1 January 2017

Privatise the AMC? Madness!

| John Hargreaves
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My attention was drawn recently to an interview Jon Stanhope did on radio concerning some alarming issues at the Alexander Maconochie Centre. The article by Tom Lowry of the Times described Mr Stanhope as the architect of the AMC. Not so sure about that. There were many people involved in bringing offenders home into our proposed human-rights compliant facility.

I draw on my time in the Legislative Assembly on the Justice and Community Safety Standing Committee and as Minister for Corrections. Also on the stance I have taken the public ownership of its responsibilities for rehabilitating and restoring offenders, in comments inside and outside the ACT Labor Party.

This report raised alarm bells with me because it seemed that Mr Stanhope’s suggestion that the AMC be privatised goes totally against the stance Labor has had for decades and as far as I know is against Labor Party policy in the ACT.

Some history. It was actually the Liberals under Gary Humphries which started the ACT Prison project. Initially they wanted it to be built and run by the private sector. Labor has always been opposed to the notion that the responsibility for offenders and the attendant risk could be shifted to the private sector. I once described the notion as profiting from other people’s pain.

But at the 2004 election, Liberal Brendan Smyth wanted to stop the construction of the prison. Go figure!

Jon Stanhope as the leader of the Labor Opposition and then Government, as a former chair of the Civil Liberties Council, saw the need for the Territory to accept its responsibilities and to build, own and operate its own correctional facility. I supported his view without reservation.

I looked at the recidivism question and concluded that if we treated offenders with respect and compassion, we were more likely to stop recidivism than treating offenders as animals. Jon and I shared the notion that one was sent to jail as punishment not for punishment. The deprivation of liberty was the sentence. It was not the introduction of more suffering to come. It was not retribution from the community but a chance to rebuild a life.

Jon talked about a human rights compliant jail. He was spot on here. I argued that once the prisoners transferred into the ACT from NSW had washed through the system, the recidivism rate for those offenders for whom the AMC was their first encounter with the correctional system would drop dramatically. NSW jails are predominantly the punishment centres, the brick and concrete, 1800s style and treated prisoners as lesser people. And we had a chance to change that. I still hold these views. The wash through has not ended yet, so criticising the recidivism rate for the ACT needs to be carefully considered with proper data otherwise it is just plain wrong.

I was disappointed to hear Mr Stanhope agree saying “that we now have reviewers of this prison saying look, this is not a human-rights compliant prison – stop calling it that, you’re not being honest.” Then to my staggering amazement, Mr Stanhope went on to say that the ACT Government should consider privatisation of the prison as a way to improve management!

Does he not remember the failure of the Port Phillip prison, run by Group 4 under contract to the Victorian Government, which attracted a Victorian Auditor General to savage the contract? Does he not remember the Victorian Government taking back the contract? Does he not remember that the Port Phillip prison had 13 deaths from hanging in the first 18 months of operation?

Does he not remember how strident we all were about having to accept our community responsibility for correcting the behaviour of our own offenders, the main reason for bringing our prisoners home from NSW jails?

Let me first say that I am appalled that a life member of the Labor Party would countenance such a notion at all, let alone a former Chief Minister who championed the causes of the under privileged, the down trodden, the discriminated against, the homeless and the hopeless.

However, it should be acknowledged that there are shortcomings at the AMC as well as some brilliant initiatives, neither of which have seen the light of day. It is still in its infancy as a correctional facility.

The transitional release centre is a wonderful re-introductive tool for prisoners who have been incarcerated for a very long time and have lost those basic community awareness skills.

The absence of barbed wire and concrete walls allows fresh air and scenery into the daily life of those who have had their freedom removed. They can see kangaroos in the morning, they can see the mist rise over the creek bed and they can see the traffic going by. They have not been locked away in a cupboard a with the key chucked away. They can see a reason to restore themselves and get out a changed person.

The fact that the AMC is a tiered facility, with both genders, remand and sentenced prisoners is a positive.

Oh… and I saw in the article that there is a hairdressing facility. Hello! There were always two hairdressing bays in the women’s section. Not news, guys!

And where is the credit for the barista training which gives the prisoners a Certificate 3 in hospitality and an employment qualification? Or the peaceful quiet space for indigenous inmates with programs just for them?

Sure, the work programs aren’t sufficient, but where is the involvement (and thus criticism for the lack) of opportunities from the nearby private sector to have work related programs run in conjunction with the community? It has worked in Mt Gambier, in Sale and in Mareeba. But these are privately run jails. Is it possible that the private sector will not cooperate with a public jail?

The shortcomings are, to me exacerbated by the lack of a safe injecting facility. I was a big opponent of this in a jail until I realised that harm minimisation is a good start to getting people off drugs. To deny this is just madness. The proof is everywhere that this works and is not a danger to the officers as they say. Having shared needles in prisons because they can’t be prevented is more of a danger than a supervised facility.

Another concern I have is the emergence of a gym. I saw for myself the stupidity of putting body building equipment into a facility where lack of employment or activity only serves to entice people to enhance their image through strength and body building. The Fulham Prison near Sale had a group of Asian inmates who did just that and intimidated the other prisoners. They also prepared for skullduggery on release as stand over merchants.

It is clear to me that having a military approach to custodial officers is a significant problem. Having uniforms just widens the gap between those incarcerated and those who are trying to rehabilitate them. The us and them syndrome is alive and well. Uniforms only perpetuate the notion of officers being “screws” and “turnkeys”. But my suggestion that uniforms not be introduced was met with horror by the officers.

The experiment at Mt Gambier, where uniforms and ranks were banned, involvement with the community, engineered by the enlightened Director, resulted in positive outcomes for prisoners and job satisfaction for the corrective service officers. The community/prison/business partnership resulted in a low recidivism rate and a real time re-integration of offenders back into the community.

I mourn for the prisoners in the AMC, I mourn for their families, I mourn for the officers, I mourn for the community and I mourn for the hope I felt in that facility. Jon Stanhope’s comments were not helpful and his backflip is regretted.

