FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE May 5, 2000

Crime factories won’t reduce recidivism, correctional workers say

TORONTO - The Ontario government’s latest plan to restructure correctional services will not reduce recidivism by convicted offenders, front-line correctional workers say.

“Closing community jails and building 1,200-bed hate factories is a grave risk to the safety of the public and the safety of corrections workers and inmates,” said Leah Casselman, president of the Ontario Public Service Employees Union. “This plan does not reduce recidivism. All it does is create opportunities for foreign companies to make profits from the victims of crime.”

Today’s announcement by Corrections Minister Rob Sampson added six community jails to the list of those to close, bringing the total to 30 to close under Tory rule by spring 2004.

“All of the research shows that an inmate who maintains family ties is much less likely to re-offend,” said Casselman. “By closing community jails, the government is cutting the lifeline for inmates who are trying to get back on the straight and narrow.”

Sampson also announced three new private “boot camp” facilities, one for adults and two for young offenders.

“It’s stunning that this government is moving to boot camps now at a time when the rest of the world is closing them down,” said Casselman. She pointed to major problems this year in Maryland, where the state has closed all boot camps, and Louisiana, where the United States justice department has gone to court to stop abuse of young boys at a Wackenhut juvenile prison.

She also pointed to the government’s first private boot camp, famous for its opening-day escape, as an example of what’s wrong with the government’s plan.

“Even though inmates in Camp Turnaround are hand-picked, low-risk kids, they still re-offend at a rate of 68 per cent, which is higher than the rest of the system,” Casselman noted.

The government’s plan to use technology to supervise inmates in superjails is simply terrifying, she said. “No video camera ever broke up a fight or prevented a murder. No video camera can detect a rise in tension on a unit full of inmates. Safety in a jail is directly proportional to the number of trained professionals who work there.”

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