juveniles on a normal regime spent on average only five hours out of their cells each day. The situation was particularly austere for those juveniles who were placed on 'separation' lists (denoted by vivid pink stickers of 'do not unlock' on their cell doors), who could spend up to 23.5 hours a day locked up alone in their cells. In the CPT's view, holding juveniles in such conditions amounts to inhuman and degrading treatment and all juveniles should be provided with a purposeful regime and considerably more time of cell than is currently the case. As regards the provision of health-care in the prisons visited, the delegation noted that health-care staffing levels were, with a few exceptions, adequate and there was generally good medical documentation of injuries. Medical screening of prisoners upon arrival was of a good quality and carried out promptly. That said, medical confidentiality was not always respected. For example, medication was given to prisoners in corridors or dispensed through a hatch in view of other prisoners. Also prisoners continued to be systematically handcuffed during hospital transfers; the CPT reiterates that handcuffs should only be applied after an individualised risk assessment. Delays in prisoners with mental-health problems being transferred to psychiatric hospitals, in some cases for several months, remain a problem. Further, the placement of prisoners with acute mental health conditions in segregation units is inappropriate. The CPT recommends that prisoners suffering from severe mental illnesses are transferred immediately to an appropriate mental health facility. In this connection, high priority should be given to increasing the number of beds in psychiatric hospitals to ensure that in-patient health-care units, such as the one at Pentonville Prison, do not become a substitute for the transfer of a patient to a dedicated facility. Further, all prison staff should be trained to recognise the major symptoms of mental ill-health and understand referral procedures. Details: Strasbourg: Council of Europe, 2017. 102p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 22, 2017 at: https://rm.coe.int/CoERMPublicCommonSearchServices/DisplayDCTMContent?documentId=090000168070a773 Year: 2017 Country: United Kingdom URL: https://rm.coe.int/CoERMPublicCommonSearchServices/DisplayDCTMContent?documentId=090000168070a773 Shelf Number: 145160 Keywords: Correctional HealthHuman RightsJuvenile Detention CentersMental Health ServicesPolice BehaviorPolicingPrison ConditionsPrison Violence |
Author: Washington Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Urban Affairs Title: D.C. Prisoners: Conditions of Confinement in the District of Columbia Summary: On average, the daily population of D.C. Department of Corrections (DCDOC) facilities exceeds 2,000 prisoners. About three-quarters of these individuals are detained at the Central Detention Facility, a nearly forty-year-old facility commonly referred to as the "D.C. Jail." Just under one quarter are detained at the privately-run Correctional Treatment Facility (CTF). The rest are located at one of the District's three halfway houses. This report examines the conditions of confinement at the D.C. Jail and the CTF and discusses several recurring and serious problems that require the prompt attention of the DCDOC and District policymakers. Details: Washington, DC: The Committee, 2015. 73p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 10, 2017 at; http://www.washlaw.org/pdf/conditions_of_confinement_report.PDF Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: http://www.washlaw.org/pdf/conditions_of_confinement_report.PDF Shelf Number: 135232 Keywords: Correctional InstitutionsJailsPrison ConditionsPrisonersPrisons |
Author: Gulilat, Addisu Title: The Human Rights of Detained Persons in Ethiopia: Case Study in Addis Ababa Summary: The ICCPR under article 10 expressly provides that detained persons should be treated with respect to their dignity. Moreover, the respective supervisory organs of the international and regional human rights instruments make it clear through their jurisprudence that deplorable detention conditions constitute violation of torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. This approach broadens the horizon of protection of human rights abuses in detention places as torture with all its forms is prohibited in many of human rights instruments such as, UDHR, ICCPR, ACHPR, ECHR and ACHR. For this end, a series of minimum standards for treatment of detained persons are adopted both internationally and regional which are serving as thresholds to find violation of human dignity. Likewise, the Ethiopian legal system has equivalent set of legislations for the treatment of detained persons. The 1995 constitution guarantees that detained persons shall be treated with due respect to their dignity. Federal Prisons Commission Establishment Proclamation, 365/2003 points out the mandate, structure and objective of prisons where it expressly provides that prisons have to endeavor to ensure the rehabilitation of detained persons. More importantly the minimum standards for treating detained