Proposed law expressly bans prolonged solitary confinement for all in prison
Corrections Minister Mark Mitchell announced that the Corrections (Management of Prisoners, and Prisoners’ Property) Amendment Bill – seeking to toughen the legislative framework for managing the few prisoners posing an extreme risk to prison and public safety – passed its first reading.
“The Bill strikes a careful balance between managing the risks posed by these prisoners and protecting their rights to natural justice,” Mitchell said in a news release from the government.
The government noted that the contemplated changes include a new robust statutory process to determine whether a prisoner presents an extreme risk and requires additional custodial oversight.
Mitchell explained that extreme risk prisoners include those who threaten prison or public safety due to their links to transnational organised crime, radical ideology, or a history of serious violence.
According to Mitchell, the chief executive will consider an expert advisory panel’s recommendation and any other pertinent information to determine which prisoners pose an extreme threat. To promote fairness, prisoners can submit written information for the panel to consider before making a recommendation to the chief executive.
Mitchell added that the chief executive should review a determination that may have become inappropriate or unnecessary in light of new and relevant information or a change in circumstances.
According to Mitchell, extreme risk prisoners will likely get fewer hours of unlock time, receive fewer contact visits, and face stricter measures than their fellow prisoners. However, extreme risk prisoners will have a cell with a self-contained yard, affording them more personal space compared with other prisoners.
In its news release, the government noted that the proposed amendments intend to:
“Under the Bill, all prisoners must receive 10 hours of meaningful human contact over each 14-day period, with a desire for Corrections to aim to provide prisoners with 14 hours of meaningful human contact each week,” Mitchell said.