Sure there are issues at the AMC, but privatising the AMC will not transfer the risk of failure, it will just be more expensive and less compassionate.

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Chris Mordd Richards said :

Unlike the arbiters of morality the Australian Christian Lobby and the LNP right faction who wish to arbitrate their morality against LGBTQI marriage? Because Greens are only ones who put their personal morals into politics right! ROFLMAO!! Great joke you made there! You forgot the /s at the end though!! 😀

I think the difference there is that whereas groups like the Christian Lobby present their beliefs as opposing views, the Greens present their views as the only valid and acceptable views on the subject, with all other views being clear indications of misogyny, racism, xenophobia, homophobia and/or islamophobia, which should therefore be legislated against.
No small part of this is caused by the communist-sympathisers having infiltrated the Greens in order to hijack them to serve as a platform from which to promote their deluded ideals clothed in their illiberal methods of debate.

Chris Mordd Richards1:29 am 18 Jan 17

Mysteryman said :

Chris Mordd Richards said :

Interesting how a Greens corrections Minister is held to higher standards than Liberal/LNP corrections Ministers in other State or Territories.

That’s to be expected when the Greens constantly act like the arbiters of morality.

Unlike the arbiters of morality the Australian Christian Lobby and the LNP right faction who wish to arbitrate their morality against LGBTQI marriage? Because Greens are only ones who put their personal morals into politics right! ROFLMAO!! Great joke you made there! You forgot the /s at the end though!! 😀

As someone who works in an area with links to all correctional services across Australia, my experience is that NSW in general has the best correctional regime and Victoria is not great due in part to all the linkage problems caused by privitisation. ACT would appear to have lots of problems not least of which is it’s self-delusion of being a human rights prison (e.g. clear breaches in not keeping remandees separate).

Rebecca Vassarotti said :

For me it’s not who is the decision maker – it’s that governments, no matter what party they belong to, remain accountable to the people they serve. Private companies have a legal responsibility to serve their shareholders and there is a record of Governments using this to reduce accountability.

The problem with this kind of perspective is that it prioritises the needs and wants of the criminals.
OK, they deserve *some* consideration, but the priorities should be:
1/ The 99% of the population that manages to *not* commit crimes – we deserve protection from criminals as well as the cheapest-possible prisons to house them in. Why should *we* pay for criminals having access to a revolving-door into a holiday camp?
2/ The victims of crime. How are *they*? Do *they* need any assistance? These are our fellow citizens who have been preyed-upon and whose lives are often irrevocably changed as a result. Let’s prioritise their needs and recognition for their victimhood *much* higher than we prioritise any consideration for the criminals, please.
3/ Finally, the last priority: the criminal. Again, within this category there are priorities:
A. How can we make them suffer for what they’ve done?
B. How long can we keep them locked up and excluded from this, our society, which they have rejected and no longer deserve to be part of
C. Finally, the last priority of all – can we do something nice for them, maybe give them lots of cuddles and see if that turns them into nice people?

I can’t see how the private sector could do a worse job with the AMC than the ACT government has done. Hand it over.

Chris Mordd Richards said :

Interesting how a Greens corrections Minister is held to higher standards than Liberal/LNP corrections Ministers in other State or Territories.

That’s to be expected when the Greens constantly act like the arbiters of morality.

Chris Mordd Richards12:54 am 17 Jan 17

Grrr, missed a “not” – The fact that the ACT is *NOT* jailing ppl for as many minor offences – is what I meant it to read, apologies.

Chris Mordd Richards12:52 am 17 Jan 17

I sometimes vehemently disagree with John H on here, sometimes I vehemently agree.

In this case it is the latter, and the hypocrisy on show in these comments is revealing in and of itself.

Interesting how a Greens corrections Minister is held to higher standards than Liberal/LNP corrections Ministers in other State or Territories. Shane is a Green therefore he must have the magic solution that Labor and LNP continually fail to find? Well no actually, Greens are just a bit more compassionate in their approach to human rights and basic dignity of prisoners.

As John H said, they are sent to prison AS punishment, not FOR punishment. The distinction there is vital to make. The fact that the ACT is jailing ppl for as many minor offences such as low level cannabis possession as other States and Territories do often, at least means we aren’t sending in complete non-criminals into an environment where they will end up becoming one when all they need is some basic drug treatment instead. The fact remains though that other States and Territories lock people up in far worse conditions and treat them far worse, than the AMC does. Have we all forgotten Dylan Voller and the NT Royal Commission already? How about we contrast that with the experience in the AMC, show me how the NT is doing it so much better than the ACT is at this, please!

wildturkeycanoe7:01 am 16 Jan 17

John Hargreaves said :

To lump them all into the same basket of “hardened criminals” is not only wrong statistically but socially wrong.