persons is promulgated by Federal Detainees Treatment Regulation No 138/2007 which provides for Accommodation, Personal hygiene, Clothing and bedding, Food, Medical services, complaints mechanisms and avenue, Inspection, sport and exercise, education and training, separation of accommodation and work conditions. With respect to the practice, however, the study found that treatment of detained persons in Ethiopia failed short of compliance to minimum expectations as it found challenges such as high levels of overcrowding, disease, malnutrition, unhygienic condition, lack of separate treatment based on sex, age, illness and nature of criminal; lack of organized and continuing education and training and absence of viable compliant hearing mechanism. The study, finally, makes recommendations that could rectify the existing challenges. Details: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: Addis Ababa University, 2012. 117p. Source: Internet Resource: Thesis: Accessed September 16, 2017 at: http://etd.aau.edu.et/handle/123456789/1507?mode=full Year: 2012 Country: Ethiopia URL: http://etd.aau.edu.et/handle/123456789/1507?mode=full Shelf Number: 147354 Keywords: Human Rights Abuses Prison ConditionsPrisoners |
Author: Police Foundation Title: Final Report: Independent Review of Security Issues at the James T. Vaughn Correctional Center Summary: On February 1, 2017, the State of Delaware was confronted by the news of an ongoing incident in which inmates housed in the C-Building at the James T. Vaughn Correctional Center (JTVCC), seized the building and took hostages. The seizure of the building resulted in the death of one correctional sergeant; injuries sustained by two other correctional officers; one non-custodial staff member being taken to the hospital for precautionary reasons; and, allegations of inmate injuries. On February 14, 2017, Governor John Carney issued an Executive Order establishing an Independent Review Team to investigate and report on "any conditions at the James T. Vaughn Center that contributed to the hostage situation on February 1, 2017." In response to the Executive Order, the Independent Review Team conducted interviews with correctional, educational, mental health and medical staff, including correctional supervisors, JTVCC administrators, and Delaware Department of Correction (DOC) executive administrators past and present. The Team also reviewed numerous letters from inmates and family members, spoke with community and inmates' rights groups, and interviewed other agency representatives. The Independent Review Team also visited the JTVCC, including the C-Building, observed grievance proceedings, and spoke with inmates individually and in focus groups. The Team also conducted in depth research through review and analysis of policy, training and other departmental documentation; open source media searches; and identification and gap analysis of national corrections and behavioral health best and promising practices. Collectively, the Independent Review Team conducted a comprehensive and thorough review and analysis of the facts and circumstances leading up to the incident that began on February 1, 2017. On June 1, 2017, the Independent Review Team issued a Preliminary Report concerning the causes and conditions leading up to the incident that began on February 1, 2017. Since June 1, 2017, the Independent Review Team conducted further interviews and assessments. This Final Report expands upon the Preliminary Report. It addresses actions taken by the JTVCC, the DOC, and the State of Delaware since February 2017, and contains specific recommendations to prevent, or at least minimize, the likelihood of another similar event. The tragic incident that began on February 1, 2017 in the C-Building of the JTVCC could have occurred elsewhere in the facility. Factors unique to that particular building, however, resulted in the incident occurring there. For some period of time, conditions at the JTVCC had deteriorated to the point that there was unrest among inmates, and distrust between inmates and correctional officers, as well as between correctional officers and JTVCC administrators. Factors giving rise to this unrest included adverse working conditions for the correctional officers, who continue to feel unappreciated by the administration, inconsistently implemented rules and regulations, an inmate grievance procedure deemed unfair, a distrusted medical/mental health system, and a real lack of morale permeating the line officers. The conditions set forth in this report created an environment in which an occurrence like the incident that began on February 1, 2017 would have likely occurred at some point somewhere within the JTVCC. However, the mix of inmates flowing down from maximum to medium security and inmates flowing up from medium towards maximum security in the C-Building and the circumstances giving rise to that mix, as more specifically set forth in the body of the report, hastened the inevitable. Most unfortunately, the Independent Review Team believes that had the request for the removal of certain inmates from the C-Building - made on January 20, 2017 by the