“No charges in mentally ill man’s death at Lindsay jail” headlined Fatima Syed’s piece in the October 31st Toronto Star, referring to the in-custody beating death of Soleiman Faqiri at the Central East Correctional Centre on December 15, 2016.

To quote: “The Kawartha Lakes Police Service told the family in a brief email sent on Friday that the conclusion of an investigation into the death of Faqiri, 30, had been reached after a thorough analysis of all the evidence and witness statements, and after consulting with the Office of the Crown Attorney and medical experts.”
No charges would be forthcoming.

Oh, really?

Further, that “the family has responded to the email with shock, anger and most of all, confusion.”

You think?

November 6, 2017

The Honourable Marie-France Lalonde,
Minister of Community Safety & Correctional Service,
18th Floor, 25 Grosvenor Street,
Toronto, ON M7A 1Y6

Re: Soleiman Faqiri

Dear Minister Lalonde:

“You’re kidding”, is a polite reaction to the news that no charges will be laid in the beating death of Soleiman Faqiri at Central East in Lindsay in December of 2016.

Quite simply, this man was alive on the morning of December 15 last year, and in custody at a provincial jail. There was a three-hour-long ‘interaction’ with a dozen or so uniformed public servants. By day’s end, this man was dead.

Enclosed is “No detective needed!”, an October 8th illumination of December 15, posted on turnoverarocktoday.com,, and composed in the greater part by a guest writer. Look at the site too for “Soleiman Faqiri…..one for the ages” posted October 15.

I wonder. Is it the uniforms the investigators couldn’t see passed?

Frankly offended,

Charles H. Klassen

cc Kathleen Wynne – Premier, Province of Ontario
Nasir Naqvi – Attorney General, Province of Ontario
John Hagarty – Chief of Police, Kawartha Lades Police Service
Renu Mandhane – Chief Commissioner, Ontario Human Right Commission
Douglas Houghton – Superintendent, Central East Correctional Centre
Nader R. Hasan – Ruby, Shiller, Chan, Hasan
Matt Galloway – CBC, Metro Morning
Fatima Syed – The Toronto Star
turnoverarocktoday.com

Tens of thousands of Ontarians know where culpability lies here. The greater tragedy is the reticence of so many to challenge the judgement of their civil servants.

How many times does this need to be said… We must stand up. We must speak up. We must act up. Or, we must pack up!

The Ontario Human Rights Commission reached a binding ‘landmark’ legal settlement with Ontario’s Ministry of Community Safety & Correctional Services in September of 2013 in support of inmate Christina Jahn’s complaint that she had spent 210 days in solitary confinement at the Ottawa-Carleton Detention Centre, where she endured cruel and inhumane treatment because of her gender and mental illness.

Among what were called “public interest remedies” to address the treatment of women and mentally ill inmates in provincial jails, MCSCS committed to prohibit placing mentally ill inmates in segregation except under extreme circumstances, plus a greater monitoring of segregation practices, and the development of enhanced mental health screening. In addition, every inmate sent to segregation was to be given a handout, a booklet explaining the conditions of a solitary placement, and the rights, recourses and resources available.

Not much happened, despite the agency’s claim to the contrary.

MCSCS was taken to task again, and again it claimed to be moving forward with what it had agreed to do. Admitting to the ministry’s shortcomings though, Minister Marie-France Lalonde insisted work was underway to correct them.

Since the settlement was reached four years ago, 11 people have died in Ontario segregation units. What’s more, Howard Sapers, Canada’s former federal correctional investigator who is acting for the province to report on the state of provincial jails, and recommend improvements, issued findings on solitary confinement in May of this year. It showed the segregation of mentally ill inmates had increased in the years since the Jahn settlement.

Renu Mandhane, Ontario’s head human rights commissioner, told a news conference in the fall that, “when the province signs on the dotted line, it should be held accountable for its promises.”

And so, on September 26, 2017, the OHRC took new legal action, asking the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario to expedite an order for the government to implement the terms of the agreement it had voluntarily accepted. The human rights commission intends to press for an speedy resolution.

This is one further example of why policy around our prison industry operations needs to be enshrined in legislation, and not left to the whims of mandarins in the public service.

