In one of his final trials as a Crown prosecutor, Justice Warwick Gendall was tasked with sending reviled sex offender Stewart Murray Wilson to jail. Now, 17 years later, he has been named chairman of the Parole Board - and just as he arrives in the job, the man he worked so hard to put behind bars has been freed. Clio Francis reports.
After 45 years in the law, Justice Gendall is no longer surprised by coincidences. In 1996, months before he became a High Court judge, he was the lead prosecutor in the Crown case against Stewart Murray Wilson, the man reviled as the Beast of Blenheim. Read more...
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Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Warwick Gendall - from judge to gatekeeper
Monday, October 8, 2012
Update from Uganda from APAI Secretary
The African Correctional Services Association conference ended yesterday. The presentations by various African nations has been very informative. I was especially impressed with the presentation of the Lesotho Correctional Services. Lesotho is a small mountain country completely surrounded by the Republic of South Africa.
Lesotho has a population of 1.8 million people. Their prison population is just over 2,400 with 61 female inmates and 43 juvenile inmates. The Lesotho Correctional Services does home interviews with the community, village chief, neighbors and victims as a means of addressing their concerns when inmates are reintegrating into the community. They utilize Restorative Justice, Victim-Offender meetings; and focus on Ho'Oponopono in community peace building (for those who are not aware of it: Ho'Oponopono is a Ancient Hawaiian approach that includes personal accountability and forgiveness - recognizing we are all one). Lesotho also has conditional parole and amensty and they include victim input into these processes. There is mandatory education for prisoners and they are provided vocational skills. The religious and faith based communities play a key role in volunteer programs and in the provision of clothing and toiletries.
We have also had some presentations from some NGOs. We ended the day with a very long road trip to Jinji, to see where Lake Victoria (the world's largest tropical lake) flows into and begins the White Nile River.
Today there are some supplemental workshops about Corrections in Peace Keeping missions (such as in S. Sudan) and also on Rehabilitation through Educational and Vocational Programmes with examples from Nigeria, Kenya, and Burundi.
Most nations have a form of parole in their laws, but most have not begun to implement parole; Zambia and South Africa have implemented parole with the assistance and training provide by the National Parole Board of Canada.
Kenya has is currently working to develop parole guidelines; they have parole legislation but have not implement parole yet. They have 650 probation officers and they use probation hostels as a way to address some of the challenges of addressing the myriad issues of a diverse rural population. In the last 15-20 years, Kenya has begun to include victim participation in their criminal justice processes. There is victim impact at sentencing and probation officers are required to include victim input in their pre-sentence reports. Kenya is currently has Victims Rights Act legislation being introduced.
Zambia uses Victim Offender Mediation as well.
South Africa reports that they have 50,000 people on parole and probation. They are utilizing risk and needs and taking a holistic approach to rehabilitation of offenders. The parole board in S. Africa is an independent body attached to the Commission of Prisons.
Basic human needs in prisons is a huge issue across Africa, as is access to justice pre-trial. There are a number of NGOs, including the Civil Justice Society, that are working with several African countries to address the horrendous problem of pre-trial detainment that significantly impacts prison overcrowding. In Uganda, 54% of the prison population are people who are awaiting trial. A component of the pre-trial problem is the difficulty in communicating with the families of persons arrested. The infrastructure in Africa is not like in America where we have phones, cell phones and street addresses for most people.
I will update you further over the next few days.
I continue to be touched by the kindness of the African people. Jeri
Lesotho has a population of 1.8 million people. Their prison population is just over 2,400 with 61 female inmates and 43 juvenile inmates. The Lesotho Correctional Services does home interviews with the community, village chief, neighbors and victims as a means of addressing their concerns when inmates are reintegrating into the community. They utilize Restorative Justice, Victim-Offender meetings; and focus on Ho'Oponopono in community peace building (for those who are not aware of it: Ho'Oponopono is a Ancient Hawaiian approach that includes personal accountability and forgiveness - recognizing we are all one). Lesotho also has conditional parole and amensty and they include victim input into these processes. There is mandatory education for prisoners and they are provided vocational skills. The religious and faith based communities play a key role in volunteer programs and in the provision of clothing and toiletries.
We have also had some presentations from some NGOs. We ended the day with a very long road trip to Jinji, to see where Lake Victoria (the world's largest tropical lake) flows into and begins the White Nile River.
Today there are some supplemental workshops about Corrections in Peace Keeping missions (such as in S. Sudan) and also on Rehabilitation through Educational and Vocational Programmes with examples from Nigeria, Kenya, and Burundi.
