NCJ Number
81411
Date Published
1979
Length
49 pages
Annotation
This annual report of the Correctional Investigator of Canada (ombudsman), appointed to investigate and report upon the complaints and problems of inmates in Canadian penitentiaries, covers activities from June 1, 1977 to May 31, 1978.
Abstract
There was a 32 percent drop in the number of complaints received nationally this year, a trend anticipated because the office changed its policy on investigating complaints. Now, before dealing with an ombudsman, the complainant is required to exhaust all other available sources of assistance. Strict observance of this principle has reduced the number of complaints reaching the office of the Correctional Investigator. The majority of complaints received continues to result from prison transfers and represents a substantial volume of the workload. Major sections of this report discuss prison directives and instructions, special handling units, parole, dissociation (solitary confinement), the disciplinary process, the processing of claims and inmate personal possessions, and inmate medical services. Recommendations are that (1) immediate action be taken to implement suitable programs and activities for inmates in solitary confinement and that priority be given to implementation of such programs for inmates in special handling units; (2) action be taken on the recommendation of the Study Group on Dissociation that called for experiments to determine whether inmates in various conditions of dissociation experience sensory deprivation; (3) the Penitentiary Service devise and implement more efficient administrative procedures for itemizing and storing inmate property, seizures relating to cell and body searches, and collecting and shipping inmate property on transfer; and (4) a system be devised to deal efficiently with inmate property claims. Appended are minutes of pertinent meetings of the Committee of the Privy Council and directives of the Correctional Investigator. Tabular data are provided.