Alberta Prison Justice Society

Suite #201, 10525 Jasper Avenue

Edmonton, AB T5J 1Z4
Ph: 780-244-1910
Fax: 780-851-3646

December 21, 2020

The Honourable Kaycee Madu

Minister of Justice and Solicitor General
424 Legislature Building
10800 97 Avenue
Edmonton, AB T5K 2B6
Via email: ministryofjustice@gov.ab.ca

Shelley Bykewich
Chief Crown Prosecutor - Edmonton
6th Floor J.E. Brownlee Building
10365 97 Street
Edmonton, Alberta T5J 3W7
Via fax: 780-422-9756

Suzanne Kendall
Chief Crown Prosecutor - Calgary
600 Centrium Place
332 6 Ave SW
Calgary, AB T2P 0B2
Via fax: 403-297-4311

Curtis Zablocki
Deputy Commissioner
Commanding Officer for Alberta
Royal Canadian Mounted Police
11140 – 109 Street
Edmonton AB T5G 2T4
Via email: Curtis.Zablocki@rcmp-grc.gc.ca

Chief Constable Mark Neufeld

Calgary Police Service
5111 47 St NE T2J 3R2
Via email: cps@calgarypolice.ca

Chief Dale McFee

Edmonton Police Service
9620 103A Ave
Edmonton, AB T5H 0H7
Via fax: 780-421-2187

Douglas Barker
Director
Calgary Remand Centre
12200 85 St NW
Calgary, AB T3R 1J3
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 Alberta Prison Justice Society
Suite #201, 10525 Jasper Avenue
Edmonton, AB T5J 1Z4
Ph: 780-244-1910
Fax: 780-851-3646

Via fax: 403-297-4577

Dianne Beaton
Director
Alberta Justice and Solicitor General
Correctional Services Division
Edmonton Remand Centre
18415 – 127th Street
Edmonton, AB T6V 1B1
Via fax: 780-638-5599

Dennis Cooley, Ph.D.

Associate Deputy Minister
Justice and Solicitor General
Government of Alberta
Via email: Dennis.Cooley@gov.ab.ca

Keith Courtney
Facilities Medical Director - Corrections Health Services
Alberta Health Services
10101 Southport Road SW
Calgary, AB T2W 3N2
Via email: keith.courtney@ahs.ca

Re: Correctional System Outbreaks

The Alberta Prison Justice Society (“APJS”) is an organization dedicated to advancing justice for prisoners
in Alberta. We are writing to communicate our concern with the growing outbreaks in Alberta correctional
institutions and to ensure there is a plan to prevent and mimize them going forward.

The APJS urges swift and proactive steps from all decision-makers who are empowered to reduce the risk
to individuals in Alberta institutions. We also urge those with such power to remain vigilant that the rights of
individuals remanded or serving in Alberta institutions are respected.

Ministry of Justice and Solicitor General

The Alberta Correctional system has custody of thousands, the majority of whom are detained pre-trial.
The likelihood of COVID-19 entering institutions and spreading has been apparent for many months, given
they the number of people in close quarters. We have seen that risk realized in more than one institution in
the recent past.

As community cases continue to rise, pressure on Alberta correctional institutions will continue to grow. The
health of individuals in these facilities, as well as staff and the greater community, has already been placed
at risk. We recognize that, while individual institutions have a responsibility to take all possible steps to
safeguard the health of the people inside, they do not control who is arrested, denied bail or sentenced and
have little control over the turnover in their populations. The power to do high level, preventative planning
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 Alberta Prison Justice Society
Suite #201, 10525 Jasper Avenue
Edmonton, AB T5J 1Z4
Ph: 780-244-1910
Fax: 780-851-3646

and resourcing does not lie with them. Dealing with the existing outbreaks and a proactive plan to minimize
future problems will require centralized leadership.

The Ministry is uniquely positioned to ensure that Institutions have the supplies, training, stakeholder
support, flexibility and tools to keep people safe. The necessary resources and expertise requires
collaboration between Justice, Health and other services. The Ministry is solely able to coordinate with all
the parties who can intervene. We are asking the Ministry to advise what form the required leadership is
taking, and what efforts are being made to proactively address the risks.

Crown Prosecutors

Alberta was fortunate for many months to escape infections and spread within its institutions. That time has
passed, and the pressure on institutions is only likely to increase as positive case rates in the community
increase and the justice system continues to operate at nearly full capacity. We urge Chief Crowns to ask
their front-line prosecutors to return COVID-19 risks to the forefront of their decision making.

Our executive is concerned about reports from our membership that COVID-19 continues to be downplayed
by Crowns making decisions on bail, or where a decision is being made between a custodial and non-
custodial sentence. This is not a universal concern, and we acknowledge that many in your offices are
doing their best to balance competing public interest considerations in a particularly busy time for criminal
practice. However, we would ask all decision-makers to keep in mind that the exercise of Crown discretion
has immediate effects on the heath and safety of the accused person, as well as the overall pressure on
Alberta institutions and the space they can make available. That space is necessary to give Institutions
flexibility to isolate and segregate symptomatic and positive individuals.