Ontario…..a place to stand, a place to grow? How about a place where the government keeps its word, and does what’s right!

….keeps breaking its own rules, year after year after year.

Another archived file is a Canadian Press release from July 16, “Failure to comply with video taping rules for use-of-force incidents ‘alarming’: correctional investigator.”

Canada’s new Correctional Investigator, Ivan Zinger, is picking up where Howard Sapers left off, and has been publicly vocal in his criticism of CSC when and where the agency doesn’t measure up. The standards Mr. Zinger applies are not only the best practices in force in other jurisdictions, but CSC’s own procedures.

Of the 1,436 use-of-force incidents by guards against prisoners reviewed by the correctional investigator’s office in fiscal 2016-2017, there was a problem with video evidence about 67% of the time. Note this applies only to those cases where the OCI was informed and subsequently took a decision to become involved, and not where use-of-force was not reported, or where no records exist.

CSC policy says that guards must use hand-held video cameras when use-of-force is planned, and as feasible in spontaneous situations. Statistics show there’s a problem with compliance in both circumstances.

To quote from this press release on the absence of video evidence:
“One recent example is the case of Timothy (Mitch) Nome, who alleged guards in March at Kent Institution in Agassiz, B.C., beat him in his cell without provocation. The independent investigator from Zinger’s office found no hand-held video of the incident was available for reasons not properly explained.
The lack of video evidence that could have proven or refuted Nome’s allegation left the investigator with little choice other than to say he couldn’t conclude what happened in Nome’s cell that morning, his report shows.”

Compliance has improved in the last few years, but issues such as delays in getting cameras to where they’re needed even when resources are available, not recording pre-incident briefings, and not filming decontamination practices where chemical agents have been employed, continue to plague the process.

“This is behind the wall and it’s always very secretive so there’s even more of a necessity that you follow policy with respect to video evidence,” Zinger said. “It’s to the benefit of everybody to make sure that cameras are used appropriately.”

Wouldn’t you think that consequences follow failures to comply with directives? What would the Union of Canadian Correctional Officers recommend as a remedy?

As for Correctional Service Canada, spokesperson Laura Cumming wouldn’t comment on the data in this report as the agency hasn’t verified the information. She also said policy breaches are not tolerated and would be investigated.

Correctional Service Canada spokespeople always say policy breaches are not tolerated and would be investigated. They say it over and over and over, year after year.

….okay in Canada, federal prosecutors say.

Section 12 of the Charter states: Everyone has the right not to be subjected to any cruel and unusual treatment or punishment.

Dipping into our archives to review what’s been sitting on the back burner waiting for attention is Toronto Globe and Mail justice writer Sean Fine’s, “Federal prosecutors defend use of cruel, unusual punishment,” from last spring.

Several convicted people are using section 12 to challenge the legality of a Conservative-era law that imposes a financial burden on all convicted criminals, no matter how poor. “The mandatory victim surcharge was a centrepiece of the Harper government’s push to give more rights to victims and fewer to accused and convicted offenders,” says Sean Fine in his column.

Lawyers from the Public Prosecutions Service of Canada defended the surcharge before the Ontario Court of Appeal in mid-March, citing section 1 of the Charter where the government may seek to justify limits on rights, and courts must decide if the limits are reasonable. They claim the law is fair because the poor have extra time to pay, and cannot be jailed for defaulting.

The law ignited a judicial rebellion from the onset when judges in many provinces gave offenders up to 99 years to pay, or charged as little as thirty cents, or simply ignored it. And, the defence arguments are deeply at odds with the Liberal government’s present position on this law, and on the primacy of the Charter.

The federal prosecution service acts independently from the justice minister to avoid possible or perceived political interference. The minister does have the authority of a final say, and this case raises an issue about when that power should be employed. As it is, the present government is intent on reviewing the status of legislation that is not consistent with its commitments to a progressive approach to criminal law, and its support of Charter values.

An interesting sidebar is that if the prosecutors succeed in their arguments that the government can justify cruel and unusual punishment, the ruling might be used to defend practices up to and including torture.

