PSNI gets clean bill of health from prison visitors’ report

INDEPENDENT visitors made almost 1,000 unannounced checks to police stations in the North on the treatment of people in custody last year.

In its report on the Independent Custody Visiting Scheme, the Northern Ireland Policing Board said 912 visits were made to custody suites in the year to the end of March.

Largely, the Police Service of Northern Ireland was given a clean bill of health. In 766 of the visits (84%), custody visitors found conditions to be “entirely satisfactory” with neither detainees or visitors raising issues of concern. Where visitors did find detention conditions to be unsatisfactory, it was mainly due to the cleanliness of cells or repairs being required, said the report.

The visiting scheme, which is supported and administered by the Policing Board, involves around 60 volunteers who make unannounced visits to police custody suites at anytime of the day or night to check on the welfare of those detained. All visits involve two independent visitors.

Policing Board chairman Professor Desmond Rea praised the work of the independent visitors.

“As they are unconnected with the PSNI or Criminal Justice System itself, they are totally independent and can inspect and report back to the board on how people being held in custody are dealt with by police and the conditions in which they are held,” he said.

“The visitors’ independent oversight has an important role to play and their contribution to the criminal justice system should not be underestimated.

“By giving up their time to do this valuable work, they are also assisting the board to fulfil its role in ensuring that we all have a police service that is effective, efficient and accountable to the community it serves.”

The annual report showed that in the year to the end of March 2003:

912 visits to custody suites were made;

654 detainees were in custody at the time of the visits;

314 were spoken to; 137 did not want to speak to the visitors;

203 detainees were not seen as a result of their being asleep or being questioned.

The report showed that 12 individuals had made complaints regarding their arrests.

In the main, they were about injuries to wrists resulting from the use of handcuffs, the report said.

While the independent visitors do not investigate complaints, any complaints that are made against the police are passed to the Police Ombudsman for attention.

For the first time, the report also covers visits made to detained terrorist suspects.

Between August, 2002, and March, 2003, 18 such visits took place. Thirty-nine detainees were being held in custody of which 22 agreed to see the visitors.

In the report, the visitors noted that one complaint had been made about an injury apparently sustained during their arrest, while another detainee had complained about police questioning.

Both complaints were referred to the Police Ombudsman.