_ OVERCROWDING IN PRISONS

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DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONAL SERVICES
-
PRESENTATION TO THE SELECT COMMITTEE ON JUSTICE
AND CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS
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PURPOSE

• THE PURPOSE OF THIS PRESENTATION IS TO BRIEF THE
  SELECT COMMITTEE ON JUSTICE AND CONSTITUTIONAL
  AFFAIRS ON
• COMPLAINT LETTERS FROM PRISONERS
• ACTIVITIES OF THE DEPARTMENT FOR 2001 AND
• OVERCROWDING

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• OVERCROWDING

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OVERVIEW

• ON 31 DECEMBER 2000, THE DEPARTMENT OF
  CORRECTIONAL SERVICES
• MANAGED 238 PRISONS IN 9 PROVINCES.THESE PRISONS
  ARE MADE UP
• AS FOLLOWS
• 8 FOR FEMALE OFFENDERS
• 13 FOR YOUTH CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES
• 113 FOR MALE OFFENDERS
• 99 FOR MALE AND FEMALE OFFENDERS
• 5 PRISONS TEMPORARILY CLOSED FOR REPAIRS
  AND
• RENOVATIONS

SOUTH AFRICAN PRISONS HAS DESIGNED ACCOMMODATION
CAPACITY FOR 101 991 PRISONERS WITH A CURRENT
POPULATION OF 163 546 PRISONERS. THIS SITUATION
CONSTITUTES AN AVERAGE OVERPOPULATION RATE OF
60.35 AND A TOTAL ACCOMMODATION CAPACITY NEED
FOR 61 555 PRISONERS.
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CAPACITY vs. PRISONER POPULATION January 1995
to December 2000
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OVERVIEW (Continues)
The distribution of the prisoners population,as
on 31 December 2000, per province
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TRENDS
Since January 1995 to December 2000 the prison
accommodation capacity and prisoner population
figures increased as follows
Jan-1995 Dec-2000 Growth
Growth Unsentenced 24 265 55 558
31 293 128.96 Sentenced 92 581 107
988 15 407 16.64 Total 116 846
163 546 46 700 36.97 Capacity 95 865
101 991 6 126 6.39
Overcrowd- 21.89 60.35 ing
From the above-mentioned figures it is clear that
the provision of prison accommodation could not
keep track with the growth in the offender
population (mainly due to financial constraints)
whilst Department is faced with an alarming
increase in the awaiting trial prisoners.
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UNSENTENCED VS. SENTENCED PRISONERS IN CUSTODY
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GROWTH TRENDS
During January 1995 only 21 of the total
prisoner population were awaiting trial prisoners
compared to the 34 in December 2000
31 293 (67 ) of the increase of 46 700 in the
total prisoner population occurred in unsentenced
/ awaiting trial prisoners while sentenced
prisoners increased with only 15 407 (33 ). The
increasing number of awaiting trial prisoners can
therefore be considered to be the main
contributing factor to overcrowding.
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EFFECTS OF OVERCROWDING

• The Department acknowledges the fact that the
  overcrowded
• prisons have an adverse effect on prisoners, on
  staff and
• the safe custody of prisoners.
• Causes tension, hostility and aggression (On
  prisoners and officials).
• Not consistent with humane incarceration.
• Not conducive to efficient application of
  rehabilitation
• programmes.
• Restrict effective supervision and control.
• Create unsafe working environment.
• Undermines security and safe custody.
• Affects staff moral and efficiency negatively.
• Increase on maintenance cost of prison buildings

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MEASURES TO ADDRESS OVERCROWDING

• To address the challenges presented by
  overcrowding the Department is involved in a
  number of inter departmental projects developed
  within the Crime Prevention, Justice and Safety
  Cluster, namely
• Awaiting Trial Prisoners Projects
• Court Process Project
• Inmate Tracking
• Saturday Courts
• The Department held the first National Symposium
  on Correctional Services on 1 and August 2000
  inter alia to create awareness of overcrowding in
  prisons and the effects thereof.

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MEASURES TO ADDRESS OVERCROWDING (Continues)

• Interventions and actions taken to reduce the
  prisoner population
• Optimal utilization of Community Corrections as
  a sentencing / diversion option
• Conversion of sentences into Correctional
  Supervision
• Assisting prisoners to obtain money to pay
  their fines
• Ensuring that support systems are in place for
  all prisoners who are to be released on parole
  or correctional supervision
• Speedy placement of prisoners with fines on
  Correctional Supervision

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• MEASURES TO ADDRESS OVERCROWDING (Continues)
• Ensuring that prisoners who qualify for parole
  are placed out as soon as possible
• Redressing of penalising factors when parole is
  considered
• Increased focus on rehabilitation programmes
  for prisoners to prevent re-offending
• Focus on training-, education- and social
  development programmes
• Release of 8 262 awaiting trial prisoners
  accused of less serious offences that were
  granted bail of R 1 000 or less.
• Early placement of 8 678 sentenced prisoners
  through the advancement of their approved parole
  dates.

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MEASURES TO ADDRESS OVERCROWDING (Continues)

• Expanding accommodation capacity through the
  Capital Works/Repair and Maintenance Programme
• Completion of current projects
• - Kokstad Closed Maximum - 1 440 prisoners
• - Devon Pre-release Centre - 600 prisoners
• New prisons with capacity for 6 000 beds in
  2003/4 and 6 000 beds in 2004/5
• Repair and maintenance programmes for prisoners
• Opening of APOPS Prisons in 2001/2
• - Bloemfontein - 2 928 prisoners
• - Louis Trichardt - 3 024 prisoners

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RESULTS OF MEASURES TO ADDRESS OVERCROWDING)
Since April 2000 the prisoner population
decreased from 172 272 prisoners to 163 546
prisoners on 31 December 2000 ( 5.07
decrease). Accommodation capacity increased from
100 384 to 101 991 (1.6 increase) over the same
period.
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CONCLUSION
The release of the awaiting trial and sentenced
prisoners culminated in a reduction of the total
number of prisoners as indicated. Should these
actions not have been taken it is estimated that
the prison population would have been in access
of 180 000 instead of the current 163 546