One justice scholar recalls a 1982 conversation with Pierre Trudeau, father of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and the Canadian prime minister who initiated the Charter. According to the senior Trudeau, “You know, I think section 12 might be the only absolute right.”

The appeal judges reserved their decision.

“No detective needed!”, posted October 8, sketched the proverbial tip of an iceberg in Ontario’s prison industry. Would observers in other provinces say differently about British Columbia or Manitoba or Nova Scotia? Not likely. Is our federal penal system immune? There’s plenty of evidence that says it’s not.

True, few inmates die, and only a minute number of survivors step forward to fight for the attention warranted. And, what does the general public say? Tear some away from their brain-hacking mobile devices long enough to see there’s a problem, and most will shrink into their shells, afraid to assert their authority, overwhelmed by circumstances over which they believe are beyond their control……or, lacking the interest to accept responsibility for the bad decisions of their public employees.

Yes, there are honest men and women with ethical intentions and moral centres working in provincial and federal institutions, but the constraints of a forced conformity negate good will and progressive foresight.

What about management? What about ministry staff? What about the politicians charged with the oversight of our jails and prisons? Yes, what about them? Where is the accountability and transparency? Are these civil servants of ours thick-headed, unable to recognize what is under their noses?

Of course they’re not. There’s an old Victorian adage which says, “I don’t care what you do, as long as you don’t do it in the street and frighten the horses.” Just keep a lid on whatever might float to the surface, damage control the leaks, and disparage the naysayers. When the pot does boil over, deny, deny, deny……and, quietly make the mess go away.

Change? Now that’s difficult. The ebb and flow of policy ‘corrections’ are meant to mollify the doubters and activists. Confining legislation is a necessary first step. But in spite of constant setbacks, there’s always hope.

For now, Soleiman Faqiri gave his life to ask us all…….where were you?

It didn’t have to happen!

Soleiman Faqiri….another prison murder mystery?

Globe and Mail, Friday, July 21, 2017 – “Inmate died in solitary after dispute with officers: coroner’s report.”
Patrick White’s column began, “A 30-year-old Ontario man suffered at least 50 injuries before dying in a provincial solitary confinement cell last December, the culmination of an hours-long confrontation with prison guards.”

Soleiman Faqiri, a schizophrenic, was arrested on December 4, 2016, and charged with one count of assault and one count of uttering a death threat. He was transported to Central East Correctional Centre in Lindsay, placed in a segregation cell, and eleven days later, on December 15 and in deteriorating mental health, he died.

He died at the hands of jail guards. The coroner’s report noted a long list of injuries to Mr. Faqiri’s body, “including a bruised laceration on the forehead, multiple bruises about the nose, neck and ears, along with dozens of bruises and abrasions of his torso and limbs,” caused by blunt force trauma. All the same, the coroner would not, could not, explain this death.

Mr. Faqiri’s family want answers. In the meantime, Brennan Guigue has written an opinion, based on material published in the Globe and Mail, and the Toronto Star, and on his long experience with Canada’s prison industry:-

So, Chris Butsch, local union president representing correctional officers at Central East Correctional Centre in Lindsay, rejects allegations of wrongdoing by his members?! He doesn’t know the exact cause of Soleiman Faqiri’s death?!

Really?

Let’s assess the situation based on the information contained in Patrick White’s Globe and Mail article from July 21, 2017……and my knowledge of, and experience with, similar circumstances.
1) Five or six guards escorted Soleiman Faqiri from the showers to cell B-10. Control of an inmate dictates the number of guards. One is assigned to each limb (4), one officer is assigned control of the inmate’s head (Mr. Faqiri was “hunched over” because the guard was physically holding it down.) Finally, one officer is assigned control of the capsicum canister to ‘charge’ the pepper spray for the duration of the event.
These are standard procedures for the handling of an aggressive or…..”rebellious” inmate.
2) Mr. Faqiri was handcuffed and shackled, lending even more control for the guards.
3) But, because 6 prison guards didn’t have enough control over this one individual in full restraints, he was ‘doused’ with pepper spray. That word alone conjures up visions of someone having a bucket of water dumped over them.

What?

