by J Metcalfe | Aug 26, 2021 | News
Beginning on September 7, 2021, anyone who was in administrative segregation in a federal penitentiary in Canada
a) for 16 consecutive days or more after March 3, 2011, or
b) for any amount of time after July 20, 2009, and you were diagnosed with a mental disorder or borderline personality disorder before or during incarceration, and you suffered serious impairment as a result of your disorder and reported it to CSC,
can make a claim for compensation. You can make a claim for compensation whether you were in administrative segregation “voluntarily” or not. Please see https://www.segregationclassactionfederal.ca/en/home for more information.
Please share this information widely with anyone who might be able to make a claim.
by J Metcalfe | Aug 19, 2021 | News, News Releases, Uncategorized
BURNABY, BC – August 19, 2021 – Today, Prisoners’ Legal Services (“PLS”) filed a complaint to the Canadian Human Rights Commission on behalf of Nick Dinardo, a 29-year-old Two-Spirit and transfeminine member of the Piapot First Nation, against Correctional Service Canada (“CSC”).
Since coming out to CSC last year, Nick has been repeatedly transferred between institutions designated for men, where they have experienced violence and harassment from both officers and other prisoners and have frequently been isolated in Structured Intervention Units (which replaced administrative segregation).
Nick has been repeatedly subject to physical force by correctional officers, and in May 2021 officers broke Nick’s arm. Officers have discussed Nick’s gender identity openly, putting Nick’s safety at risk. Both prisoners and staff have called them transphobic slurs.
Nick has often declined opportunities to come out of their cell because they fear officers will use violence against them again. Nick has not showered in approximately two months as a result. Nick has also been subject to indignities including having male officers watch them use the toilet and repeated searches by male officers, in violation of CSC policy.
These experiences are extremely traumatic for Nick, who has a history of trauma and abuse and whose family survived residential schools.
“CSC has written that it is seeking specialists in gender identity disorder for me, but my gender and culture are not a mental disorder”, Nick says. Nick’s complaint argues that not being able to live freely and safely as a Two Spirit person is a consequence of colonization and genocide against Indigenous peoples.
Nick’s requests to transfer to an institution designated for women, where they would be safer and more able to express their gender, have been denied. In making its decisions, CSC has not considered the risks to Nick’s safety and wellbeing nor their experiences of victimization in institutions designated for men.
“Nick should not have to live with a constant threat of violence hanging over their head from the people charged with their care and custody, and in conditions that regularly undermine their dignity,” said Jennifer Metcalfe, Executive Director of Prisoners’ Legal Services.
In July 2020, Nick filed a human rights complaint against CSC for failing to address their mental health needs and for responding to their emotional distress, including acts of self-harm, with violence and isolation, including officers in riot gear, pepper spray, restraints and bare isolation cells, which serve only to exacerbate their suffering. This complaint is ongoing.
Media contacts:
Jennifer Metcalfe
jmetcalfe@pls-bc.ca
604-636-0470
Nicole Kief
nkief@pls-bc.ca
604-636-0470
by J Metcalfe | Jun 28, 2021 | News
LEGAL ADVOCATE – Indigenous Prisoners’ Voices Project
Prisoners’ Legal Services, Burnaby, BC
Prisoners’ Legal Services is looking for a passionate, problem solving, empathetic and dedicated advocate for prisoners’ rights for a 12 month contract position.
The legal advocate will focus on identifying the needs of Indigenous people in custody, and providing legal aid services in the area of liberty and health care issues.
We are a small non-profit society providing legal aid to federal and provincial prisoners in the province of British Columbia regarding prison legal issues.
The legal advocate work is primarily done by telephone, fax and email. Advocacy on behalf of prisoners may involve summary advice, informal advocacy and providing written submissions.
Legal advocates have conduct of client files and are responsible for ensuring day-to-day tasks are scheduled and performed within relevant timeframes. The job involves reviewing and determining the legal merit of cases and determining the level of service to be provided. Legal advocates work under the supervision of a lawyer.
Legal advocates have a great deal of contact with prisoners, prison administrators and parole authorities.
This position may require travel to prisons in the Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley. Access to a vehicle is essential. A CPIC clearance is required to visit prisons.
Basic Qualifications:
- Post-secondary education in a relevant field;
- Strong verbal, written and interviewing skills; and
- Experience in a legal environment or advocacy an asset.
Skills and Abilities
- ability to be a strong advocate for disadvantaged clients, including those who have experienced trauma, poverty or colonialism, those with mental health disabilities, or those whose first language is not English;
- ability to work well with others in a team setting;
- ability to negotiate and find creative solutions to prisoners’ legal problems;
- ability to exercise excellent judgment in matters of ethics and confidentiality;
- must have excellent communication and interpersonal skills, in particular in dealing with prisoners, lawyers, and prison and parole officials;
- must be familiar with general software applications (e.g. MS Word, Outlook);
- must be willing and prepared to assist those convicted of various crimes in a non-judgmental way; and
- demonstrated awareness of the cultural diversity of prisoners an asset.
Salary: $52,848 (35 hours/week)
Closing date: July 25, 2021
Start date: ASAP
Interested applicants should submit a covering letter together with a résumé outlining how their qualifications meet the position requirements to:
Jennifer Metcalfe, Executive Director
Prisoners’ Legal Services/
West Coast Prison Justice Society
Tel: (604) 636-0470
Fax: (604) 636-0480
Email: jmetcalfe@pls-bc.ca
prisonjustice.org
We welcome and encourage applications from people who identify as Indigenous.
by J Metcalfe | Jun 23, 2021 | News, Submissions
On Friday June 18, 2021, Prisoners’ Legal Services made submissions to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security on CSC’s response to COVID-19, its implementation of Structured Intervention Units and sexual violence in federal prisons.