If the law lumps them all into the same building for their sentence, why should the public see them any differently? If your crime is bad enough to warrant incarceration, then being labelled a hardened criminal worthy of confinement and being subjected to the same disciplinary actions is a matter for the law to discern, not the bleeding heart public.
Just because someone embezzled hundreds of thousands of dollars from the taxpayer, they shouldn’t get any more leniency than a rapist. One may have violated a person’s body, but the other may have forced someone on welfare to get evicted from their home or go without food, thanks to the decrease in the funding available to a charity for instance. Just because one crime uses a gun or a knife to get the cash and the other used a computer system, doesn’t mean both perpetrators aren’t guilty of the same thing – theft. It isn’t like stealing money is a an accident, it is a deliberate act to defraud not only individuals, but the government or institution that was violated.
The judiciary also has mechanisms to deal with more violent crimes. Ever heard of the terms “hard labor”, “no parole” and “good behavior” in a court room? They have a discretionary ability to enforce a penalty to suit the injustice and/or the attitude of the criminal. If nobody’s life was threatened they can hand out a lighter sentence, but if deaths occurred from a person’s deliberate actions, they can hand out either solitary confinement, a physically demanding sentence or less privileges whilst inside. Maybe these aren’t all available in Australia because we are so backwards and stuck in the colonial era, but perhaps they should have a range of severity in sentencing criminals, proportionate to their crimes.
I wonder how many inmates are actually first offenders? How many have been in and out of the courtroom numerous times before they ended up getting that final resounding smack of gavel on table? Surely a judge is not doing their job properly if anybody ends up standing before them for the third, fourth or fifth time. Obviously these cases are not going to be easy to rehabilitate and need the deprivation of liberties that prison should accomplish.
I believe that the softly softly approach is exactly why there are so many people in prison. If life inside didn’t provide three meals a day, TV, computer games, drugs and a gym, most criminals would think twice about committing a crime. A person’s needs are taken care of inside prison, but out on the streets we fight society for our very survival. We fight against every other citizen for a job so that we can eat. We fight other tenants in the search for a rental home that we can afford to live in. We fight the government in order to prove that we are doing everything in our power to get a job, in order to get a welfare cheque every other week. Life is tough in the free world. But inside you won’t starve, you get to sleep in a bed with a blanket and you are secure.
As for having a different attitude if a family member was locked up, would it really make you think differently? If one of my family members went and took somebody else’ life with a gun or a blade in a premeditated attack, I wouldn’t want them to walk around freely in society. As much as I’d miss having them around, the law is the law and the judge’s sentence is to be respected. Sure people deserve second chances, but when a crime is so heinous that prison time is warranted they have thrown away that chance.
Prison is supposed to be a deterrent, not a holiday camp. If it seems too hard for the poor fools that get locked up, then too bad, they should’ve thought about that before they turned to a life of crime. Harsh penalties do work. If you don’t believe me, just look at the Philippines right now. The penalty of death has turned drug criminals into a bunch of wimps who have even turned themselves in for fear of being shot by a dissatisfied customer. Would you consider holding up a service station with a knife if you knew the person behind the counter had a shotgun and the legal right to shoot you dead for doing so? I’m sure it would make the gutless cowards who do that currently think twice before having another go.

John Hargreaves said :

Many of the comments by those who advocate hard labor within a prison to where people are sent FOR punishment do not understand that the vast majority of the people, yes – people! – in the AMC are there for white collar crime and crimes without an obvious primary victim. Sure drug dealers who have no addiction should be dealt with by the whole weight of the law and removed from our society as should paedophiles and murderers; and those with repeat violence related crime.

But those for whom a mistake is made, fraud, embezzlement, Centrelink fraud, credit card fraud, even drug offensives whilst under the influence of hard drugs, should be treated with respect and compassion. They are recoverable with the right programs.

I ask how they would feel if the offender was a brother, sister, mother, father or son or daughter. I suggest there would be a different attitude.

To lump them all into the same basket of “hardened criminals” is not only wrong statistically but socially wrong.

If you do the crime you do the time. It it was a close relative if wouldn’t want any concessions for them.

White collar criminals shouldn’t get any concessions either.

Life must be pretty easy at AMC; no rock breaking, not even making number plates.

No wonder it has become a revolving door for many.

I am a Rabbit™12:46 pm 09 Jan 17

Other countries are trying to get rid of their privatized prisons, and we’re trying to implement them. You need not look further than overseas to realise that in country after country, the act of privatizing the prison system results in greater incarceration rates. Businesses are out to make profit, so private prisons ALWAYS lobbies governments increase their prisoner occupation through implementing prison sentences for even the most minor “crimes”.

Grimm said :

This is the correct way to run a prison: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TsIn_ebna3A

What has that got to do with privatization of the prison system though? Black Dolphin Prison is run by the Russian federal government.

John Hargreaves11:11 am 09 Jan 17

Many of the comments by those who advocate hard labor within a prison to where people are sent FOR punishment do not understand that the vast majority of the people, yes – people! – in the AMC are there for white collar crime and crimes without an obvious primary victim. Sure drug dealers who have no addiction should be dealt with by the whole weight of the law and removed from our society as should paedophiles and murderers; and those with repeat violence related crime.

But those for whom a mistake is made, fraud, embezzlement, Centrelink fraud, credit card fraud, even drug offensives whilst under the influence of hard drugs, should be treated with respect and compassion. They are recoverable with the right programs.

I ask how they would feel if the offender was a brother, sister, mother, father or son or daughter. I suggest there would be a different attitude.

To lump them all into the same basket of “hardened criminals” is not only wrong statistically but socially wrong.

Acton said :

Why are some Labor Party politicians so keen on ensuring the comfort levels of prisons? Is it because of their deep and abiding commitment to social justice? Their compassion for prisoner’s welfare? Their belief in restorative justice? No, I’ve come to the conclusion it is because they have a self-interest in ensuring prison is like a comfortable retirement home in anticipation of their own stay.

Far more Labor Party politicians have been convicted of serious crimes carrying sentences of over 1 year than any other party:

Andrew Theophanous – bribery and fraud – 6 years
Craig Thomson – theft and fraud – 12 months
Rex Jackson – bribes – 10 years
Milton Orkopoulos – child sex, drugs – 13 years
Eddie Obeid – corruption – 5 years
Keith Wright – child sex – 8 years
Bill D’Arcy – child sex – 11 years
Gordon Nuttall – corruption – 15 years
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Australian_politicians_convicted_of_crimes
Luckily for certain politicians their drink driving did not result in a jail sentence.

Add the luck of magistrates to the drink-driving list too.

John Moulis said :

Masquara said :

“Another concern I have is the emergence of a gym. I saw for myself the stupidity of putting body building equipment into a facility where lack of employment or activity only serves to entice people to enhance their image through strength and body building. The Fulham Prison near Sale had a group of Asian inmates who did just that and intimidated the other prisoners. They also prepared for skullduggery on release as stand over merchants.”

Why single out “Asians” as being a risk if they are allowed to use gym equipment?

My solution to that is to make gym work and bodybuilding compulsory for all inmates. I’d much rather them doing that than sitting down all day on the Net, which is what they were doing in the early days of the AMC. I wrote to Shane Rattenbury when he became Prisons Minister suggesting they build a gym there and it is good to see it finally happen.