Understand the purpose of pepper spray and how it is to be used.
Pepper spray is part of a guard’s arsenal of tools, for use as a deterrent when an inmate is acting in a threatening or aggressive way toward staff/self/or others.
That’s it……, that’s all. It’s very simple.
No matter what MCSCS may claim, chemical agents are not to be used on a handcuffed and shackled inmate who refuses to enter a cell, and is surrounded by 5 or 6 jail guards.

So now, the inmate has been sprayed, and I guarantee that spray was directed at his face, mouth, and nose, contrary to training and policy, and he is then wrestled to the floor by 5 or 6 guards, all the while struggling to breathe.

What is it like to be ‘doused’ with pepper spray? Take the cayenne, chili, and any other pepper in your kitchen, boil it in a pot of water until reduced to sludge. Smear that all over your face, including your eyes and nostrils, and then even gargle with it. Now, try to pick a fight with six other people while your hands and feet are tied. As a by-the-way, capsicum is 7 to 10 times more potent than the sludge from your kitchen’s pepper supply, but media reports are always woefully understated.

Excusing the aside, you really need to understand what happened to this human being, and empathize with the torture to which he was subjected.

Making this worse, the inmate was then sprayed a second time! For certain, this second dose was also directly in the face at a range of only two to three inches. Believe me, when that happens, the one and only thing your mind tells your body to do is…..SURVIVE!

To quote Patrick White’s article, Mr Faqiri was “continuing to raise himself off the floor”. This was a clear sign he was in pure “fight or flight” mode. Could you struggle with 6 people, one on each limb, while handcuffed and shackled, and with such intensity that the guards called for help, calling a Code Blue? And that, after being sprayed not once, but twice, in the face with a chemical agent that is specifically designed to inhibit sight and breathing?

In one particular incident last year at Toronto South when two guards were assaulted, one male and one female who sprained a wrist, that was a justified Code Blue circumstance where immediate assistance was needed. This situation at Lindsay on December 15 was not. But the call was made, and 45 to 90 seconds later, the “second shift” arrives and places “a hood over his head” (Faqiri), further restricting the inmate’s breathing. It’s the youngest, fittest, strongest, most gung-ho male guards who respond to the Code Blue; they have to sprint from all areas of the institution.

The result? “A lengthy list of injuries”, “dozens of bruises”, nose (punches to the face, or a grown man’s weight smashing his head into the floor, and probably both), neck (choke hold), ears (again, strikes or smashing of the head into the floor), “blunt force trauma.” The coroner suggests that Mr. Faqiri’s arrhythmia could have been triggered by a combination of physical struggle, emotional agitation, and pain. Oh…., and there’s the presence of antipsychotic medication.

Really? Basically then, handcuffed, twice pepper sprayed, choked, beaten, and having his head covered with a hood, all the while having two separate groups of 5 or 6 guards on top of him had absolutely nothing to do with this man’s death!

If the second shift of guards was necessary because the first shift was exhausted from struggling with one person, how exhausted would Mr. Faqiri have been? Perhaps the guards mistook Mr. Faqiri for Dr. David Banner, and feared he was about to transform into the HULK. That’s about as believable as Mr. Butsch’s claim that his members “acted professionally to subdue a rebellious inmate”! And then he goes on to say neither he nor anyone else knows the exact cause of death!

Oh well then……case closed people, job well done. Mr. Faqiri must have been suicidal and he somehow managed to kill himself while being restrained by a total of no less than 10 to 12 grown adults.

Case closed.

Sometimes the answers are less important than the questions.
1) All capsicum canisters are weighed at the start of each shift, as well as at the end. When a guard sprays any amount of chemical agent during a use-of-force incident, that canister is weighed to determine how much agent was used. That’s the policy. Each canister holds a specific number of ‘doses’, and the amount used indicates how many doses were deployed against an individual.
Question: How many doses were used against Mr. Faqiri? How much time elapsed between the first ‘dousing’, the second round, the Code Blue response time and, finally, the end of staff intervention? Did the coroner find traces of capsicum in the lungs and throat?
Remember, during this whole incident this man could not breathe, move, see, and was being choked, enduring dozens of blunt force strikes.

