Boy isolated 400 days: Manitoba urged to end long solitary confinement for youth

She also recommended that Manitoba Justice restrict the use of punitive segregation overall and called on the province to build a facility to address trauma, mental illness and other mental impairments youth who are locked up in jail frequently live with.

“Some youth in Manitoba have been confined in solitary, denied their basic needs and refused meaningful human contact for days and weeks on end,” Penrose said of the youth, called Colton in the report, who spent more than a year in isolation.

Colton was diagnosed with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, attention deficit disorder and other cognitive issues, she said, and spent a total of more than 650 days in solitary.

Penrose called Colton’s case “a clear violation of human rights, of international standards.”

“What we discovered … was extremely concerning, unacceptable and must immediately change,” Penrose said at a news conference.

The investigation began in 2015 after the advocate’s office fielded several complaints about segregation and pepper spray in Manitoba’s two youth jails: Agassiz Youth Centre and Manitoba Youth Centre.

The review found that between September 2015 and August 2016, youth corrections staff placed 167 males in solitary confinement 498 times. About 20 per cent of cases lasted for more than 15 days.

The advocate defines solitary confinement as being placed alone in a cell for more than 24 hours without meaningful human contact or mental stimulation.

Statistics Canada data shows Manitoba has the highest rate of youth incarceration in Canada with more than 80 per cent being Indigenous.

The advocate suggested use of solitary confinement and segregation is harmful to youth and hurts their chances at successful reintegration into society.

“Ultimately, (it) may increase recidivism and compromise public safety.”

Penrose did find that the use of pepper spray on jailed youth declined dramatically to two instances last year from 2010’s high of 46.

Staff told investigators that may be due to “alternative de-escalation methods” such as talking to youths and having patience to wait out a situation.

In a separate report, Cormier made 32 recommendations on segregation, largely focused on reviewing compliance with correctional services laws and regulations.

Gathering data was difficult as records weren’t systematic or complete, he said. Corrections employees had a “systemic misunderstanding” about what documentation was required and that led to “miscollection” of information.

“Without that data collection you are making poor decisions.”

Cormier suggested that jails be made to have policies that make clear that segregation can’t be used as discipline. He also called for changes to require youth be informed of their rights and access to services.

Manitoba Justice has accepted his recommendations and will put them into place by March 1, Cormier’s report said. Penrose said she has not yet heard from the ministry.

Last week, the province announced a review into the connection between youth justice and child welfare. One of the goals is to try to keep “crossover kids” out of jail. A study of admissions at the Manitoba Youth Centre in October showed about 60 per cent of youth facing charges were also involved with child-welfare services.

James Turner, The Canadian Press

by Canadian Press

Boy isolated 400 days: Manitoba urged to end long solitary confinement for youth

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