very correctional officer who was killed during the incident that began on February 1, 2017 - been taken more seriously and carried out, the incident and the resulting death may not have occurred. As tragic as the unnecessary loss of life is, the incident that began on February 1, 2017 spearheaded long overdue changes in the DOC that will hopefully result in better working conditions for the correctional officers and professional staff as well as living conditions for inmates. Work remains to be done and recommendations are made herein. Lastly, the Independent Review Team commends Governor Carney for his immediate action in requesting this review and already addressing some of the most pressing problems facing the DOC. Details: Dover, DE: Governor's Office, State of Delaware, 2017. 159p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 27, 2017 at: http://governor.delaware.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2017/08/JTVCC-Independent-Review-Team-FINAL-Report-1.pdf Year: 2017 Country: United States URL: http://governor.delaware.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2017/08/JTVCC-Independent-Review-Team-FINAL-Report-1.pdf Shelf Number: 147467 Keywords: Correctional AdministrationHostagesPrison AdministrationPrison ConditionsPrison RiotsPrison Violence |
Author: Prison Reform Trust Title: Bromley Briefings Prison Factfile: Autumn 2017 Summary: This year's Bromley Briefings open with a brand new section which we have called "The long view". The Prison Reform Trust has built its reputation over more than three decades on presenting accurate evidence about prisons and the people in them. In a world where ministers feel compelled to respond to issues with ever greater immediacy, "The long view" offers an antidote to the latest Twitter storm or early morning grilling in the media. We have chosen to concentrate in this briefing on the issue of overcrowding. What the evidence shows is that the core of the current government's approach-to spend more building more prison spaces-is identical to the actions of all its predecessors since the early 1990s. There is every possible indication that it will meet the same fate. So PRT has commissioned two pieces of expert independent analysis relevant to any serious strategic policy to solve the problem of overcrowding. First, we asked a former Director of Finance for the prison service, Julian Le Vay, to analyse the published data on the Ministry of Justice's spending review settlement with the Treasury and its plans for future investment in new prisons. He concluded that the capital cost of a policy based on building more prisons since 1980 has been L3.7bn, and generated an additional annual running cost of L1.5bn-enough to have built 25,000 new homes, and to be employing 50,000 more nurses or teachers. But he also concludes that the ministry's current ambitions are inadequately funded to the tune of L162m in 2018/19, rising to $463m in 2022/23. On current population projections, there is no prospect of any impact on overcrowding before 2022, and a further new programme of building will be needed from 2026. Secondly, we asked Dr Savas Hadjipavlou, of Justice Episteme, to run a scenario on the sophisticated model he has created. This uses what we know about the typical life histories of people who end up in the criminal justice system, together with what we know about how that system operates, to assess the impact of demographic or other changes on key criminal justice outcomes-including the likely size of the prison population. The scenario removed the statutory changes that have inflated sentencing since 2003, and suggests that we would now have a prison population of 70,000 had those changes not been made- in other words, a population several thousand below the system's current uncrowded capacity Details: London: PRT, 2017. 64p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed February 9, 2018 at: http://www.prisonreformtrust.org.uk/Portals/0/Documents/Bromley%20Briefings/Autumn%202017%20factfile.pdf Year: 2017 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://www.prisonreformtrust.org.uk/Portals/0/Documents/Bromley%20Briefings/Autumn%202017%20factfile.pdf Shelf Number: 149078 Keywords: Correctional AdministrationPrison AdministrationPrison ConditionsPrison OvercrowdingPrisonersPrisons |
Author: Howard League for Penal Reform Title: Out of Control: Punishment in Prison Summary: Research by the Howard League for Penal Reform reveals that prisons are routinely and increasingly resorting to draconian punishments in a counter-productive attempt to regain control. It shows that almost 290,000 additional days of imprisonment were handed down to prisoners during 2016 - a 75 per cent rise in only two years - as jails have been brought to breaking point by overcrowding and staff shortages. The Howard League has calculated that the additional days imposed in 2016 alone will cost the taxpayer about $27million. This report reveals how disciplinary hearings, known as adjudications, are used overly and inappropriately, with even minor infractions such as disobedience and disrespect being punished with additional days of imprisonment. The report calls on England and Wales to follow the example set by Scotland, where the use of additional days of imprisonment was scrapped about 10 years ago. Officials and governors in Scotland could find no evidence that abolishing the use of additional days had a negative impact on behaviour, and Scottish prisons have become safer since the change was made. Scrapping the imposition of additional days of imprisonment in England and Wales would stop a vicious cycle. Punishments pile more pressure on the prison population and worsen overcrowding, which in turn creates conditions for drug abuse, violence and other types of misbehaviour. Details: London: The Howard League, 2017. 