Most nations have a form of parole in their laws, but most have not begun to implement parole; Zambia and South Africa have implemented parole with the assistance and training provide by the National Parole Board of Canada.
Kenya has is currently working to develop parole guidelines; they have parole legislation but have not implement parole yet. They have 650 probation officers and they use probation hostels as a way to address some of the challenges of addressing the myriad issues of a diverse rural population. In the last 15-20 years, Kenya has begun to include victim participation in their criminal justice processes. There is victim impact at sentencing and probation officers are required to include victim input in their pre-sentence reports. Kenya is currently has Victims Rights Act legislation being introduced.
Zambia uses Victim Offender Mediation as well.
South Africa reports that they have 50,000 people on parole and probation. They are utilizing risk and needs and taking a holistic approach to rehabilitation of offenders. The parole board in S. Africa is an independent body attached to the Commission of Prisons.
Basic human needs in prisons is a huge issue across Africa, as is access to justice pre-trial. There are a number of NGOs, including the Civil Justice Society, that are working with several African countries to address the horrendous problem of pre-trial detainment that significantly impacts prison overcrowding. In Uganda, 54% of the prison population are people who are awaiting trial. A component of the pre-trial problem is the difficulty in communicating with the families of persons arrested. The infrastructure in Africa is not like in America where we have phones, cell phones and street addresses for most people.
I will update you further over the next few days.
I continue to be touched by the kindness of the African people. Jeri
APAI Secretary Photos from Uganda Trip
Photos of the Africa visit can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/
Friday, October 5, 2012
Update from Uganda with APAI Secretary Jeri Costa
Very interesting tour of a Women's prison yesterday. We had a police escort with 9 vehicles of officials and delegates. If we did not have the police escort we would have been stuck in Kampala traffic for hours. Pictures and more info will be posted soon.
Last night's banquet included phenomenal entertainment - traditional dancers and a Ugandan comedian; dancing and lots of music; fantastic food; and fireworks! Impressive 2nd Biennial conference for ACSA. Mozambique will be hosting the 3rd ACSA conference in 2014.
Last night's banquet included phenomenal entertainment - traditional dancers and a Ugandan comedian; dancing and lots of music; fantastic food; and fireworks! Impressive 2nd Biennial conference for ACSA. Mozambique will be hosting the 3rd ACSA conference in 2014.
Thursday, October 4, 2012
APAI Secretary Jeri Costa Reports from Uganda!
Greetings!
The African Correctional Services Association conference kicked off on Tuesday, October 2nd. Upon awakening we were greeted with a storm. The rain was a down pour and there was high wind. I braved the down pour using my conference brief case for cover to get to breakfast. The host committee was scrambling for covered vehicles to transport all the delegates up the hill to the conference center. They did an admirable job, however it did manage to set us back on the starting time.
The African Correctional Services Association conference kicked off on Tuesday, October 2nd. Upon awakening we were greeted with a storm. The rain was a down pour and there was high wind. I braved the down pour using my conference brief case for cover to get to breakfast. The host committee was scrambling for covered vehicles to transport all the delegates up the hill to the conference center. They did an admirable job, however it did manage to set us back on the starting time.
It was quite impressive to see the officials and delegates in their official dress uniforms. I will post photos when possible. We were also entertained with lively singing from two groups of women prisoners and with a traditional dance performed by male inmates.
There are 22 heads of prison services here and 25 African Countries represented. There are interpreter services being provided by headphone for English, French, Arabic, and Portuguese speakers. The presentations have all been in English, with some of the commentary and questions being asked in other languages.
Today is the second day of the conference and it has contained some very informative and diverse information. Internet service remains sporadic. I am currently in the back of the conference room listening to a presentation while using the internet.
They break for a late morning tea just before noon and then break for lunch -- which is a very large buffet with a diversity of food choices – at 1p.m.
Last night was a cocktail session; however, I did not make it to the festivities. I was so tired that after the long day I went to refresh in my room and ended up falling asleep.
People here are so very nice. There have been some language challenges for me, especially with the housekeeping staff at the hotel; but, we have managed to communicate sufficiently.
My presentation is scheduled for tomorrow morning and I am currently making some adjustments based on the presentations and discussions thus far. Thursday afternoon the Ugandan Prison Services (host committee) will be providing tour choices. I have chosen to tour a female prison.
Much Love and Blessings to all!
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