On 1st April, 2008 at about 4 p.m. Jason Hospedales of Curepe was arrested for breaching a protection order and taken to the Tunapuna Police Station. By 6 p.m. he was found hanging in his cell from two bandannas he used as a makeshift noose.

CURB is adamant that persons who are taken into the custody of the State must be protected by the State even against themselves (from self harm or suicide).This man’s death was due to negligence as the officers needed to assess his mental state and relieve him of every item which could be used to commit self-harm.

Last year alone, 2 prison inmates - Beepath and Alexander - died in custody and no one has been held accountable thus far for their deaths. Beepath died from blunt force trauma to the chest and Alexander from hanging after he attempted suicide on 2 previous occasions.

Apart from deaths in custody, other people are being physically and sexually abused in custody (Boys Industrial School, Youth Training Centre, in Prison) and nobody is being held responsible in this country.

In other countries, the family members of the dead and those sexually and physically harmed in custody sue the State for millions of dollars and police and prison officers lose their jobs and all financial benefits.

It is time for that to happen in Trinidad and Tobago and other Caribbean territories. Irrespective of the offence a person is accused or convicted of having committed, physical and sexual abuse and negligence leading to self harm are “Not Part of the Sentence”.

Enough is enough!!!

According to the US Country Report on Human Rights Practices for 2007, in Guyana “prison and jail conditions were poor, particularly in police holding cells. There were 2,180 prisoners in five facilities. More than half of these were in Georgetown’s Camp Street Prison, which was designed to hold 500 inmates but held approximately 1,140 during the year. Most of the inmates were pretrial detainees.

Conditions in the country’s four smaller prisons generally were adequate. Some prison officers received basic medical training, but no doctor regularly visited any of the prisons. All newly hired prison guards received human rights training from the Guyana Human Rights Association, which did not consider mistreatment of prisoners a problem in the prison system.

Although sanitary and medical conditions in police holding facilities varied, overall these conditions were worse than those in the prisons. Some jails were bare, overcrowded, and damp. Few had beds, washbasins, furniture, or utensils. Meals normally were inadequate; friends and relatives routinely had to bring detainees food and water. Although precinct jails were intended to serve only as pretrial holding areas, some suspects were detained there as long as two years, awaiting judicial action on their cases.

Juvenile offenders ages 16 and older were held with the adult prison population. Juvenile offenders ages 15 and younger were held in the NOC, which offered primary education, vocational training, and basic medical care. Problems at the NOC included lax security and understaffing. There were complaints that juvenile runaways, or those out of their guardians’ care, were placed with juveniles who had committed crimes, with the result that some petty offenders became involved in more serious criminal activity.

Since there were no facilities in Georgetown to hold female offenders ages 16 and over, women awaiting trial were held in the same facilities as men. The Prison Authority reported that there were 105 female inmates in the women’s prison located in New Amsterdam. Due to inadequate facilities, juvenile female pretrial detainees were sometimes held with adult female pretrial detainees.

The Prison Authority offered rehabilitation programs focused on vocational training and education; however, such programs did not adequately address the needs of prisoners with substance-abuse problems.”

The US Country Report on Human Rights Practices for 2007 in St. Lucia found that “prison conditions generally met minimum international standards at the four-year-old Bordelais Correctional Facility, which had a capacity of 500 prisoners and held approximately that number. Some prisoners and family members complained about treatment of prisoners at the facility.

The Boys Training Center, a facility for boys charged with criminal offenses or suffering from domestic or other social problems, operated separately from the prison. The boys in the program normally stay for two years and receive vocational training while enrolled. There were allegations of poor conditions and harsh treatment of the juveniles at the facility, including beatings by police officers.”

However, media and Court reports from St. Lucia have long indicated a state of overcrowding at the island’s prison, especially for remanded persons. As the rate of crime increases in St. Lucia, CURB encourages the authorities to develop alternatives to incarceration in order to ensure that the Bordelais prison does not suffer from the extremes of overcrowding that plague other Caribbean nations.

The US Country Report for Grenada generally gave that troubled island nation a favourable review.

“Prison conditions generally met international standards, with the exception of overcrowding, and the government permitted visits by independent human rights observers. Overcrowding was a significant problem, as 367 prisoners were housed in space designed for 98 persons.

Women were held in a separate section of the prison from men. There was no separate facility for juveniles, so they were held with the general prison population.”

However, there were reports that police unlawfully beat detainees in custody in order to extract confessions.

CURB encourages other Caribbean nations to look to Grenada as an example of a developing nation that seeks to provide a humane  environment for its offenders. The island’s review is especially worthy of appreciation in view of the fact that much of the island was destroyed and its prison facilities heavily damaged a few years ago in a hurricane.