6p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed February 14, 2018 at: https://howardleague.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Out-of-control.pdf Year: 2017 Country: United Kingdom URL: https://howardleague.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Out-of-control.pdf Shelf Number: 149129 Keywords: Inmate DisciplineInmatesPrison AdministrationPrison ConditionsPrisoners |
Author: Armstrong, Andrea Title: The Impact of 300 Years of Jail Conditions. The New Orleans Prosperity Index: Tricentennial Edition, March 2018 Summary: New Orleans has jailed people for almost as long as the city has existed. Beginning from the first incarnation of Orleans Parish Prison in 1721 by Jean-Baptiste de Bienville at Jackson Square to its current iteration under federal court supervision near the criminal courthouse at Tulane Avenue and Broad Street, the jail has imposed inhumane conditions on the people detained there. But the conditions in the jail not only affect those detained, but our community as well. Modern accounts of Orleans Parish Prison (OPP), recently renamed the Orleans Justice Center, have focused on the impact of Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and its aftermath, with little attention to centuries of detention that came before. This article links the current conditions in the jail to the jail's historical role in New Orleans to explore the extent to which detention in the New Orleans jail has contributed to racial inequality in New Orleans today. A historical account of the jail is important to understand the centuries of inhumane conditions imposed overwhelmingly on African American members of our community. Written accounts from the 1800s to present describe dangerous, unsanitary, and torturous conditions for Orleans parish detainees. As recently as 2013, Federal District Court Judge Lance Africk described the conditions in the jail as "an indelible stain on the community." These dehumanizing conditions are disproportionately imposed on African Americans. Local, state, and federal legislative reforms of criminal justice policies have focused on the drivers and outputs of incarceration, but have largely ignored the conditions of confinement themselves. In so doing, these reform efforts ignore the devastating and lifelong effects on detained individuals and our community. This essay concludes by highlighting the importance of community engagement in improving conditions at the jail. Details: New Orleans: Loyola University New Orleans College of Law, 2018. 12p. Source: Internet Resource: Loyola University New Orleans College of Law Legal Studies Research Paper Series 2018-05: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3152415 Year: 2018 Country: United States URL: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3152415 Shelf Number: 149875 Keywords: Civil RightsJail AdministrationJailsPrison ConditionsPrison LawPrisoners |
Author: Great Britain. Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Prisons Title: Report on an unannounced inspection of Heathrow Immigration Removal Centre Harmondsworth Site Summary: Harmondsworth immigration removal centre (IRC) is Europe's largest detention facility, holding up to 676 male detainees, close to Heathrow Airport. The centre is run for the Home Office by Care and Custody, a division of the Mitie Group. Since 2014, Harmondsworth has been under the same management as the neighbouring Colnbrook IRC, and the two centres are collectively known as the Heathrow IRC. However, they remain discrete sites and, in light of their size and complexity, we are continuing to inspect them separately. In addition to our normal methodology, we employed an enhanced methodology at this inspection which included hundreds of interviews and surveys. The main objectives were to give detainees and staff an opportunity to tell inspectors, in confidence, about any incidents or concerns relating to the safe and decent treatment of detainees; to identify cultural or structural issues affecting outcomes; and to identify areas of positive and progressive work. The last inspection of Harmondsworth in 2015 highlighted concerns in relation to safety, respect and provision of activities. This report describes a centre that had made some improvements, but not of the scale or speed that were required. In some areas, there had been a deterioration. The centre's task in caring for detainees was not made any easier by the profile of those who