Wouldn’t be more cost effective to have them break concrete with sledge hammers?
They would get fit and the recycles rubble could be sold to offset the costs of running the gaol.

What happened to “hard labour” in sentencing?

Building a body in a gym is more about vanity and it qualifies them for what?

Why are some Labor Party politicians so keen on ensuring the comfort levels of prisons? Is it because of their deep and abiding commitment to social justice? Their compassion for prisoner’s welfare? Their belief in restorative justice? No, I’ve come to the conclusion it is because they have a self-interest in ensuring prison is like a comfortable retirement home in anticipation of their own stay.

Far more Labor Party politicians have been convicted of serious crimes carrying sentences of over 1 year than any other party:

Andrew Theophanous – bribery and fraud – 6 years
Craig Thomson – theft and fraud – 12 months
Rex Jackson – bribes – 10 years
Milton Orkopoulos – child sex, drugs – 13 years
Eddie Obeid – corruption – 5 years
Keith Wright – child sex – 8 years
Bill D’Arcy – child sex – 11 years
Gordon Nuttall – corruption – 15 years
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Australian_politicians_convicted_of_crimes

Luckily for certain politicians their drink driving did not result in a jail sentence.

Masquara said :

“Another concern I have is the emergence of a gym. I saw for myself the stupidity of putting body building equipment into a facility where lack of employment or activity only serves to entice people to enhance their image through strength and body building. The Fulham Prison near Sale had a group of Asian inmates who did just that and intimidated the other prisoners. They also prepared for skullduggery on release as stand over merchants.”

Why single out “Asians” as being a risk if they are allowed to use gym equipment?

My solution to that is to make gym work and bodybuilding compulsory for all inmates. I’d much rather them doing that than sitting down all day on the Net, which is what they were doing in the early days of the AMC. I wrote to Shane Rattenbury when he became Prisons Minister suggesting they build a gym there and it is good to see it finally happen.

“The absence of barbed wire and concrete walls allows fresh air and scenery into the daily life of those who have had their freedom removed. They can see kangaroos in the morning, they can see the mist rise over the creek bed and they can see the traffic going by.”
What piffle. The reason why you were wrong, are wrong and always will be wrong can be summed up in two words.
Wally Ahmad. And all the other Wally Ahmads still out there. Look into their faces and see the hate.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/nation/wally-ahmads-world-of-coke-women-and-violence/news-story/a3701c551c477d363eb964a997aac507

People like that are the reason we, our children, the elderly and the whole law abiding community need a prison that is run like a prison. When politicians take the side of criminals they betray the people who elected them.

“Prison completely ceases to be a deterrent if it is so pleasant as to provide a thoroughly agreeable sanctuary, affording a comfort not terribly different (and in many cases a lot nicer) from that which these people enjoy on the outside.” ” … the repeat offenders — should be afforded a magnificently unpleasant time, deprived of privileges, deprived of comfort, deprived of that most modern of things, self-esteem. Prison, then, as the last resort — but a truly punitive resort, nasty enough to deter even habitual offenders from succumbing to it.”

http://www.spectator.co.uk/2016/11/the-spectator-has-gone-soft-prisons-should-be-much-nastier-places/

Perhaps if Mr Hargreaves would remove the “Labor” and other political components; and personal attacks on those also expressing opinions and focused on the Human Rights aspects, his response would be shorter and come across as more heartfelt.

John Hargreaves2:48 pm 07 Jan 17

Masquara said :

“Another concern I have is the emergence of a gym. I saw for myself the stupidity of putting body building equipment into a facility where lack of employment or activity only serves to entice people to enhance their image through strength and body building. The Fulham Prison near Sale had a group of Asian inmates who did just that and intimidated the other prisoners. They also prepared for skullduggery on release as stand over merchants.”

Why single out “Asians” as being a risk if they are allowed to use gym equipment?

I didn’t single Asians out, I merely said that that was the group I observed. and the prisoners in the private jails I visited did congregate in their ethnic groups. I also was told at one time when a minister that the greatest group of stand over merchants in Sydney were Korean. In that city, ethnicity goes hand in hand with certain elements of crime unfortunately.

Blen_Carmichael11:09 pm 06 Jan 17

James_Ryan said :

Blen_Carmichael said :

Ah yes, the miraculous transformation of character when one walks into a “regulated prison needle exchange program”. Here’s a hypothetical hardened crim – let’s call him Mathew – who’s a heroin addict. He’s also HIV positive, has a lengthy criminal history, including violent attacks on olice and prison officers. But the beauty of this “regulated prison needle exchange program” is that Mathew becomes a serene being on entering the said facility. Why is this so? “Well”, says Mathew, “it wouldn’t be cricket to use this government-issued syringe on one of Her Majesty’s officers, would it? That would be using the syringe for an ulterior purpose and I’ll not be a party to that.”

Nice deflection. I suppose when there’s zero evidence to cite one will need to rely on hypotheticals. There is so much wrong with your argument that it’s difficult to know where to begin. I’ll have a crack at it though, because I can’t possibly resist.

The “miraculous transformation” of character you mock is irrelevant because what we’re talking about here is what happens to risk. If a yard fit is circulating amongst 20 or more detainees, it’s virtually assured of being infectious. If a fit is exchanged between occasions of use – or even better, as Hargreaves stated, used in a contained space such as an injecting facility – the potentially harmful objects circulating in the prison is reduced. It becomes a safer place.

There is nothing stopping a detainee hell bent on stabbing a prison officer with a fit from doing that now, or at any time since the AMC was commissioned. There’s plenty of needles in there already. Every single one of them is a risk, yet the only time any AMC prison officer has been exposed to this risk is through needlestick injury when searching for unsterile fits that have to be hidden away.

Of course, then there’s the dramatic differences between Graham Farlow (who stabbed Officer Pearce) and the fictional Mathew. Farlow was an end-stage AIDS patient with dementia and an astronomical viral load. The fictional Mathew however is HIV positive in a time when modern HIV drugs has his viral load so low it’s undetectable. The chances of transmitting HIV are very low.

