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http://www.kingstonthisweek.com/webapp/sitepages/content.asp?contentid=118122&catname=Local+News&classif=News+%2D+Local
KP officers want to carry pepper spray
Union reacts to latest attack on prison workers
Stephen Petrick
Local News - Tuesday, July 19, 2005 @ 08:00
The Union of Canadian Correctional Officers is calling for better protection of workers after a vicious attack sent two Kingston Penitentiary officers to hospital last week
One correctional officer needed stitches to the head and face and the other needed both stitches and treatment for a separated shoulder.
The incident has raised more tension between Correctional Service Canada and union leaders, who have been without a contract for 39 months.
â Å“This is exactly why we demand that correctional officers be equipped with OC (pepper) spray as part of their uniform,â ? said UCCO President Sylvain Martel.
â Å“The vast majority of serious violence-related injuries to both correctional officers and inmates could be avoided with this one tool.â ?
A CSC spokesperson confirmed the attack happened on July 13 when the inmate was being led back to his range after a meeting with a programs officer.
â Å“This is a serious incident and we will have an investigation to see how an incident like this can be prevented in the future,â ? said Holly Knowles, CSC Ontario region spokesperson.
She said the injuries to the two officers were non-life threatening and that Kingston Police will lay charges on the inmate, who has since been removed to the Special Handling Unit in Quebec, where problematic prisoners are kept.
Both CSC and the union believe the attack was unexpected and unprovoked.
But they agree on little else.
Martel says incidents like this are common in Canadian prisons and that Kingston Penitentiary sees an average of one or two assaults per month.
He's been lobbying the government to allow prison workers to carry more safety equipment right on their uniforms, arguing that pepper spray is a useless defence tool if it's kept in a closet.
However, Knowles says the number of assaults reported in federal prisons in the 2004-05 fiscal year was one, and the previous two years the numbers were zero.
She explained that guards will soon have stab-proof vests and that more safety equipment, such as pepper spray, is always within a minute's reach at the prison, should a violent clash occur.
She also said correction workers are trained at how to handle irate inmates.
Gee, and its any wonder the CSC senoir management is a laughing stock, lies from the top on down......
**Lets see if I can say this with a straight face** " Ah, yes, even though we have only had one assault in three years we ordered expensive stab-proof vests for all our officers." :
...and I didn't even see her boss pull her string.....
KP officers want to carry pepper spray
Union reacts to latest attack on prison workers
Stephen Petrick
Local News - Tuesday, July 19, 2005 @ 08:00
The Union of Canadian Correctional Officers is calling for better protection of workers after a vicious attack sent two Kingston Penitentiary officers to hospital last week
One correctional officer needed stitches to the head and face and the other needed both stitches and treatment for a separated shoulder.
The incident has raised more tension between Correctional Service Canada and union leaders, who have been without a contract for 39 months.
â Å“This is exactly why we demand that correctional officers be equipped with OC (pepper) spray as part of their uniform,â ? said UCCO President Sylvain Martel.
â Å“The vast majority of serious violence-related injuries to both correctional officers and inmates could be avoided with this one tool.â ?
A CSC spokesperson confirmed the attack happened on July 13 when the inmate was being led back to his range after a meeting with a programs officer.
â Å“This is a serious incident and we will have an investigation to see how an incident like this can be prevented in the future,â ? said Holly Knowles, CSC Ontario region spokesperson.
She said the injuries to the two officers were non-life threatening and that Kingston Police will lay charges on the inmate, who has since been removed to the Special Handling Unit in Quebec, where problematic prisoners are kept.
Both CSC and the union believe the attack was unexpected and unprovoked.
But they agree on little else.
Martel says incidents like this are common in Canadian prisons and that Kingston Penitentiary sees an average of one or two assaults per month.
He's been lobbying the government to allow prison workers to carry more safety equipment right on their uniforms, arguing that pepper spray is a useless defence tool if it's kept in a closet.
However, Knowles says the number of assaults reported in federal prisons in the 2004-05 fiscal year was one, and the previous two years the numbers were zero.
She explained that guards will soon have stab-proof vests and that more safety equipment, such as pepper spray, is always within a minute's reach at the prison, should a violent clash occur.
She also said correction workers are trained at how to handle irate inmates.
Gee, and its any wonder the CSC senoir management is a laughing stock, lies from the top on down......
**Lets see if I can say this with a straight face** " Ah, yes, even though we have only had one assault in three years we ordered expensive stab-proof vests for all our officers." :
...and I didn't even see her boss pull her string.....
39 months without a contract holy crap!!