were held. There was a very high level of mental health need and nearly a third of the population was considered by the Home Office to be vulnerable under its at risk in detention policy. The continuing lack of a time limit on detention meant that some men had been held for excessively long periods: 23 men had been detained for over a year and one man had been held for over 4.5 years, which was unacceptable. Processes for safeguarding detainees were not good enough. Detention Centre Rule 35 reports, which are intended to give some protection to the most vulnerable detainees, lacked rigour. Worryingly, in nearly all of the cases we examined, the Home Office accepted evidence that detainees had been tortured, but maintained detention regardless. Insufficient attention was given to post-traumatic stress and other mental health problems. There were delays in referring potential trafficking victims to the National Referral Mechanism (NRM) and our staff interviews confirmed widespread ignorance of the NRM. The first night unit had been relocated since our last visit and now provided a much calmer environment for newly arrived detainees. However, reception and first night processes were superficial and left many detainees feeling anxious and ill-informed. Violence was not high but violence management processes were weak and a high number of detainees felt unsafe. Detainees told us this was because of the uncertainty associated with their cases, but also because a large number of their fellow detainees seemed mentally unwell, frustrated or angry. Many detainees on the newer and more prison-like units found being locked into their cells at night upsetting and stressful, and drug use was becoming an increasing problem. Self-harm was low compared with other centres and detainees at risk of self-harm were often positive about staff efforts to support them, although those who spoke little English were less well served. The governance of use of force was generally good and we noted that managers had identified an illegitimate use of force by a member of staff on CCTV cameras and dismissed the person concerned. Neither detainees nor staff told us of a pernicious or violent subculture, but some aspects of security would have been disproportionate in a prison and were not acceptable in an IRC. For example, detainees taken to the separation unit were routinely handcuffed and then strip-searched, regardless of individual risk. Harmondsworth is the centre where, in 2013, we identified the disgraceful treatment of an ill and elderly man who was kept in handcuffs as he died in hospital. A more proportionate approach to handcuffing was subsequently put in place by the Home Office and followed by the centre contractor. It is with concern, therefore, that at this inspection we found detainees once again being routinely handcuffed when attending outside appointments without evidence of risk. Only 58% of detainees in our survey said that most staff treated them with respect, well below the average figure for IRCs. Staffing levels were low and neither staff nor detainees felt that there were enough officers to effectively support detainees. Around a third of staff told us themselves that they did not have sufficient training to do their jobs well. Few had an adequate understanding of whistleblowing procedures. Physical conditions had improved since our last inspection, but the environment remained below acceptable standards in much of the centre. Many areas were dirty and bedrooms, showers and toilets were poorly ventilated. It was particularly unacceptable that two years after we raised bed bugs as a serious concern, they remained endemic in the centre and continued to affect detainees' physical and mental well-being. Detainees were often critical of health services, but we found generally adequate health care provision. A significant exception was the inability of health services to meet the very high level of mental health need. Communication with detainees by health care staff was also weak but starting to improve. An important aspect of well-being is activity, but only 29% of detainees in our survey said they could fill their time while in the centre and many described a sense of purposelessness and boredom. Few detainees were able to work, and the education provision was underused and did not meet the needs of detainees. There were a number of positive areas of work. For example, the on-site immigration team made considerable efforts to engage with detainees, faith provision was good and complaints were managed well. The dedicated and well-organised welfare services were impressive and there was positive engagement with third sector groups. The charity Hibiscus Initiatives provided support to many detainees before release or removal and the local visitors' group was active and well supported. However, our overall finding was that the centre had failed to progress significantly since our last visit in 2015. For the third consecutive inspection, we found considerable failings in the areas of safety and respect. Detainees, many identified as vulnerable, were not being adequately safeguarded. Some were held for unacceptably long periods. Mental health needs were often not met. Detainees were subject to some disproportionate security restrictions and living conditions were below decent standards. It is time for the Home Office and contractors to think again about how to ensure that more substantial progress is made by the time that we return. Details: London: HMIP, 2018. 