You can read our submission here.
by J Metcalfe | Mar 29, 2021 | News
Prisoners’ Legal Services
ARTICLING STUDENT JOB POSTING
Two year term – May 2021 to April 2023
Burnaby, BC
About the organization
Prisoners’ Legal Services is a legal clinic serving federal and provincial prisoners in British Columbia. We assist prisoners with issues related to their liberty rights under s. 7 of the Charter, health care and human rights.
Duties and responsibilities
- Providing general legal aid services to prisoners, including interviewing clients, managing client files, conducting legal research and writing submissions with a focus on liberty rights, human rights and health care;
- Representing clients at institutional disciplinary and Parole Board of Canada hearings; and
- Assisting legal counsel in the preparation of research and submissions in the areas of human rights and health care.
Skills and experience
Strong research and writing skills and an interest in oral advocacy are essential. Familiarity with administrative or human rights law is an asset. The successful candidate should have the ability and desire to work with prisoners in a respectful and non-judgemental manner. Interested students should have a car to travel to prisons in the Fraser Valley, public health permitting.
Salary and hours of work
The salary for this position is $50,000 for the first year as an articling student and $56,749 for the following year as an associate. The position is for 35 hours of work per week. Professional Legal Training Course (PLTC) and Law Society fees and insurance will be covered.
To apply
Applications should include a résumé, cover letter, writing sample and transcripts. The cover letter should be addressed to Jennifer Metcalfe, Executive Director, Prisoners’ Legal Services and should include an explanation of why you are interested in this position.
Submit applications via email to jmetcalfe[at]pls-bc.ca by Friday, April 9, 2021 at 3:30 p.m.
We strongly encourage applications from members of communities that experience structural discrimination and marginalization.
This position is funded by the Law Foundation of BC.
by J Metcalfe | Mar 12, 2021 | News, News Releases
BURNABY, BC – Nick Dinardo, a Two Spirit prisoner diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, reports being met with violence by correctional officers while in a CSC “treatment centre.”
Nick is a member of the Piapot First Nation, and their family are residential school survivors. Nick has a history of trauma both in and out of custody and has attempted suicide many times. Despite their vulnerability, Correctional Service Canada (CSC) holds Nick in maximum security prisons and Structured Intervention Units (SIU), where the toxic environment makes their mental health worse and results in serious acts of self-harm.
On March 1, 2021, after multiple incidents of self-harming in the SIU at Atlantic Institution, Nick was transferred to the Shepody Healing Centre, a CSC-run treatment centre in Dorchester, New Brunswick.
While at Shepody, Nick reports they were in emotional distress after receiving some upsetting news. Nick pressed the panic button and officers responded in anger. Nick threw the button (away from officers into the corner of the room) and the officers responded by pepper spraying Nick in the face and open cuts, jumping on top of them, twisting them up and smashing their head. Officers yelled things like, “you f*cking goof, you never shut your mouth you piece of sh*t”.
“It is appalling that someone in emotional distress would be subjected to violence and abuse by officers in a treatment centre” said Jennifer Metcalfe, Executive Director of Prisoners’ Legal Services. “Why didn’t health care staff attempt to de-escalate the situation and avoid the use of violence against someone who is already deeply traumatized? The amount of force Nick describes appears unnecessary and excessive, and a violation of law and policy,” she said.
Officers did not remove Nick’s handcuffs or allow them to take off their clothes for a decontamination shower, which is contrary to policy. Nick reports officers kept turning the water to scalding hot, intensifying the effect of the pepper spray and causing Nick intense pain.
Prisoners’ Legal Services has requested that this use of force be reviewed by CSC at the highest level.
After this incident, Nick cut themself and wrote “help” on their cell wall in blood.
In response, Nick was restrained on a Pinel board without having their wounds sutured, despite some of them being so deep that Nick could see their veins. Officers made antagonistic comments to them while they were strapped down. Nick reports that after they were released from the Pinel board they fell asleep and woke up soaked in blood. Nick lost consciousness from blood loss, and was placed back in the Pinel restraints, still without having their wounds mended. Nick had also swallowed razor blades, and reports that while they were on the Pinel board, they began coughing up large amounts of blood. They continued to vomit up blood in the days that followed.
Nick was taken to outside hospital on approximately March 3, 2021 and was returned to maximum-security Atlantic Institution on approximately March 5, 2021, where they will likely be returned to isolation in the Structured Intervention Unit.
CSC has acknowledged that uses of force, isolation and restraint have been traumatic for Nick and contribute to his Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder symptoms.
Nick has requested placement at an institution that would better reflect their gender identity as Two Spirit, and where they could receive trauma treatment in a less hostile environment.
“I just want my basic rights and to be treated like a human being. That’s all I ask for,” said Nick.
Prisoners’ Legal Services (PLS) has recommended in its report Damage/Control: Use of force and the cycle of violence and trauma in BC’s federal and provincial prisons, that psychiatric nurses play a more central role in responding to prisoners in emotional distress, and that responses be supportive and trauma-informed. PLS has further recommended that correctional officers receive more training in de-escalation skills and non-violent crisis intervention, especially for those working with people with mental health disabilities and in treatment centres.
Nick filed a complaint on July 27, 2020 with the Canadian Human Rights Commission alleging ongoing discrimination by CSC.
Prisoners’ Legal Services has also filed a systemic representative human rights complaint that addresses many of these issues.
Media contact:
Jennifer Metcalfe
jmetcalfe@pls-bc.ca
604-636-0470
