Inmates 'sitting ducks' as COVID-19 rages through Kingston, Ont., prison, advocate says

Inmates at the Joyceville Institution in northeast Kingston, Ont., are calling on Correctional Service Canada (CSC) and the prison's warden to provide more information about the COVID-19 outbreak raging there.

As of Saturday, 95 inmates at the medium-security prison had tested positive for COVID-19, seven more than on Thursday. Four staff members have also tested positive, accordingto CSC's website.

The prison is built for about450 inmates.

"Whether it's good or bad, we just want information to get to us," reads a news release sent on behalf of the inmates, issued by theCriminalization and Punishment Education Project and the Toronto Prisoners' Right Project.

"Right now, there's no message going. All we hear is what's on the six o'clock news and what's constantly repeated over and over on the news loop."

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Six of the inmates who havetested positive were recently moved from Joyceville to the Collins Bay Institution, also in Kingston, according to the CSC.

Three inmates who later tested positive were transported to Warkworth Institution in Brighton, Ont, while one was taken to theBeaver Creek Institution in Gravenhurst, Ont.

WATCH | Pleas for action to protect inmates from COVID-19 outbreaks:

Pleas for action to protect inmates from COVID-19 outbreaks

4 years ago

Duration 1:45

COVID-19 outbreaks in jails and prisons across the country have prompted pleas from inmates and advocates for more to be done to protect prisoners and staff.

Concerns over PPE

Along with better communication, the Joyceville inmates also want additional sanitation and cleaning supplies and more personal protective equipment, said Justin Pich,an associate professor in the University of Ottawa's criminology department.

"They're sitting ducks with nowhere to go," said Pich, who has been in direct contact with inmates and family members and helped write the press release on the inmates' behalf.

According to that release, some prisoners have N95 masks, while others don't. Guards have face shields, but the inmates say they haven't been provided with any.

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Some were using makeshift curtains to limit the spread of the virus, according to the release, but they were torn down by correctional officers, who thenissued warnings.

"They're looking at least a few weeks of lockdowns, if not longer, and they need to take care of themselves and take care of others," Pich said. "And they don't have the means to do that right now."

Pich said he's also heard reports of inmates who haveasked to be tested for the virus and had their requests denied, although CSCsays testing is being offered to all staff and inmates.

All newly admitted offenders are placed in medical isolation for 14 days prior to being placed into an institution's population, which is the COVID-19 incubation period.- Statement from Correctional Service Canada

In a statement, the federal agency said inmates who havetested positive are being medically isolated and closely monitored.

Inmates and staff at all CSC institutions are required to wear masks andabide by physical-distancing measures, the statement said, and everyone who enters CSC facilities is screened.

Rapid tests are also being used to detect positive cases sooner, CSC said, with the results being posted online once they are confirmed by a lab.

"It is also important to note that all newly admitted offenders are placed in medical isolation for 14 days prior to being placed into an institution's population, which is the COVID-19 incubation period," the statement reads.