(CBC News) – Concerns about the treatment of prisoners remanded in Iqaluit RCMP cells came to light in a Nunavut courtroom this week, when a territorial court judge heard the case of a man who was recently held at the local police detachment.
Justice Beverley Browne heard the complaint Wednesday by Darryl Qaqasiq, who claimed to he faced unlawful treatment since being remanded at the Iqaluit RCMP detachment on May 30.
Remanded inmates are kept in detachment cells when there is no more room at the Baffin Correctional Centre. The territorial jail, which was built to house 66 inmates, has long been struggling with severe overcrowding.
Qaqasiq, who has been charged with numerous violent offences, claimed he had no access to a shower, a telephone and adequate meals while in the RCMP lock-up, said his lawyer, Scott Wheildon.
Wheildon told CBC News Qaqasiq had not been provided access to speak with a lawyer on a number of occasions.
“These are very troubling circumstances and troubling allegations that my client has put before the court,” Wheildon said outside court Wednesday. “He’s living in a cell with two other gentlemen. There’s only two beds in that cell; one of them has to sleep on the floor. The lights are on 24 hours a day.”
Wheildon said the way his client has been treated fails to meet a minimum standard of decency.
Lorraine Land, a lawyer for the territorial Justice Department, said Nunavut legislation does not “specifically provide for minimum standards.”
“We do ensure that there are minimum standards met for inmates who are located at the Baffin Correctional Centre,” she said, but added there’s no way for the government to monitor people being held at the RCMP detachment.
In court Wednesday, Browne ordered all inmates being remanded at the RCMP detachment to be moved to the Baffin Correctional Centre. She also instructed the government to make sure all prisoners remanded at the RCMP detachment in the future receive proper treatment.
“We will, of course, be looking at this to see how we ensure that, when in an emergency, individuals are in the RCMP cells, that their basic needs are being met,” Land said.
Wheildon said Browne’s ruling solves his Qaqasiq’s detention problems for now, but said it is still possible to seek recourse for a violation of Qaqasiq’s charter rights.
Recent Comments