103p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 24, 2018 at: https://www.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/hmiprisons/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2018/03/Harmondsworth-Web-2017.pdf Year: 2018 Country: United Kingdom URL: https://www.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/hmiprisons/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2018/03/Harmondsworth-Web-2017.pdf Shelf Number: 149878 Keywords: Illegal ImmigrantsImmigrant DetentionImmigration EnforcementImmigration PolicyPrison Conditions |
Author: Great Britain. Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Prisons Title: Annual Report 2017-18 Summary: In the year 2017-18 prison inspectors documented some of the most disturbing jail conditions they had ever seen, according to Peter Clarke, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons. Launching his third annual report, Mr Clarke said these conditions had no place in the prison system in an advanced nation in the 21st century. "Violence, drugs, suicide and self‑harm, squalor and poor access to education are again prominent themes." However, 2017-18 was also a year in which the Inspectorate agreed with the government an important new protocol for demanding, publicly, urgent action from the government in prisons, young offender institutions and secure training centres where the outcomes for those held, particularly in terms of safety, are exceptionally poor. This Urgent Notification was invoked in the year in relation to HMP Nottingham. Along with this, Mr Clarke welcomed a government decision to fund the Inspectorate to do follow-up work in a small number of troubling cases - potentially "one of the most significant developments for the independent scrutiny of prisons in recent years." Details: London: HM Chief Inspector of Prisons, 2018. 128p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 16, 2018 at: https://www.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/hmiprisons/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2018/07/6.4472_HMI-Prisons_AR-2017-18_Content_A4_Final_WEB.pdf Year: 2018 Country: United Kingdom URL: https://www.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/hmiprisons/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2018/07/6.4472_HMI-Prisons_AR-2017-18_Content_A4_Final_WEB.pdf Shelf Number: 150884 Keywords: Correctional Institutions Prison ConditionsPrisons |
Author: International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) Title: Behind the Walls: A look at conditions in Thailand's prisons after the coup Summary: Thailand's prison population has steadily increased over the years and the country has the dubious distinction of having the largest prison population and the highest incarceration rate among Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member states. For more than a decade, United Nations (UN) human rights mechanisms have expressed concern over prison conditions in Thailand. Regrettably, successive Thai governments have failed to make any progress in the implementation of the UN's recommendations and to uphold their own commitments to improve prison conditions. In addition, since the 2014 military coup, Thailand's junta has enforced measures that have caused conditions in the prisons to deteriorate. The junta also increased the use of military facilities to detain civilians. As documented in this report, Thailand's ongoing failure to enact a comprehensive prison reform has created conditions for human rights violations to be rife in its prison system in breach of the country's obligations under international instruments to which it is a state party. The Thai Department of Corrections' motto, 'Caring Custody, Meaningful Rehabilitation, International Standard Achievement', could not be further from the reality of the Thai prison system. Research conducted by FIDH and UCL on two large prisons in Bangkok suggests that Thailand's prison conditions fail to meet international standards and to create an environment conducive to the rehabilitation of prisoners. Overcrowding remains the most pressing issue in Thai prisons. Thailands average yearly prison population has steadily increased over the years and, aside from the periodic royal amnesties, no other effective and sustainable measures have been adopted to significantly reduce the population. Based on a standard to provide a surface area per prisoner of 2.25m , available official statistics representing 74% of Thailand's prisons and 91% of its overall prison population show that these prisons are operating with a prison population of more than double the intended capacity - with an occupancy level of 224%. Inadequate access to medical treatment, insufficient food and potable water, and poor sanitation facilities continue