In the end, any reasonably intelligent person could see that, (1) the guards used their pepper spray as a weapon and not as a deterrent, (2) 5 or 6 staff members should have been able to control a person who was already subdued in full restraints….or has their training not prepared them for such situations, (3) they then employed excessive, gratuitous force, beat him up, claiming it was necessary to gain his compliance, but more likely, it was to teach him a lesson, (4) and, this is the kicker……THE MAN DIED!

A final thought: what would happen if you and four or five of your friends jumped an individual, tied him up, beat him, causing “dozens of bruises” (more that 50……..50!), choked him until he stopped moving and breathing….., and then found that you had killed that person. What would happen in a court of law, given the available evidence?
Question: Why should those we hold to a higher standard be able to commit murder, and not be held responsible for their actions?
“Held responsible”…..isn’t that the basis of our legal system?

When these cases come to light, people act surprised; there’s incredulousness in their viewpoint. Inmates who witness, or experience, such circumstance are always scoffed at. Criminals have no credibility……right? Chris Butsch can be as dismissive of the evidence as his conscience will allow, but no matter how clean the castle, pull back it’s carpet and you’ll find some dirt.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, ANYBODY can end up in one of these places. From murder to trespassing, to unpaid fines, and contrary to the provisions in sections 7 & 8 of the Charter of Rights, there really is no guarantee of walking out unharmed. If unforeseen traumatic events can happen in a hospital, why is it so hard to believe it could happen in a jail?

If you think the ‘blue wall of silence’ is thick with the police…..they got nothin’ on correctional officers!

Thugs and bullies!

It’s one of the best jobs in the world. Where else can you kick a man to death and get six months paid leave in order to deal with the trauma of it all?

Brennan Guigue

August 7, 2017

Brennan Guigue has an active lawsuit against Correctional Service Canada over an unwarranted use-of-force pepper spray incident in 2014. He is well-versed on Canada’s prison industry protocols and the use of chemical agents.
See more at turnoverarocktoday.com/justice for Brennan Guigue

…..you can’t hide.

“Et tu, Trudeau?” from May 21 included the contents of a letter to Justin Trudeau, encouraging him to move forward aggressively with his agenda for reforms to our justice and federal penal systems.

As always, we didn’t expect or anticipate a response. However, a May 25th letter arrived from the Prime Minister’s office over the signature of R. Olshansky, Executive Correspondence Officer:-

On behalf of the Right Honourable Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada, I would like to acknowledge receipt of your correspondence of May 16, 2017, regarding solitary confinement.

Thank you for taking the time to share your concerns with the Prime Minister. You may be assured that your correspondence has been carefully reviewed.

As you may know, the issue you raise falls within the portfolios of the Honourable Jody Wilson-Raybould, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, and the Honourable Ralph Goodale, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness. I am certain that the Ministers, to whom you sent copies of your letter, appreciated being made aware of your views.

Once again, thank you for writing to the Prime Minister.

Oh now, that’s just too easy. Better not to have had an answer at all. It took only a moment to correct the PMO:-

June 7, 2017

R. Olshansky, Executive Correspondence Officer,
Office of the Prime Minister,

Re: Not so fast.

Dear R. Olshansky:

I didn’t expect the Prime Minister to answer my May 16 letter around the use of solitary confinement in our federal prisons, and I thank you for your May 25 response on his behalf.

Sorry, but I take issue with your perspective. “The buck stops here”, said a sign sitting on Harry Truman’s desk, and that same axiom applies to Justin Trudeau. If Ministers Wilson-Raybould and Goodale do not deliver on the goals the Prime Minister has set for his government’s reforms, it is the Prime Minister who will answer for his ministers.

It is of paramount importance that changes to policy and practice be enshrined in legislation, no matter the howls of objection from some quarters. After all, it is we, the people, who must be satisfied.

Thank you for the attention you have already given this; it need not take up more of your time.

Yes, and Ministers Wilson-Raybould & Goodale were copied.

……..or is optimism wasted?

