You perhaps remember this correctional officer who was violently attacked at the Sorel-Tracy detention facility, just before we left for the holidays? He was stabbed multiple times!
Also during the holiday season, correctional officers were allegedly attacked at the Quebec Detention Center.
Attacks on correctional officers are nothing new in Quebec prisons. Besides, this job is much more dangerous than that of a police officer.
It has become almost normal for them to be attacked!
This trivialization of violence, of which officers are victims, must stop!
This violence is symptomatic of a system where inmates call the shots, particularly members of criminal groups, and officers are left to their own devices.
In addition to this normalization of violence, this profession remains one of the most devalued. They are pejoratively nicknamed screw (lock, in English). This does little to attract new recruits…
Understaffing and outdated prisons
In Quebec, we have 18 prisons where more than 30,000 people are incarcerated. To monitor these inmates, there are approximately 2,700 correctional officers.
Imagine two seconds…
You take criminalized individuals, many of whom are part of criminal groups, and you put them in a restricted place, namely a prison, with a few correctional officers as guards and unsafe locations dating back to Methuselah.
What do you think is likely to happen?
And if members of these groups are in conflict, you can expect an increase in violence, especially if officers are understaffed.
-In truth, governments have difficulty understanding the importance of investing in prisons, with a global, long-term vision.
For what? Because it is not popular to invest in this area.
As a result, we end up with establishments that are poorly equipped in terms of security and managed by criminals.
Quebec inmates who make rain and shine
For several years now, Quebec’s correctional services have had to deal with a major increase in deliveries of drugs, weapons, cell phones, etc., by drone.
I talked about it in one of my columns in 2023 and a year later, nothing new in the battalion.
What is the Quebec government doing?
This problem has persisted for over eight years! What measures are being taken?
It is true that the entry of prohibited products into detention centers is not a new thing, but it was more complicated to do so before the advent of drones (use of mules, arrows, etc.). Now, inmates can all have it delivered directly to their cell.
Which allows many gang members and Hells to continue running their businesses.
Can we at least cut off their connection!
