Edmonton Journal ePaper

Edmonton Max inmates allege being denied their meds

JONNY WAKEFIELD jwakefield@postmedia.com twitter.com/jonnywakefield

Edmonton police have been asked to investigate claims that inmates in the city's maximum-security prison are being denied medications and unlawfully placed in solitary confinement.

On Wednesday, the John Howard Society of Canada wrote a letter to police chief Dale Mcfee to press for an investigation into conditions at Edmonton Institution, the maximum security men's prison in the city's northeast.

The society's executive director, Catherine Latimer, said it has received reports from inmates describing maltreatment in medical care and in the use of solitary confinement. She says police need to look into the allegations to determine if criminal charges are warranted against facility staff and management.

Latimer said it is common to hear complaints from prisoners who have been taken off previously prescribed drugs for cost reasons, or concerns that an inmate might be diverting the drugs for non-prescribed use.

However, “in some cases it looks like (staff ) would just do it as sort of an informal way of punishing the prisoners,” Latimer said in an interview. “That's the one that concerns me the most.”

Edmonton Institution, a federal prison built to hold about 300 prisoners, has long faced complaints from both inmates and staff.

In 2017, federal corrections investigator Ivan Zinger criticized the facility's “toxic” workplace after employees reported bullying, abuse and sexual harassment by other staff members. Eleven employees quit, or were fired or suspended, after the revelations. A correctional officer was charged with sexually assaulting a colleague, though the charge was ultimately withdrawn.

In 2019, the Journal revealed that a workplace survey which found 17 employees allegedly had been sexually assaulted by a co-worker. The following year, Zinger said the toxic workplace culture at the facility persisted despite efforts to root out the problem.

In her letter last week, Latimer said John Howard staff have spoken with inmates who claim to have been “cut off ” from drugs for serious health conditions, including diabetes and asthma. She said if proven, this could be a breach of the Correctional Service of Canada's legal obligation to provide inmates with the necessaries of life.

One inmate for whom the John Howard Society has been advocating has had his medication restored, Latimer said, adding that a prisoner shouldn't have to be a “squeaky wheel” to get it.

Latimer also expressed concerns about Edmonton Institution's use of solitary confinement, defined by the UN as confinement for at least 22 hours a day without “meaningful” human contact. Many prisoners in both the federal and provincial systems have experienced longer lockups during the COVID -19 pandemic.

The CSC recently phased out solitary confinement, which it calls “administrative segregation,” in favour of “structured intervention units” designed to provide less time in cells and more human contact for problematic prisoners.

But Latimer says Edmonton Max prisoners “have repeatedly asserted that officials are practising prolonged solitary confinement within the SIUS, providing prisoners with only 30 minutes outside of their cells each day for weeks on end.”

The Criminal Code and international law consider this a form of torture, she said.

In a statement, the correctional service said it is reviewing the allegations.

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2021-09-20T07:00:00.0000000Z

2021-09-20T07:00:00.0000000Z

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