Riot rocks Vancouver Island jail
Wednesday, January 22, 2003
corporate news report
A riot by about a dozen unruly inmates at the Vancouver Island Regional
Correctional Centre on Wilkinson Road caused $40,000 damage to prison
property late Tuesday night.
Three prisoners are now facing charges.
The inmates were in a common area when the call came for lockdown at 10
p.m. But they refused to go back to their cells and began trashing the
place. Of the 23 prisoners in the unit, up to half were involved in the
riot. Some of the others locked themselves inside their cells to avoid
being implicated in the trouble. Corrections officers negotiated a peaceful
end to the incident by 1 a.m. Corrections spokesperson Wayne Willows says
the living unit officer was slightly injured, but managed to call police
and lock himself in an empty cell for protection.
The inmates in the remand unit have been charged with committing an
offence, but have not yet been tried. Although they have not been
determined guilty, they are kept in custody to ensure they appear in court
and cannot commit another offence. All remand inmates are housed in secure
facilities that emphasize control, separation and protection.
Willows says the incident appears to be spontaneous. He says the three
troublemakers who were arrested didn't make any demands. But he says if the
inmates have any grievances they should bring them to the institution's
attention.
"We will hear those grievances," Willows says.
Saanich police were called in to secure the perimeter of the jail, but none
of the rioters breached the institution's security. Police also supplied a
hostage negotiator and emergency response team. The Saanich Police
Department has a protocol agreement with the corrections branch to provide
support when requested.
Willows says there hasn't been an incident of this magnitude at the prison
in about 10 years. Last September a couple of inmates started a fire in one
of the cells. Seven inmates were treated for smoke inhalation following the
incident.
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