However, let’s pretend for a minute that you’re right, that all those advances in modern medicine have never happened, and that the fictional Mathew is as potentially infectious as Graham Farlow. Post-exposure prophylaxis for HIV is a course of medicine that is commenced within 72 hours of a potential HIV exposure, and it prevents sero-conversion. In other words, had PEP been available to Geoffrey Pearce, he’d still be alive today. Anyone stabbed by your Mathew would commence PEP to prevent HIV infection. “Yes, but what about hep C and hep B” you say? Anyone can get vaccinated against hep B, and all prison officers should be. Hep C is now quickly and easily cured.

There’s your theoretical, in cinders. So in the absence of any credible evidence, you’ll be needing to rely on a philosophical argument that detainees should have needles anyway. Yep, I agree, but they do. What’s more, prisons are now and have always been powerless to prevent them getting in. In a prison with no needles and no drug problem, no one would ever consider a regulated NSP.

Sixty odd prisons in the world are already safely operating regulated NSPs. I’m confident that our prison officers are just as capable as prison officers in other countries and could make it work just as well if not better.

You’re “confident”? That’s nice. I now have a nice job where I (no longer) have to work with violent criminals. I very much respect those that do, in this case the prison officers. I’m not that arrogant that I gratuitously lecture them about what does and doesn’t constitute a danger to them. They’re the ones at the coalface, so to speak, and they know far better than I do about what constitutes a hazard. Incidentally, you do know their view on this topic I take it?

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-09-17/needle-exchange-program-rejected-at-canberra-jail/7854290

Blen_Carmichael said :

Ah yes, the miraculous transformation of character when one walks into a “regulated prison needle exchange program”. Here’s a hypothetical hardened crim – let’s call him Mathew – who’s a heroin addict. He’s also HIV positive, has a lengthy criminal history, including violent attacks on olice and prison officers. But the beauty of this “regulated prison needle exchange program” is that Mathew becomes a serene being on entering the said facility. Why is this so? “Well”, says Mathew, “it wouldn’t be cricket to use this government-issued syringe on one of Her Majesty’s officers, would it? That would be using the syringe for an ulterior purpose and I’ll not be a party to that.”

Nice deflection. I suppose when there’s zero evidence to cite one will need to rely on hypotheticals. There is so much wrong with your argument that it’s difficult to know where to begin. I’ll have a crack at it though, because I can’t possibly resist.

The “miraculous transformation” of character you mock is irrelevant because what we’re talking about here is what happens to risk. If a yard fit is circulating amongst 20 or more detainees, it’s virtually assured of being infectious. If a fit is exchanged between occasions of use – or even better, as Hargreaves stated, used in a contained space such as an injecting facility – the potentially harmful objects circulating in the prison is reduced. It becomes a safer place.

There is nothing stopping a detainee hell bent on stabbing a prison officer with a fit from doing that now, or at any time since the AMC was commissioned. There’s plenty of needles in there already. Every single one of them is a risk, yet the only time any AMC prison officer has been exposed to this risk is through needlestick injury when searching for unsterile fits that have to be hidden away.

Of course, then there’s the dramatic differences between Graham Farlow (who stabbed Officer Pearce) and the fictional Mathew. Farlow was an end-stage AIDS patient with dementia and an astronomical viral load. The fictional Mathew however is HIV positive in a time when modern HIV drugs has his viral load so low it’s undetectable. The chances of transmitting HIV are very low.

However, let’s pretend for a minute that you’re right, that all those advances in modern medicine have never happened, and that the fictional Mathew is as potentially infectious as Graham Farlow. Post-exposure prophylaxis for HIV is a course of medicine that is commenced within 72 hours of a potential HIV exposure, and it prevents sero-conversion. In other words, had PEP been available to Geoffrey Pearce, he’d still be alive today. Anyone stabbed by your Mathew would commence PEP to prevent HIV infection. “Yes, but what about hep C and hep B” you say? Anyone can get vaccinated against hep B, and all prison officers should be. Hep C is now quickly and easily cured.

There’s your theoretical, in cinders. So in the absence of any credible evidence, you’ll be needing to rely on a philosophical argument that detainees should have needles anyway. Yep, I agree, but they do. What’s more, prisons are now and have always been powerless to prevent them getting in. In a prison with no needles and no drug problem, no one would ever consider a regulated NSP.

Sixty odd prisons in the world are already safely operating regulated NSPs. I’m confident that our prison officers are just as capable as prison officers in other countries and could make it work just as well if not better.

Blen_Carmichael9:45 am 06 Jan 17

James_Ryan said :

Blen_Carmichael said :

“The proof is everywhere that this works and is not a danger to the officers as they say.”

Of course, how could anyone think a needle in the hands of prisoners could be a danger to prison officers?

John, have you ever heard of Geoffrey Pearce?

http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2001/s313015.htm

Geoffrey Pearce was killed with a filthy yard fit, deliberately by a person with HIV and AIDS related dementia.

Geoffrey Pearce will killed with a filthy yard fit in the absence of a regulated NSP, in a prison just like the AMC.

To support your argument rather than supporting Hargreaves’, feel free to cite evidence of a regulated prison needle exchange causing harm to any prison officer anywhere in the sixty-odd prisons with exchange programs.

Ah yes, the miraculous transformation of character when one walks into a “regulated prison needle exchange program”. Here’s a hypothetical hardened crim – let’s call him Mathew – who’s a heroin addict. He’s also HIV positive, has a lengthy criminal history, including violent attacks on olice and prison officers. But the beauty of this “regulated prison needle exchange program” is that Mathew becomes a serene being on entering the said facility. Why is this so? “Well”, says Mathew, “it wouldn’t be cricket to use this government-issued syringe on one of Her Majesty’s officers, would it? That would be using the syringe for an ulterior purpose and I’ll not be a party to that.”

Blen_Carmichael said :

“The proof is everywhere that this works and is not a danger to the officers as they say.”

Of course, how could anyone think a needle in the hands of prisoners could be a danger to prison officers?

