The Cayman Islands prison system is preparing some major changes within the next two years in the way it operates.
Commissioner of Corrections and Rehabilitation Bill Rattray gave an overview of his plans during a ceremony recently for about 40 inmates who received certificates after completing course work in various areas including; computer repair, math, community service, tailoring, and beauty culture.
‘It is the job of the prisoner to change his or her life,’ Mr. Rattray told the crowd of more than 100 gathered at the Northward Prison Chapel. ‘What we can do, however, is provide the opportunity for people to take personal responsibility for their own lives.’
‘(There are) a large number of what will be very far-reaching prison reforms in order to make sure that the opportunities we provide are very, very much aligned to what (prisoners) actually need to succeed on release.’
For instance, during his speech Mr. Rattray acknowledged a new prison is needed on Grand Cayman. He admits plans for that facility haven’t been made. But if and when construction takes place, the commissioner said he’d like to involve prisoners in the project to aid them in gaining construction certificates.
Efforts to educate and rehabilitate prisoners, known as sentence planning or sentence management, will become the prison system’s focus, according to Mr. Rattray.
‘I believe prisoners not only are capable of change, they actually want to change,’ he said. ‘I have yet to meet someone who actually wants to spend the rest of their life in prison.’
Mr. Rattray said the eventual goal is to assign every prisoner who wishes to participate in sentence planning a personal officer/advisor. The officer would act as a counsellor of sorts, helping decide the content of the prisoner’s sentence planning programme.
A formal risk-needs assessment will be done on the prisoner to determine how best to reduce the possibility of recidivism and to prepare that person for life in the outside world.
The prison system also plans to provide a facility with qualified staff to allow inmates job training opportunities.
Six prison officers will be selected and trained to supervise group work programmes for prisoners as well, although Mr. Rattray has previously noted a general lack of literacy skills among the inmates may hamper those courses at first.
‘We do have…some significant education concerns,’ he said.
A recent review done by the prison system showed four of five inmates tested had, at best, limited reading and writing skills.
Mr. Rattray said a low literacy rate is not unusual in prisons, and he said it often causes trouble reintegrating inmates into society after their sentences are served.
‘It affects every facet of their life,’ Mr. Rattray said. ‘And the chances are they’re not going to be employed if they’re competing against someone who hasn’t served a prison sentence anyway.’
‘There’s going to be a big push toward literacy in the prison system.’
Some other areas the commissioner promised to work on over the next 12-24 months included the creation of a formalised complaints process for prisoners. He said there would be a requirement that prison officials respond to those complaints within a certain time frame.
Mr. Rattray also said the Prison Law and Regulations need some work.
‘I found the law to be very outdated,’ he said. ‘The law for Cayman in terms of the prison service has to comply with the European Convention on Human Rights.’
A draft of that law has been sent for review. No proposals to change the prison regulations have been tabled in the Legislative Assembly.
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