to plague the prisons examined in this report. It is likely that similar conditions exist in other prisons across Thailand. Medical care and special arrangements for pregnant women are particularly lacking. Prisoners are often subjected to exploitative labor practices characterized by harsh working conditions and insufficient remuneration. Punishment in prisons contravenes international standards and, in some cases, may amount to torture and ill-treatment. Prisoners' statements indicate that restraining devices, such as shackles, have been excessively used. Finally, inmates have reported unreasonable restrictions placed on visits and correspondence with family and friends. While procedures for making complaints exist, prisoners are afraid to lodge complaints out of fear of retaliation at the hands of prison officials. The situation has not improved since the 22 May 2014 military coup. Under the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) access to prisons has become more difficult. In addition, based on interviews with former prisoners and families of current inmates, FIDH and UCL were able to document that prison authorities have enforced stricter prison regulations and further curtailed prisoners' rights. Of particular concern is the increased use of military bases to detain civilians, which do not afford detainees many of their basic rights. The use of the Nakhon Chaisri temporary detention facility inside the 11th Army Circle base in Bangkok illustrates this trend. Since the establishment of Nakhon Chaisri less than two years ago, there has been a lack of access for independent monitors, two custodial deaths, and allegations of torture have surfaced. This report recommends numerous measures to improve detention conditions, including providing independent inspection bodies unfettered access to all prisons and allowing non-governmental organizations with a relevant mandate to conduct visits to places of detention, interview inmates, and assess conditions without undue hindrance. Details: Paris: FIDH, 2017. 44p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 4, 2018 at: https://www.fidh.org/IMG/pdf/rapport_thailand_688a_web.pdf Year: 2017 Country: Thailand URL: https://www.fidh.org/IMG/pdf/rapport_thailand_688a_web.pdf Shelf Number: 150332 Keywords: Human Rights AbusesPrisonPrison AdministrationPrison ConditionsPrisoners |
Author: McGuire, James Title: Understanding Prison Violence: A Rapid Evidence Assessment Summary: The occurrence of violent assault in prison is a challenging problem. This Analytical Summary reports the findings of a rapid evidence assessment (REA) into the causes of physically violent assaults by male adult prisoners. The REA reviewed 97 research studies published since 1st January 2000. Key findings - Most of the published research is focused on imported characteristics - the personal characteristics of men who are violent in prison - and attempts to predict who they will be. Imported characteristics associated with prison violence include youth, history of earlier violence in prison or with violent convictions, membership of gangs, low self-control, anger, temper, mental health problems, and antisocial attitudes and personality. - The prison environment also plays a considerable role in how prisoners behave. Physically poor conditions, highly controlling regimes, or by contrast circumstances in which rules are unevenly applied or not adhered to or where prisoners do not experience staff decisions as fair or legitimate, can each heighten tensions and induce stresses potentially giving rise to conflict and assault. - Perhaps surprisingly, evidence that crowding in and of itself was a direct cause of violence was fairly weak. Research suggested that the effects of crowding are mediated through staff-prisoner interactions and that the crucial factor in maintaining order is the availability and the skills of unit staff. - Some features of prison activity make violence less likely. Places within a prison where prisoners are engaged in purposeful activities they consider valuable, such as workshops and education, are less prone to be sites of aggression. Violence is more likely to occur in places that offer less purpose, have fewer formal ground-rules, and lower staff oversight, such as cells. - A policy designed to reduce violence could be oriented towards situational control aspects of day-to-day prison management. That would require staff training in the use of styles and patterns of interaction that wield authority alongside instilling respect. Details: London: HM Prison and Probation Service: 2018. 9p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 7, 2018 at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/737956/understanding-prison-violence.pdf Year: 2018 Country: United Kingdom URL: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/737956/understanding-prison-violence.pdf Shelf Number: 151429 Keywords: Correctional Administration Offender ManagementPrison Administration Prison Conditions Prison Health Prison Violence Prisons |