The US Country Report on Human Rights Practices for 2007 indicates that, in Belize “prison conditions were poor and did not meet international standards. The country’s only prison, Hattieville Central Prison, which was designed for 1,200 inmates, held 1,377 inmates, including 26 women and 35 adolescents.

Prison officials reported overcrowding in the two buildings that served as the remand section of the prison. Pretrial detainees were held separately from convicted inmates.

The ombudsman received some complaints that prison authorities brutalized prisoners. Inmates claimed that prison officials sometimes withheld food and water as further punishment, conducted strip searches and beatings, and extorted money for transfers to better conditions.

The Kolbe Foundation, which investigated formal complaints regarding prison conditions, reported no cases of abuse or excessive force by prison officials. Isolation in a small unlit, unventilated punishment cell called “supermax” was used to discipline inmates.

There were five reported incidents of inmate-on-inmate abuse with weapons, resulting in the death of one inmate. Prisoners convicted or accused of certain serious crimes such as child molestation were often held in the remand section of the Hattieville prison for their protection.

The government’s Women’s Department provided counseling and educational services for female inmates. The prison included a separate facility for women, located 200 yards outside the main compound. Conditions in the women’s facility were significantly better than those in the men’s compound.

The government does not incarcerate female juveniles charged or convicted of crimes but places them in the care of the government social services authorities. During the year there were no female juveniles in the custody of the social services authorities. Juvenile males, on remand and convicted, lived in a separate facility outside the main perimeter fence.”

The US Country Report for St. Vincent and the Grenadines indicates that “prison conditions remained poor. Prison buildings were antiquated and overcrowded, with Her Majesty’s Prison in Kingstown holding 373 inmates in a building intended to hold approximately 150 inmates, a situation that created serious health and safety problems.

Despite reforms at the Her Majesty’s Prison, problems such as endemic violence, understaffing, underpaid guards, uncontrolled weapons and drugs, increasing incidence of HIV/AIDS, and unhygienic conditions persisted. Corrupt prison staff commonly served as a source of drugs, weapons, and cell phones.

The St Vincent and the Grenadines Human Rights Association reported that guards routinely beat prisoners to extract information regarding escapes, violence, and crime committed in the prison. In March several Muslim prisoners went on a hunger strike to protest poor conditions and the lack of the appropriate food for their Islamic diet. In September a fight between inmates and guards led to a three-day lockdown of the facility.

The Fort Charlotte Prison held nine female inmates in a separate section designed to hold 50 inmates, but conditions were antiquated and unhygienic. Pretrial detainees and young offenders (16 to 21 years of age) were held with convicted prisoners.

Conditions were inadequate for juvenile offenders. Boys under the age of 16 were held at the Liberty Lodge Boys’ Training Center, which takes in boys who can no longer stay at home due to domestic problems or involvement with criminal activity. Most of the 30 boys were at the center because of domestic problems, and only a small number were charged with committing a crime.”

CURB is particularly concerned with the increase in sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV AIDS in this nation’s prisons. Such a scenario can only lead to grave public health repercussions as offenders re-enter society. Moreover, the fact of the increase of such STDs confirms the existence of sexual activity in custody, some of which occurs in circumstances tantamount to sexual assault and abuse.

The US Country Report for the Bahamas for 2007 in respect of its human rights practices in penal institutions was critical that “conditions at Fox Hill Prison, the country’s only prison, remained harsh for many prisoners.

Overcrowding was a major problem in the men’s maximum-security block. Originally built in 1953 to hold 450 inmates, it held approximately 700 of the country’s 1,400 prisoners. The remaining prisoners were held in medium- and minimum-security units that were at intended capacity.

The prison remand area, built to hold 300 prisoners awaiting trial, was insufficient to hold the approximately 600 prisoners awaiting trial, leaving many pretrial detainees confined in cells with convicted prisoners in the maximum-security unit.

Male prisoners in the maximum-security unit were crowded into poorly ventilated cells that generally lacked regular running water and toilets. Prisoners lacked beds, slept on concrete floors, and if not participating in work programs were locked in small cells 23 hours per day, often with human waste.

Maximum-security inmates were allowed outside for exercise four days a week for one hour per day. Inmates complained of inadequate potable water, medical care, and treatment.

There continued to be allegations of abuse by prison guards. Local attorneys and human rights observers asserted that the prison’s internal affairs unit lacked the independence needed to investigate impartially allegations of abuse and misconduct; it conducted no investigations during the year.

In 2006 the unit recommended that one officer be prosecuted for abuse of an inmate, which was pending at year’s end.”

With respect to immigration detainees, the situation was grave at the Carmichael Road Immigrant Detention Center. The facility held “up to 500 detainees (with tent space for an additional 500), and women and men were held separately. Haitians and Jamaicans were the most commonly interdicted migrants.