We have also observed, and would also ask the Crown to consider, that outbreaks across the province are
having predictable impacts on the movement of sentenced individuals. Where local provincial serving
facilities are not accepting new admissions, more individuals opt to accumulate their dead time in Remand
Centres to avoid being moved out of their home jurisdiction and away from loved ones. Decisions on files
where the individual is in a time-served range can have a significant impact on the volume of people in
Remand Centres.

Finally, our organization has not seen any significant uptake in the alternative procedures to deal with
breach charges introduced by Canadian Parliament. We would urge the Crown to consider these alternative
processes where appropriate to further assist in keeping the incarcerated population at a level where people
can be kept safe and healthy.

Police Decision-Making

Police officer decision-making has the potential to greatly reduce pressure on the correctional system.
Even before COVID-19, our membership saw police arrest and/or detain individuals in a manner
inconsistent with ss. 495-498 of the Criminal Code. Now more than ever it is vitally important police
officers are reminded of their obligations under the Criminal Code relating to police arrest and release
powers. We would also make the same request made above to Crown Prosecutors, to ensure they are
considering the availability and appropriateness of the alternative breach processes in the Criminal Code
in all cases.

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 Alberta Prison Justice Society
Suite #201, 10525 Jasper Avenue
Edmonton, AB T5J 1Z4
Ph: 780-244-1910
Fax: 780-851-3646

We would ask Chiefs of police to urge front line officers to consider whether an officer release is possible
in every investigation.

Correctional Institutions and Remand Centres

We are very concerned about what we are hearing from individuals in Alberta institutions, and from their
counsel.

Across jurisdictions, we have continued to hear that access to masks is inconsistent or non-existent in
Institutions, and that consistent mask access for inmates begins only after internal spread has been
identified. We have also continued to hear that cleaning supplies are not readily available, even to inmates
who have had someone removed from their cell following a positive COVID-19 test result.

We are concerned that individuals who have tested positive in the Calgary Remand Centre are triple
bunked, with one of those ill individuals sleeping on a mat on the cell floor. Complaints that access to basic
medication to treat symptoms, like Tylenol, is being denied or subject to unnecessary hurdles are also very
concerning. We are advised that ill individuals are quarantined on the same unit as individuals who have
not tested positive, a few feet away. Individuals are not moved from their living situation with others when
they become symptomatic, only when they test positive, all but guaranteeing continued spread in the
meantime.

In Edmonton Remand Centre, We have heard complaints from isolated and ill inmates indicating that they
are locked to their cells for all but thirty minutes per day. Those inmates have had predictable issues with
contacting their legal counsel, as they can only access a phone to call their lawyers for a very short period
of time per day. That issue in combination with the frequent inability to bring inmates out for court
appearances has led to a number of complaints from inmates that they cannot contact their counsel and
do not have recent knowledge of what is occurring in court on their files.

We are also concerned about the effects of lockdowns and quarantines on inmate mobility. We have been
advised of lockdowns where inmates receive only 30 minutes out of their cell per day and have to choose
between making phone calls, showering, exercise, or contacting their counsel during that time. We have
had multiple complaints that laundry is not done in a timely fashion, so inmates are left with only two sets
of clothing for multiple weeks on end. We also understand laundry issues to contribute to inmates being
denied access to the outdoor yard, as the Centres are not able to launder potentially contaminated coats
quickly enough to make this possible. We have spoken with inmates who resort to washing their clothes in
the garbage can in their cells with water and liquid soap that they bought with their own money from canteen.

We understand that Remand Centres do not control entry or exit into the Institution and that the return to
full Court functions has reduced or eliminated the ability to space people out that was useful in the spring.
We also understand that this lack of control with limited space poses real challenges. We further understand
that there are services and resources that the Remand Centres depend on other agencies or entities to
provide. However, clients must have access to medical care,property, and reasonably hygienic living
conditions. We would ask for confirmation about steps that will be taken to address these concerns on an
urgent basis. If it would assist for us to contact or advocate to the responsible entities, we are happy to do
whatever helps solve these problems as quickly as possible.

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 Alberta Prison Justice Society
Suite #201, 10525 Jasper Avenue
Edmonton, AB T5J 1Z4
Ph: 780-244-1910
Fax: 780-851-3646

Alberta Health Services

We have long known that Correctional Institutions are prime spaces for uncontrolled spread of the virus.
We are asking that Alberta Health Services proactively engage with Institutions to ensure they have
supplies, personel, training and the oversight to ensure this situation will not worsen.

Sincerely Yours,

Amanda Hart-Dowhun
President
Alberta Prison Justice Society

CC: Media
Opposition Justice Critic