1,143 cell phones seized from prisoners in 23 months

Minister of State in the Ministry of National Security Donna Cox

Regionally, statistics for this year so far, show that in Guyana, 80 cell phones were seized; in Turks & Caicos, 60 cell phones were confiscated; in the Bahamas the figure was 80; and in Antigua & Barbuda, the number of phones intercepted was 150.

Speaking Brief for the Honourable Minister of State in the Ministry of National Security Donna Cox 

THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

December 11th, 2009

To amend the Prison Rules, Chapter 11, No. 7 (1950 Laws of Trinidad and Tobago)

Thank you Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, Honourable Members, before you today is an amendment to the Prison Rules Chapter 11 Number 7 published in the 1950 Laws of Trinidad and Tobago. These Rules were made under the West Indian Prisons Act of 1838.  More specifically, the Government is seeking to amend Rules 178 and 233(2) of these Prison Rules.

Mr. Speaker and Honourable Members, the Government is currently in the process of doing a total review of these Prison Rules and this process has been a long one. Some of the Rules are quite outdated, having been made originally under the 1838 West Indian Prisons Act and are therefore not in keeping with the Government’s modern thrust from punitive to restorative justice.  We wish to be thorough and wish to encapsulate this restorative penal philosophy and approach in the new Prison Rules which we propose to lay in Parliament sometime in the coming year. 

Mr. Speaker, the current climate however warrants that we take immediate action in two critical aspects of the Rules. While provision is made in the current Draft Rules for searching of officers, members of staff and members of the public, as well as for trafficking of prohibited articles, the Government has decided to take immediate action to deal with the problem concerning the issue of contraband in the Nation’s Prisons and we are demonstrating this awareness today by the introduction of these amendments to tackle this issue head on.
 
Rule 178 – Submission to Search

Mr. Speaker it is proposed that Rule 178 be amended by providing for searches to be conducted by the Prison Supervisor or any other officer of a higher rank. What pertains now in the current Rules is that such searches can only be conducted by the Prison Superintendent and other officers of a higher rank. Only 14 Officers currently have the authority to conduct such searches under this Rule.

With the amendment, the Rule will now read as follows,

“Every officer or servant of the prison shall submit himself to be searched in Prison if called upon to do so by a Prison Supervisor or any other officer of a higher rank.”

This amendment to Rule 178 will give the power to search officers to a larger body of officers– some 37 more– and will certainly go a long way in curbing the trafficking of prohibited and unauthorized articles in prison, as a wider net will be spread for those who are engaged in such nefarious activities. More officers being allowed to conduct such searches will undoubtedly mean a greater chance for detecting contraband items and identifying corrupt officers within the Service.

A Prison Supervisor - unlike a Prison Superintendant who works during the hours of 8-4 pm (not including nightly visits) - is directly in charge of supervising officers and inmates over any given 24 hour period and thus would be in the best position to know which of his officers are involved in trafficking and what systems to put in place to best catch them in the act. The Government also proposes to make amendments to the Prisons Act, and among these amendments would be an increase in the fines and penalties of a person caught in any prison, trafficking any prohibited item.  This proposed imposition of stiffer penalties would mean nothing if the means of detecting infractions of prison rules are not improved.

Rule 233(2) – Prohibited Articles

Mr. Speaker, Honourable Members, it is proposed that the present definition for Prohibited Articles that exists in Rule 233(2) of the Prison Rules be amended to include the words “cellular phone” and “electronic devices” among the list of prohibited and unauthorized articles stated therein, thus facilitating the express prohibition of anyone entering a prison with such devices. The Rule will read as follows,

 “(2) No person shall without authority convey or throw into, or deposit in a prison, or convey or throw out of a prison, or convey to any prisoner, or deposit with a view to its coming into the possession of any prisoner, any money, clothing, food, drink, tobacco, letter, paper, books, tools, cell phones and other electronic devices, or other article whatever.  Anything so conveyed, deposited or thrown without authority shall be deemed to be a prohibited article and may be confiscated by the Commissioner.”

Mr. Speaker, the issue of contraband in prisons is a worldwide issue, particularly as it relates to cell phones. State prison officials in Sacramento, California have confiscated 4,130 contraband cellphones this year, more than all those seized in the previous three years combined. In the United Kingdom, for the 12 months prior to July this year, 255 phones were discovered at high-security prisons, while jails with lower security reported finding 8,393 – these figures reflect phones confiscated from visitors, as well as those caught thrown over prison walls.

Regionally, statistics for this year so far, show that in Guyana, 80 cell phones were seized; in Turks & Caicos, 60 cell phones were confiscated; in the Bahamas the figure was 80; and in Antigua & Barbuda, the number of phones intercepted was 150.

With respect to local statistics, between January 2008 and November 2009, 417 searches were conducted throughout the 7 Prisons and the Youth Training Center in Trinidad and Tobago, and a total of 1,143 cell phones were confiscated. This clearly shows that there is a serious security risk related to cell phones in the Nation’s prisons.

There are instances whereby inmates smuggle the cell phones into the prisons; there are also cases where visitors and family members of inmates have attempted to smuggle cell phones into the prisons and in actual cases have even sought to throw them over the walls of the prisons – some of which have been intercepted. And of course there have been occasions whereby Prison Officers themselves have been caught, while reporting for duty, attempting to smuggle in cell phones, cell phone chargers and other items of contraband.

Mr. Speaker, Gang leaders continue to run their organizations from within the prison walls utilising cell phones to manage their empires; to execute their rivals; to control and engage in money laundering; and to orchestrate the commission of other reprehensible crimes such as kidnappings, extortion, coordination of smuggling contraband, planning escapes, and witness intimidation.

Cell phones and other electronic devices present a legitimate danger to the lives of officers and members of staff as well as the public as threats have been allegedly made and carried out – sometimes with fatal consequences. Additionally, phones have been seized that possess camera, internet, voice and video recording capabilities which can be transmitted to other phones and electronic devices anywhere.

Such pursuits seriously compromise the safety and security of prison establishments. This criminal activity also serves to undermine national security and threaten the lives of the public as well as that of prison officers and members of staff.

More importantly, there is evidence to suggest that a few rogue officers are playing a major role in facilitating the trafficking of cell phones among the prison population, thereby endangering their colleagues and abdicating their duty to the State and the citizens of Trinidad and Tobago.

Conclusion

Mr. Speaker, Members of this Honourable House, these examples therefore serve to heighten the need to extend the power of searching of Prison Staff to Prison Supervisors and to make explicit reference to cell phones and electronic devices in the list of prohibited articles in the Prison Rules. This signifies the Government’s determination and by extension, the resolve of the Prison Service to expressly declare that these items will not be tolerated in the Prisons under any circumstances.

Mr. Speaker, with these few words, I beg to move.