From last week, “By early May, with Howard Sapers preliminary report in hand, the government announced reforms for solitary confinement, and an ‘overhaul’ of its jails”

Just so, Patrick White’s “Ontario jails to be overhauled, minister says” from the May 25th Globe and Mail began by saying that, “The minister in charge….determined to make the province an international model for humane correctional practices……” Minister Lalonde said Howard Sapers initial report released two weeks prior was “fair”, and she promised to “tackle” and “address” each of his 63 recommendations.

The Globe article continued, “She refused to say whether addressing the recommendations would be analogous to implementing them”, but said she would be introducing new legislation this fall to reflect those recommended changes. That’s a tall order; Mr. White reminded us that current laws have gone untouched since the nineties.

A long, two-page April 26th letter arrived from Minister Marie-France Lalonde, responding to four of ours from last fall, winter, and into 2017. As could be expected, it reviewed the changes and improvements that have been implemented and are upcoming in Ontario’s institutions, committing further to work with the Ombudsman’s report and the Howard Sapers review.

The minister’s confidence led her to stumble with two paragraphs deep into this letter about the Toronto South Detention Centre, by writing, “….the ministry is proud to have opened this modern, state-of-the-art detention centre……” and went on to herald what she and her staff believe are the considerable assets of TSDC. The minister forgot she wasn’t writing a grade-school class.

Of course, a response was warranted:-

May 29, 2017

The Honourable Marie-France Lalonde,
Minister of Community Safety & Correctional Services,
18th Floor, George Drew Building,
25 Grosvenor Street,
Toronto, ON M7A 1Y6

Re: Bury the truth; hide the facts

Dear Minister:

Thank you for your April 25th letter in response to four of mine from 2016 and 2017. Ministry staff may be responsible for its composition, but your signature endorses the contents.

The remarks around Toronto South Detention Centre are troublesome. Only last week I had yet another call from a TSDC inmate to say he was denied a copy of Raizel Robin’s Toronto Life March cover article, “The $1-billion hellhole” that I sent him. In my experience, inmates at other provincial institutions have not had the same problem with their mail. Criminal defense lawyers and social workers familiar with TSDC would have preferred that the Toronto Life article reflected the full scope of Ms. Robin’s research, but assumed the magazine would only publish a balanced perspective.

The facts contest your ministry’s pride in Toronto South. The institution discounts inmate discord because of its source, and lawyers know complaints they have can compromise their ability to connect with clients. Simply, the MCSCS public position is not supportable under scrutiny.

In any case, with Howard Sapers’ interim report in hand, you announced a new vision for Ontario’s jails, focused primarily but not exclusively on the use of solitary confinement. Progress is welcome but you’ll be challenged to legislate changes on the one hand, and guarantee compliance on the other. Judgements will have to await outcomes.

I wish you good luck.

Yours truly,

Charles H. Klassen

cc: Mike Wasylyk, Superintendent, Toronto South Detention Centre

And, she is wished the best of luck. Let’s see where this goes.

“Researchers believe it damages the body and brain as well, but they can’t test this hypothesis, because what we do to prisoners every day – house them in prolonged isolation – is illegal to do to laboratory animals. It is against the law to treat rats the way we treat people in solitary.”
…….from “Buried alive – stories from inside solitary confinement”, by Dan Winters
GQ Magazine, March 2017

This feature in GQ examples the extremes of segregation practices in some American prisons, but the principle Dan Winters espouses has a place everywhere prisoners are isolated for more than 22 hours a day over periods of more than two weeks. Even then, or when a segregation placement is frequent, the mental and physical outcomes can be damaging.

We’ve already looked at the challenges confronting federal segregation (Segregation – a federal snapshot, March 5 and March 12, for instance), but our provinces and territories are facing similar scrutiny. Intransigent Manitoba stands out in its support for the status quo, but what is needed in Winnipeg are the same levels of activism that is leading to reviews of solitary confinement elsewhere in the country. British Columbia in particular has made a commitment to progressive change.

The assault on Ontario’s segregation policies in its jails has been led by Patrick White at Toronto’s Globe and Mail. Mr. White, with the support of the paper’s editorial board, is not alone in condemning solitary confinement, but their work was instrumental in bringing the issue to the forefront. From “Solitary confinement review accomplishes little, critics say” on October 18, to “High ratio of isolated inmates have mental-health issues” the next day, along with an editorial also on the 19th criticizing the ministry’s delay in dealing with a problem of its own making, the spotlight is persistent.