Children under the age of 14 were held in the women’s dormitory. Many children arriving with both parents were not allowed contact with the father except during weekly visitation. Despite the possibility of being held for months, children did not have access to education.

Detainees complained that non-English speaking migrants were sometimes unable to communicate with guards regarding basic needs and detention center rules. Detainees also continued to complain of abuse by guards. Human rights groups expressed concern that complaint investigations were handled internally without independent review and oversight.”

CURB concurs with such concerns and encourages Caribbean governments to appoint independent civilian groups to oversee the inquiry and review procedures when complaints of abuse of any nature are made in relation to prison remandees, convicts or immigration detainees.

The U.S. Country Report on Human Rights Practices in Jamaica for 2007 made particular mention of the penal system.

The Report states that physical abuse of prisoners by guards continued, despite efforts by the government to remove abusive guards and improve procedures.

“Prison conditions remained poor, primarily due to overcrowding and poor sanitary conditions. The Department of Correctional Services took measures during the year to improve catering services and also entered into a new contract for insect and rodent control for all facilities.”

This in effect indicates that the prisons in Jamaica were found to have been home to rats, roaches, flies and other creatures which could infect officers and inmates alike. Such a state of affairs creates an environment for widespread communicable disease which would filter into the wider community as inmates are released.

“Medical care also was poor, primarily a result of having only three full-time doctors, one full-time nurse, and no psychiatrist to cover 13 facilities with 4,790 inmates across the island.”

The refusal to make adequate provision for medical care for the prison population is an example of State neglect and negligence which can lead to a public health issue that affects the entire island. Moreover, with more than 50% of prisoners battling substance abuse problems, psychiatric care is essential to the rehabilitation of such offenders and the reduction of their likelihood to re-offend upon release.

CURB encourages the new Jamaican government to right the wrongs allowed to continue in respect to the prison system. It is prudent for them to invest in making the prisons more sanitary and to retain adequate staff to assist in the rehabilitation and transformation process of inmates. Such an investment will bear fruit for the entire community.

In March 2008 the United States Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor published its annual Country reports on Human Rights Practices worldwide.

With respect to Trinidad and Tobago, the report expressed concern over incidents of alleged cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment:-

“Although the constitution and the law prohibit such practices, there were credible reports that police officers and prison guards mistreated individuals under arrest or in detention.”

In referring specifically to prison and detention center conditions, the report conceded that, while conditions in the prison system’s eight facilities were somewhat upgraded, they continued to be harsh.

In purporting to quote the Prison Service Commissioner, the report states that the number of prisoners at the Port of Spain prison, originally designed to accommodate 250 inmates, increased to 599 in 2007, compared to 554 in 2006. The average number of prisoners in each 10- by 10-foot cell increased to a maximum of eight.

According to prison authorities, at the end of 2007 they had brought charges against 23 prison officers for assault and battery or for poor conduct on the job, including possession of narcotics and provision of cell phones to inmates.

One notable incident of death in custody which raises concerns for the safety of prisoners in general is that of the August 3rd death of Letroy Beepath. Mr. Beepath died from alleged blunt trauma to the chest while in remand at Golden Grove Prison.

On August 22, 2007 the police completed their investigation into Beepath’s death and submitted the case to the chief of homicide investigations, where it remained at year’s end.

The September 19, 2007 alleged suicide of Golden Grove Prison inmate Kurt Alexander also raises questions of the safety of incarcerated persons. Mr. Alexander allegedly hanged himself in his cell while awaiting trial for sexually assaulting a four-year-old boy in 2004.

Despite recommendations that he be isolated due to two unsuccessful suicide attempts, Alexander was kept in a cell with six other prisoners.

CURB calls for an independent inquiry to be launched by the Office of the Ombudsman into deaths in custody of remanded and convicted persons over the past 20 years.

We also desire that the Forensic Sciences Department of the Ministry of National Security be mandated to investigate and make notes as to the state of the genital organs and anal cavities of all inmates who die in custody.

It is only in this way that the loved ones of those who die in custody would be able to obtain true justice.

In Belize, prisoner Kevin Dawson has alleged that two police officers beat him with clubs while he was being held in a cell at the Queen Street Police Station.

Dawson, who was recently recaptured after he escaped lawful custody earlier this month, sustained injuries to his face, head, leg and arms.

The two officers, police constables Alister Casey and John Myvette were charged with Wounding and arraigned in Court where they pled not guilty. Both were released on $1,000.00 bail and are to re-appear before the Magistrate’s Court on 7th May, 2008.

Media in Belize have quoted Assistant Commissioner of Police, Allen Whylie, as saying that the two officers will almost certainly face disciplinary charges from the Police Force of Prejudice as well as Unwarrantable force to a prisoner in custody.