John, have you ever heard of Geoffrey Pearce?

http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2001/s313015.htm

Geoffrey Pearce was killed with a filthy yard fit, deliberately by a person with HIV and AIDS related dementia.

Geoffrey Pearce will killed with a filthy yard fit in the absence of a regulated NSP, in a prison just like the AMC.

To support your argument rather than supporting Hargreaves’, feel free to cite evidence of a regulated prison needle exchange causing harm to any prison officer anywhere in the sixty-odd prisons with exchange programs.

This is the correct way to run a prison: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TsIn_ebna3A

It is idiotic and irresponsible to pretend these people deserve to be handles with a soft touch. No wonder there’s >70% return rate at this place. It’s a holiday camp. People are put in gaol as punishment. That’s what they should receive. I bet the recidivism rate would drop dramatically if it wasn’t such a pleasant place to be. You know, actual punishment and consequences for being a criminal.

devils_advocate10:46 am 05 Jan 17

I think this article is starting from a false premise.
There are a number of different social and economic objectives achieved by custodial sentencing.
1) Condemnation – literally, a public statement that the crime is serious enough to invoke what is now society’s harshest penalty.
2) retribution – whether you like it or not, society gains utility from seeing criminals deprived of their liberty.
3) protection – locking dangerous criminals up protects the rest of society
4) specific deterrence – the individual being locked up is presumed to find the experience sufficiently unpleasant that they don’t want to repeat the offence
5) general deterrence – the rest of society understands there are consequences for illegal behaviour. Bonus points if ex-convicts can convince their friends that gaol is not a great place to be.
6) rehabilitation – while on the inside the criminal is removed from their usual associates and substances that are likely to influence or motivate their criminal behaviour. They may also receive medical/mental health treatment to reduce the risk of recidivism, or training to give a realistic option once released (iff the prospects of rehabilitation are there).

This article focusses on only the last of these, item 6. Now, I don’t believe in criminals being brutalised, and coming out worse than they went in. But at the same time I don’t agree that criminals should be entitled to a better standard of living and greater housing and food security than a lot of people that observe the law and work for a living.

Where is Sherrif Joe when you need him?

wildturkeycanoe3:54 pm 04 Jan 17

“They can see kangaroos in the morning, they can see the mist rise over the creek bed and they can see the traffic going by. They have not been locked away in a cupboard a with the key chucked away.”
Well, there’s part of the reason we have repeat offenders.
“there is a hairdressing facility”
“barista training which gives the prisoners a Certificate 3 in hospitality”
“peaceful quiet space for indigenous inmates with programs just for them”
And on top of all this, they get three meals a day and don’t have to lift a finger to earn any of it [except of course the pathetic crime that put them there]. How is that supposed to be a disincentive to people on the streets who are starving, homeless and desperate?

“The us and them syndrome is alive and well. Uniforms only perpetuate the notion of officers being “screws” and “turnkeys””.
In society there is a truly alive notion of “us” and “them”, but the two groups are the “haves” and the “have nots”. The divide that sets apart the elite, highly educated and the rich and wealthy from the working poor, those on welfare, the unemployed and the absolutely destitute is getting larger by the day. We wear uniforms from the time we start school, be they private or public. We then go on to our teens where the brand name clothes differentiate the wealthy from the ones who have either Kmart clothes or hand-me-downs. Then when we get into adulthood we either wear a brand that advertises a fast food or retail outlet, or don a suit and tie that proudly displays our inherited wealth.

Why should those who commit crimes, serious enough to warrant incarceration for the protection of the public, be treated as equals with those who maintain the gap between them and the outside world? Surely a prison guard should be high enough up the food chain to be able to provide for their own family, whilst they watch over the scum of society who in reality are now stealing from the public purse by swallowing up taxpayer funds for their own upkeep.

I have always believed since childhood that prison is where you go to be punished for your crimes. It isn’t a holiday camp where you get TV, computer games, activities to keep you from getting bored, education and free meals. There are law abiding citizens who get less than these inmates, but they don’t commit crime in order to get it. But the people behind bars are getting it way too easy. It is about time they were put to work. Even the unemployed are being forced into work programs, whilst jails subscribe to the policy that the poor precious souls who have defied the law, should be mollycoddled in a kind, caring manner in order to not upset them and the daft human rights activists who stand by them. Bollocks. They should be made to at least earn their keep. Why should the taxpayer fund their lifestyle, when it doesn’t look after people who are far more deserving?
Privatize the jail. Turn it into a productive tool for society. There is plenty that needs doing in the community that nobody else is committing funds or manpower to.

Masquara said :

“Another concern I have is the emergence of a gym. I saw for myself the stupidity of putting body building equipment into a facility where lack of employment or activity only serves to entice people to enhance their image through strength and body building. The Fulham Prison near Sale had a group of Asian inmates who did just that and intimidated the other prisoners. They also prepared for skullduggery on release as stand over merchants.”

Why single out “Asians” as being a risk if they are allowed to use gym equipment?

They should be giving them driving lessons as well.

Rebecca Vassarotti said :

…it is important we have the level of oversight that comes with public ownership – so we as the public have access to the outcomes of inquiries and investigations that follow when things go wrong… Private companies have a legal responsibility to serve their shareholders and there is a record of Governments using this to reduce accountability.

Umm, so how do you feel about how Rattenbury delayed the inquest reporting date into Steve Freeman, until after the recent ACT election? Seems convenient.

Given that Rattenbury has been jail minister for 4 years, systemic failures are his failings. But to me, delaying the report until after the election was Rattenbury avoiding accountability, and the very narrow terms of reference also helped that.

And the level of secrecy around ThroughCare, where Rattenbury praises the alleged outcomes of prisoner reintegration, but refuses to declare where the program is located (so people can correlate crime jumps themselves) is also of great concern. Yet another instance of ‘you’ll have to take my word for it but can’t look for yourself’.

I’ve got a RiotACT profile too. Take a look at the two pieces I most recently wrote about the related issue of what happens to inmates upon release. Rattenbury is up to his neck in those disasters too.

Privatise it.