Author: Arizona. Department of Corrections Title: Arizona State Prison-Kingman Riots Assessment Summary: On July 1, 2015, at approximately 6:10 p.m., a riot occurred at the Cerbat Unit of the Arizona State Prison in Kingman operated by private contractor Management & Training Corporation (MTC). The Incident Command System (ICS) was activated due to the aggravated assault of an inmate, the subsequent aggravated assault of five staff members, and the rioting that followed these assaults. The MTC Designated Armed Response Team (DART) and Tactical Support Unit (TSU) responded to the riot, joined by the ADC Winslow Tactical Support Unit, the Mohave County Sheriff's Office (MCSO), Arizona Department of Public Safety (DPS), and local ambulance providers. The inmates broke windows and destroyed surveillance cameras, and severely damaged numerous staff offices and officer stations. On July 2, 2015, and again on July 4, 2015, a riot occurred at the Hualapai Unit of the Arizona State Prison in Kingman operated by private contractor Management & Training Corporation (MTC). The riot spread throughout multiple buildings and rendered four of the five housing units uninhabitable. This subsequent riot triggered the immediate deployment of six of the remaining nine ADC Tactical Support Units from Lewis, Perryville, Tucson, Safford, Florence, Eyman, Douglas, Yuma, and Phoenix. On July 3, 2015, Arizona Department of Corrections Director Charles L. Ryan declared an emergency pursuant to A.R.S. S 41-1609(E)(2) and notified Governor Douglas A. Ducey and Attorney General Mark Brnovich of the need to relocate inmates to other facilities. ADC subsequently relocated 1202 inmates to other prisons and numerous county jails: 40 inmates from the Cerbat Unit and 1162 inmates from the Hualapai Unit. An ADC Assessment Team assembled by Director Ryan, and pursuant to the direction of Governor Ducey, conducted a comprehensive investigation of the riots, ultimately completing approximately 300 interviews with MTC employees and approximately 400 inmates, and reviewing thousands of pages of MTC documents. The scope of the investigation included a thorough analysis of (1) the riots, including the precipitating events and the aftermath, (2) MTC's operational response to the riots, (3) MTC's leadership and staff, (4) MTC's inmate management, supervision, and communication practices, (5) MTC's training practices for leadership and staff, (6) MTC's interactions with ADC's Monitoring Team, and (7) MTC's performance deficiencies compared to five years earlier following the escape of three inmates from the same facility. Details: Phoenix: Author, 2015. v.p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed June 13, 2019 at: https://corrections.az.gov/reports-documents/reports/kingman-riots-assessment Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: https://corrections.az.gov/reports-documents/reports/kingman-riots-assessment Shelf Number: 156413 Keywords: Correctional AdministrationHostagesPrison AdministrationPrison ConditionsPrison Riots |
Author: Vivalta, Carlos J. Title: Prison Populism in Latin America: Reviewing the Dynamics of Prison Population Growth Summary: Not much information can be found on the size and trends of the prison population in Latin America. Over the past few years, our knowledge base has started to increase. Now we know, with certainty, that prison populations have been growing much faster than the general population, and that their living conditions are extremely harsh. Thus it should not surprise us when we often hear of deadly prison riots happening in countries like Brazil, Venezuela, and Mexico, as consequence of overcrowding and poor living conditions. Although living conditions in prisons in the region are still appalling, rapid growth seems to have come to an end. Trend data suggests that the Latin American prison population rate has stabilized. The objective of this study is to offer a data-driven review of the growth, trends, and the principle reasons behind the rapid expansion of the prison population in the region during the past two decades. A key factor appears to be the rise of prison populism. We do not provide an argument for the recent decrease in the growth rate, it is too early to determine whether the recent slow-down in prison population growth is due to a regime shift in the time series, or the effect of random variation. Still, ceteris paribus, we provide a projection of the prison population rate for the region. This Strategic Note fills a gap in the literature. Our particular contribution consists of the compilation on quantitative data of the regions prison population, with the purpose of providing a broad but novel overview of the rapid growth and challenges to a wide audience of researchers and practitioners worldwide. Details: Rio de Janeiro: Igarape Institute, 2019. 16p. Source: Internet Resource: Strategic Note 32: https://igarape.org.br/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/2019-03-29-NE-32_Prision-Growth-EN.pdf Year: 2019 Country: Latin America URL: https://igarape.org.br/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/2019-03-29-NE-32_Prision-Growth-EN.pdf Shelf Number: 156840 Keywords: Prison ConditionsPrison Overcrowding Prison Population Prisoners |