On through the fall, with some considerable input from the Toronto Star, the government was pressed to do something. Patrick White reported on November 9 that Ontario had enlisted the help of Howard Sapers, former Correctional Investigator for Canada, to review conditions in the province’s jails. A November 11 Globe editorial encouraged Mr. Sapers to “speak truth to power,” a habit for which he’s noted.

By late November, the minister responsible at least acknowledged the matter of segregation deserved attention, but critics continued to accuse Ontario of indifference and ignoring calls for reform. By December, even the provinces ombudsman announced his intention to look at what was described as the ‘torture’ of inmates by Ontario. The Ontario Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services announced it would ‘tackle’ inmates’ mental health and segregation, admitting there were ‘serious problems’ with segregation.

In April of this year, Ontario’s ombudsman released his findings, saying Ontario’s segregation practices were ‘unacceptable’. A Globe editorial did not mince words, calling on the province to define segregation, document it, reform it, and end it. And then, the lawsuits began. By early May, with Howard Sapers preliminary report in hand, the government announced reforms for solitary confinement, and an ‘overhaul’ of its jails.

In recognition of his work, Patrick White won a National Newspaper Award in the spring in the beat reporting category for his coverage of federal and provincial prisons.

It’s worth noting that ‘policies’ can become simple guidelines, subject to the whims and vagaries of OPSEU members who work as guards in the province’s institutions. These too came under the media’s probing, with numerous articles beginning last fall and through the winter. Whatever the outcome of all this, it’s important that reforms be enshrined in legislation. Otherwise, they can become mere suggestions.

Remember this, too. Nowhere in this country does a custodial sentence in response to a criminal act permit the mistreatment of a human being, physically or mentally. More, that is specifically prohibited in both provincial and federal jurisdictions. All the same, it not only can be a common occurrence, but our governments tend to claim immunity from the acts and consequences for which their employees may be responsible. To boot, these our governments use your tax dollars to defend the indefensible.

…..and the perpetrators have not been charged!

Referencing the posting on Matthew Hines from October 2 of last year (Matthew Hines died. Chapter the second), a use-of-force incident at Dorchester Penitentiary in New Brunswick ended with the death of an inmate with a history of mental illness.

“In this case, everything that could go wrong in a use-of-force intervention went wrong,” is how Canada’s new Correctional Investigator Ivan Zinger summed up his May 2nd report. The Toronto Globe and Mail’s Patrick White added in his “Ombudsman report slams N.B. prison for inmate’s death”, that the report’s conclusion “is damning and far-reaching: Correctional Service Canada (CSC) failed Mr. Hines, his family and the public from the moment officers tackled him that night (May 25, 2015) on through to misleading public explanations and, finally to an absence of accountability for a ‘preventable’ death.”

The New Brunswick coroner finally released his report, after lengthy stalls, and concluded the 33-year-old died from acute asphyxia due to pulmonary edema, a condition caused by excess fluid in the lungs. The family was initially told that he died of a seizure.

How did this happen? Correctional Service Canada employees….guards…. repeatedly pepper-sprayed the inmate directly in the face and at close range, not only without apparent cause, but contrary to CSC policy and against the manufacturer’s recommendations. These same guards had earlier viciously and unnecessarily beat this man bloody. What’s more, an institutional duty nurse, arriving on the scene of an inmate in distress and not moving, didn’t even check the man’s vital signs. The Correctional Investigator found 21 legal and policy violations, seven of them major, listing failures and violations that would certainly result with criminal charges in any other setting.

So, what has happened? According to CSC, one person was fired and three others were disciplined, whatever that means………CSC isn’t talking. And, as the ombudsman questioned, no senior management was held accountable after an internal investigation.

Yes, the RCMP reopened its investigation after the details of this incident came to public attention, but months later there is still no word on its findings.

Makes one proud, doesn’t it?

And, as we wrote back in October, Matthew Hines two sisters have hired a lawyer.