Masquara said :

“Another concern I have is the emergence of a gym. I saw for myself the stupidity of putting body building equipment into a facility where lack of employment or activity only serves to entice people to enhance their image through strength and body building. The Fulham Prison near Sale had a group of Asian inmates who did just that and intimidated the other prisoners. They also prepared for skullduggery on release as stand over merchants.”

Why single out “Asians” as being a risk if they are allowed to use gym equipment?

The example happened to be one of Asian inmates. That’s factual. At no point did John imply that Asians specifically are a risk. Don’t try to make it an issue of race.

Rebecca Vassarotti11:00 pm 03 Jan 17

A_Cog said :

Mysteryman said :

I looked at the recidivism question and concluded that if we treated offenders with respect and compassion, we were more likely to stop recidivism than treating offenders as animals

And how wrong you were.

LOL… +++(plus)375 (for all the prisoners).

The AMC has the WORST recidivism rate in Australia (which marries quite nicely with the ACT Police having the LOWEST rate of crime solving of any police force in Australia, against stiff competition from the NT, WA and TAS forces, so when you put this together we have one of the least safe areas in the nation but it is hidden by the ACTP refusing to enter offences into their database so the stats get shaped).

I cannot see how privatising AMC could worsen prisoner or community outcomes. Prisoners are already overcrowded, under-resourced, get hardly any diversionary programs inside (5hrs instead of 30). The recidivism rate of ~70% shows that victims continue to suffer as soon as inmates get out.

And all this happens whilst we have a Greens MLA as Corrections Minister (where’s your disclosure, Rebecca?). It just shows how fraudulent the idea of a “human rights compliant” jail always was, and that the government’s priorities are so off mark.

We scream about Manus and Xmas Island when the Libs run it, but when an ALP government has a Greens jail minister and inmates are getting beaten to death or staying on heroin and ice whilst inside a “secure” environment, the horrors are somehow invisible.

Hi there. If you go to my bio on RiotACT attached to my photo you will see my disclosure about the fact I ran as an ACT Greens candidate in the last ACT election. Not at all trying to hide my affiliation.

The issues of managing prisons and detention facilities are incredibly complex. My point is that when issues are so challenging that it is important we have the level of oversight that comes with public ownership – so we as the public have access to the outcomes of inquiries and investigations that follow when things go wrong. For me its not who is the decision maker – its that governments, no matter what party they belong to, remain accountable to the people they serve. Private companies have a legal responsibility to serve their shareholders and there is a record of Governments using this to reduce accountability.

“Another concern I have is the emergence of a gym. I saw for myself the stupidity of putting body building equipment into a facility where lack of employment or activity only serves to entice people to enhance their image through strength and body building. The Fulham Prison near Sale had a group of Asian inmates who did just that and intimidated the other prisoners. They also prepared for skullduggery on release as stand over merchants.”

Why single out “Asians” as being a risk if they are allowed to use gym equipment?

Leon Arundell4:36 pm 03 Jan 17

Privatising prisons creates perverse incentives, such as the incentive to bribe judges to sentence people to jail terms: http://countercurrentnews.com/2015/08/judge-sentenced-to-28-years/

I thought Rioters might be interested in the following article – http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2016/06/cca-private-prisons-corrections-corporation-inmates-investigation-bauer.

Hopefully it could never get as bad as this at the AMC or anywhere else in Oz, but you never know.

Bradley Mark Flynn – violent thug, home burglar, heroin addict, car thief and armed bank robber. Not a person you would want to meet. Repeat offender, recidivist and one who makes a mockery of weak, soft on crime, restorative justice advocates.

2011
http://courts.act.gov.au/supreme/sentences/r-v-flynn2

2013
http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-news/alleged-damaged-bumper-lands-convicted-armed-robber-back-behind-bars-20150205-136z43.html

I mourn for the loss of common sense, integrity and good judgement in the people we elected.

Mysteryman said :

I looked at the recidivism question and concluded that if we treated offenders with respect and compassion, we were more likely to stop recidivism than treating offenders as animals

And how wrong you were.

LOL… +++(plus)375 (for all the prisoners).

The AMC has the WORST recidivism rate in Australia (which marries quite nicely with the ACT Police having the LOWEST rate of crime solving of any police force in Australia, against stiff competition from the NT, WA and TAS forces, so when you put this together we have one of the least safe areas in the nation but it is hidden by the ACTP refusing to enter offences into their database so the stats get shaped).

I cannot see how privatising AMC could worsen prisoner or community outcomes. Prisoners are already overcrowded, under-resourced, get hardly any diversionary programs inside (5hrs instead of 30). The recidivism rate of ~70% shows that victims continue to suffer as soon as inmates get out.

And all this happens whilst we have a Greens MLA as Corrections Minister (where’s your disclosure, Rebecca?). It just shows how fraudulent the idea of a “human rights compliant” jail always was, and that the government’s priorities are so off mark.

We scream about Manus and Xmas Island when the Libs run it, but when an ALP government has a Greens jail minister and inmates are getting beaten to death or staying on heroin and ice whilst inside a “secure” environment, the horrors are somehow invisible.

I looked at the recidivism question and concluded that if we treated offenders with respect and compassion, we were more likely to stop recidivism than treating offenders as animals

And how wrong you were.

John Hargreaves9:35 am 03 Jan 17

Rachel Moore said :

Great article John. Super sad though. To think we could have been international leaders with safe injecting and best practice. Such a shame.
I’m afraid John I seem to have more questions than answers about AMC. I am quite curious about recidivism rates. What will be the impact of the Dhulwa Mental Health Unit? How will the integration of a medical model of care and justice exist side by side? What about the women? My limited understanding is that perhaps they don’t have access to as many facilities as male offenders. What about transgender offenders? Like I said John, more questions than answers.

good bunch of questions which tax the minds of many

Hi Rachel. A good bunch of questions. My approach has been to have harm minimisation so that if the body is not in crisis, the mind may be receptive to positive suggestion. A simple answer to a complex question.

