Last week the MLAs heard that the government had deliberately reduced the number of inmates in our jails because it’s too dangerous to have full jails with Covid. Yayyyy.
But the administration had barely finished giving them this information when MLAs were asking if it’s possible to use the jails for something else. Eschia (take it easy, eh).
Are they hard of hearing? There are less inmates because of Covid. Not because people are committing less crimes. In fact, similar to the drop-in center, social distancing means less people are allowed in the jails.
For instance, I’ve been told that only two people are allowed at a dining table. Also, they can only have one person in a cell instead of two, and new people must isolate for 14 days in a designated area.
Low-risk inmates have always been able to apply for early release after completing one sixth of their sentence. There were a lot of early releases at the start of COVID, but less now because there are less people coming to jail.
Why less going to jail? Because in-person courts have been put on hold until 2022 unless a person pleads guilty. Judges are also giving more people bail and probably more diversion options to keep people out of jail.
Someone from a community also told me that they hadn’t seen a court in their community for months. So, I guess the Court circuit was also put on hold.
Why re-purpose jail?
So, why would an MLA ask if we can use jails for other things? Some people like to see their name in the news. Others think that our jails are like hotels. Others simply think people should not be in jail.
Some people think putting people in jail does not make us safer or sentences are too long. It is certainly expensive.
And some people really feel that prisons are “schools of crime” where prisoners teach each other how to commit crimes. Or that inmates are not being reformed if most of them re-offend when they get out.
It’s hard on people. Some people come out with a huge resentment and want to get back at society. It’s also much harder to get a job when you have a prison record, and this often leads people back to crime.
Some people argue it’s too hard on the offenders’ families. Kids miss their parents, there is a loss of family income, increased costs of lawyers and visits to the jail, and many relationships break down while one is in jail.
Why put people behind bars?
We have put people in jail for centuries to protect us from dangerous and violent people. It’s also used as punishment for bad deeds.
Some people think lawbreakers won’t re-offend if they’re scared of going back to jail and can’t re-offend if they’re locked away. Also, people need to respect the law so there must be repercussions for breaking the law.
Finally, going to jail gives offenders a chance to think about what they have done, how they are living, and time to change their behaviour.
In any case, no matter which side of the argument you support, until the justice system is reformed it’s much too early to consider using our jails for other things.
In fact, I have done some work in the North Slave Correctional Center and what I’ve seen is that we need more space not less. Say what? Yup more space is needed.
I say that because there’s not enough space for programs. If we want to help reform and to reintegrate people back into society, we must provide more programming for them, not just house them.
For instance, with all the various traumas offenders have gone through, there needs to be more mental health assistance, such as counselling and trauma therapy.
Another thing I’ve noticed is the huge numbers of people being detained while they are waiting for their trials, often for years.
In fact, someone I knew was held almost a full year without a bail hearing and when he was finally sent home for a hearing, the charges were dropped. Any reform needs to address this for sure.
So, I say forget about repurposing our jails until there’s major reform done to our justice system. For instance, when was the last time you saw an Indigenous person go to court in Yellowknife with a majority of Indigenous people on the jury?
And, apparently, the minister of Justice said NWT communities have not faced any repercussions because of the lower incarceration rates.
So, if society is not suffering by having these people out of jail, let’s change the way we do things to keep the numbers low.
If nothing else, it should save us a lot of money. And we might be able to use our jails for other things.
