The B.C. Supreme CourtB次元官网网址檚 is an opening to push for greater supports for federal inmates, according to the West Coast Prison Justice Society.
Jennifer Metcalfe, executive director of the Prisoner Legal Services branch, said that WednesdayB次元官网网址檚 decision paved the way to address psychological ramifications of segregating prisoners.
B次元官网网址淭his case is really exciting because the remedies were so strong,B次元官网网址� said Metcalfe.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 really going to change the way prisons are administered and I think it will have really far-reaching impacts.B次元官网网址�
The nine-week-long trial between the BC Civil Liberties Association, the John Howard Society of Canada and the Attorney General of Canada ended with Justice Peter Leask declaring the practice of isolating prisoners for undefined lengths of time unconstitutional.
The federal government, which has been given 12 months to change its practices, has not ruled out an appeal.
In a statement, public safety minister Ralph Goodale blamed the previous federal Conservative governmentB次元官网网址檚 B次元官网网址渙veruse of administrative segregationB次元官网网址� for both the B.C. case and a similar lawsuit in Ontario.
Goodale said that the Liberal government has been working on reforms to B次元官网网址渞emedy the mistaken views and directions of the Harper eraB次元官网网址� since early 2016 but that the work will take B次元官网网址渢ime and effort.B次元官网网址�
Metcalfe said the decision made in WednesdayB次元官网网址檚 ruling was much stronger than the one in the March 2017 Canadian Civil Liberties Association case.
B次元官网网址淚n the Canadian Civil Liberties case, they found that health monitoring would deal with a lot of the issues,B次元官网网址� said Metcalfe.
B次元官网网址淭his one rejected that health monitoring is adequate to address the psychological and health impact on prisoners in segregation.B次元官网网址�
Today is a landmark moment for prison justice in Canada. This victory belongs to the prisoners who have suffered in
B次元官网网址� BC Civil Liberties (@bccla)
The only remedy the judge in the Canadian Civil Liberties case case imposed, Metcalfe said, was that someone aside from the prison warden review segregation placements.
The B.C Supreme Court ruling that solitary confinement is a charter violation opens up more support for inmatesB次元官网网址� mental health, Metcalfe said.
B次元官网网址淭he laws authorized prolonged, indefinite administrative segregation for anyoneB次元官网网址� that lacked meaningful human contact,B次元官网网址� said Metcalfe.
B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檝e had clients who have been in for over a year. They might have a day here and there where theyB次元官网网址檙e out, but the vast majority of their time over a period of years was in segregation.B次元官网网址�
Metcalfe said that as a result, those clients developed post-traumatic stress disorder and began to self-harm B次元官网网址� far from the rehabilitation that prisons are supposed to provide.
B次元官网网址淸The decision] found that the laws violated the charted because they allowed prisoners with mental-health issues to be held in segregation and they discriminate against Indigenous prisoners,B次元官网网址� said Metcalfe.
B次元官网网址淎 lot of the reasons why people end up in segregation should be addressed through access to therapeutic services, instead of just locking people up behind closed doors and throwing away the key.B次元官网网址�
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