The mental health unit is a great introduction to the system. Some people commit crimes during a mental health episode and should be treated not incarcerated as a punishment. Separating those with acute mental illnesses is essential if those with and those without mental issues are to be restored to society. The tricky bit is that some present with multiple diagnoses and working out whether those with aberrant behaviours are due to mental illness or drug and alcohol influences or anything else, all of which require different approaches to rehabilitation and subsequent restoration.

Not sure if this helps.

John Hargreaves7:55 am 03 Jan 17

No_Nose said :

“I mourn for the prisoners in the AMC, I mourn for their families, I mourn for the officers, I mourn for the community and I mourn for the hope I felt in that facility”

No mourning for the victims of these criminals though?

Typical.

Just for the record I Am patron of the Victims Of Crime Assistance League VOCAL. And I refer you to the report in the Legislative Assembly on the forgotten victims of crime, a report from a committee I chaired.

Acton said :

A privatised prison would be run as a profit making, cost recovery venture with conjugal visits on a user pays basis.

Hahaha…..best comment on RiotAct this year…….! ROFL

Rachel Moore6:18 pm 02 Jan 17

Great article John. Super sad though. To think we could have been international leaders with safe injecting and best practice. Such a shame.
I’m afraid John I seem to have more questions than answers about AMC. I am quite curious about recidivism rates. What will be the impact of the Dhulwa Mental Health Unit? How will the integration of a medical model of care and justice exist side by side? What about the women? My limited understanding is that perhaps they don’t have access to as many facilities as male offenders. What about transgender offenders? Like I said John, more questions than answers.

John Hargreaves, while a Corrections Minister, instigated a conjugal visit program for AMC prisoners. Something about the importance of maintaining relationships through incarceration to avoid recidivism…

It was a silly idea. One of many. Occupants of the Monaro Marriott are there because they are the worst of the worst – including rape, assault, domestic violence, child sex etc

Those romantic candle-lit conjugal visits would have to be closely supervised (and who wanted that job?) to meet duty of care responsibilities and protect the horny prisoner’s love interest. The program stalled for security reasons.

Anyway, if John H thinks conjugal visits for prisoners is a good idea then he should not be undermining (again) his former boss Jon S who suggests a privatised AMC may improve management.

A privatised prison would be run as a profit making, cost recovery venture with conjugal visits on a user pays basis.

Rebecca Vassarotti3:54 pm 02 Jan 17

Masquara said :

Focus on outcomes and let go of your soft-left schtick, John. There’s no reason why a private operator shouldn’t be able to manage the facility perfectly well. They will probably be more open to useful ideas than the bureaucrats have ever been.”

I think the running of off shore detention centers by private operators is a good example of some of the concerns about this approach. Not only have we seen billions of tax payer dollars going to these companies with little understanding what is happening in the facilities, we have also seen the Government walking away from transparency and accountability, and abdicate responsibilities such as providing appropriate health and other services. Some things need to remain in public hands and the AMC is definitely one of these.

Focus on outcomes and let go of your soft-left schtick, John. There’s no reason why a private operator shouldn’t be able to manage the facility perfectly well. They will probably be more open to useful ideas than the bureaucrats have ever been. In any case, why do Indigenous inmates need quiet spaces and special programs more than non-indigenous? There are all sorts of disadvantaged categories of people who would respond well to considerate care. On uniforms: of course there should be uniforms to make it clear to inmates that there is a necessary hierarchy here. Remember how some family courts reintroduced judicial robing to counter disrespect from clients? Overall, I really would not be keen on a “hi guys, we’re just like you” approach from the prison officers. How about “put in some effort, show a good attitude and we’ll think about giving you some privileges”.

watto23 said :

You are right though, vested interests are the issues along with greed. Our political system is run by greedy people and greedy donors with vested interests. If affects every party, and none are better than each other.

Well said. How true.

dungfungus said :

Whatever they do with it, it will still end up being controlled by the unions and other vested interests.

Umm just about everything is controlled by people with vested interests and not with the publics best interests. This thing about being anti-union when business and corporations do EXACTLY the same thing, just shows how facts are an inconvenient truth for some.

Privatising a jail though is a bad idea. I’ve seen what cuts IT companies do just to make money, while continually cutting the price of their services to the government and trying to increase their profit margin. IT we can live with, life has moved on after the ATO and ABS issues this year, but in a jail, I can only imagine the outrage from people like yourself if a murderer escaped and then your subsequent grasping at straws to blame either the unions or the government.

You are right though, vested interests are the issues along with greed. Our political system is run by greedy people and greedy donors with vested interests. If affects every party, and none are better than each other.

“I mourn for the prisoners in the AMC, I mourn for their families, I mourn for the officers, I mourn for the community and I mourn for the hope I felt in that facility”

No mourning for the victims of these criminals though?

Typical.

John Thistleton said :

A warder at Goulburn Jail, probably Australia’s most notorious, was once asked if he feared for his life among the inmates who included serial killers and terrorists. No, he said, most of them were inside because they were poor and unable to read. They were on the welfare ladder’s lowest step, and warders were in the main welfare providers. The profit-driven private sector shouldn’t be responsible for these people. We all should be, through publicly-funded jails.

And Ivan Milat is really a humanitarian.

There is something wrong with the system when the victims are perceived to be the ones locked up.

Whatever they do with it, it will still end up being controlled by the unions and other vested interests.

John Thistleton9:53 am 02 Jan 17

A warder at Goulburn Jail, probably Australia’s most notorious, was once asked if he feared for his life among the inmates who included serial killers and terrorists. No, he said, most of them were inside because they were poor and unable to read. They were on the welfare ladder’s lowest step, and warders were in the main welfare providers. The profit-driven private sector shouldn’t be responsible for these people. We all should be, through publicly-funded jails.

Blen_Carmichael9:03 am 02 Jan 17

“The proof is everywhere that this works and is not a danger to the officers as they say.”

Of course, how could anyone think a needle in the hands of prisoners could be a danger to prison officers?

John, have you ever heard of Geoffrey Pearce?

http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2001/s313015.htm

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