Former prison officer Adam McIntyre returned to his old workplace, Northward Prison, as an inmate Thursday, after being found guilty on eight theft charges in the Grand Court.
The Prison Service’s former education director was sentenced to a 12 months jail for stealing less than $3,200 from inmates and their families that was supposed to pay for educational courses.
Justice Priya Levers said ‘today I feel a sense of tragedy’ as she handed down the sentence, pointing out McIntyre’s contribution to prison education over 17 years.
‘It is indeed a sad day for me but I have my duty to protect the public and to ensure that prisoners have confidence in the judicial system.’
Defence Attorney Howard Hamilton QC gave immediate notice of his client’s intention to appeal the decision.
McIntyre had previously been described in court as the pioneer of education programmes in the prison service. In his 17 years at Northward Prison, McIntyre went from teaching classes under a tree in his spare time to overseeing a fully fledged education department that boasted paid teachers, multiple classrooms and over 300 graduates.
During the 10 day judge-alone trial, the court heard McIntyre took money from inmates and their families that was meant to pay for international correspondence educational courses, either putting it on his credit card or spending the cash as his own. While he used his card to pay for many of the inmates’ courses in full, other prisoners testified that they didn’t complete courses because their fees were either unpaid or only partially paid.
McIntyre had told the court he intended to make the equivalent amount of money that he received available on his credit card, but the judge pointed out that a loan facility on his credit card was not his own money.
Credit card statements showed McIntyre used some of the money to fund extravagant personal expenses, Crown Counsel John Masters said.
He said McIntyre’s crimes could have an extensive impact of the public’s confidence in the prison system, and should be marked with a significant custodial sentence.
Justice Levers agreed that a custodial sentence was in order, but expressed concern about sending McIntyre back to Northward – and potentially into the company of some of the inmates he had stolen from.
‘It doesn’t weigh on me in law but it weighs on me as a human being.’
But she ruled McIntyre’s sentence was ‘to be served in a place in Northward where you will be safe,’ adding ‘I recommend that you are protected in some way if you find there will be problems.’
Mr. Hamilton described the day as a very sad one in the career of McIntyre. ‘Here is someone that … in the eyes of the prison’s former Deputy Director (Claira Range), merited consideration for a Queen’s honour such as an OBE or MBE.
‘For him to be convicted of taking … from the very inmates he slaved over, is a very sad state of affairs,’ Mr. Hamilton said.
‘No punishment that you impose can equate to the devastation that is taking place before the court.
‘It is a life of dedication that is being dashed.’
Prison administration criticised
Justice Levers used the judgment to deliver a stinging critique of the procedures in place for handling prisoners’ money at Cayman’s prisons.
‘The idea of educating prisoners is extremely commendable, but the procedure for protecting their money and accounting to them was clearly appalling in this case,’ she said.
On Monday, 7 April, the court heard from the man now responsible for paying for prisoners’ educational courses, Alton McDonald. The procedure for paying for courses has since changed, he said, and now involves him taking the prisoner’s money to a Western Union branch to transfer to a US education provider.
Justice Levers indicated the system remains far from satisfactory.
‘The tragedy is that … the prisoner’s money is still being sent by money transfer by one individual, thereby leaving room for the same abuse that is the subject matter of this case.’
With McIntyre having said in court that he still has money belonging to prisoners, the judge said it was incredible that there had been no demand from prison administrators for its return.
‘I hope steps will be taken and I hope this message gets to prisoners and the authorities,’ she said.
Mr. Hamilton gave an undertaking Thursday that the outstanding money will be paid.
Related Videos
