Prison death COI …Bar Association President calls it quits

Apr 21, 2016 News

---

…Deputy Director of Prisons maintains officers followed SOPs
President of the Guyana Bar Association (GBA), Attorney-at-Law Christopher Ram, yesterday stormed out

of the Commission of Inquiry (COI) into the March 3 prison disturbance, citing his frustration over the unfair treatment meted out to him by the Committee.
The Attorney was at the time, seeking to cross examine Deputy Director of Prisons, Senior Superintendent Gladwin Samuels. This was during a session of the hearing at Ministry of the Presidency’s Department of Public Service, Waterloo Street.
During the hearing, Ram voiced his dissatisfaction with the 30-minute restriction imposed on some of the Attorneys participating in the hearing while Attorneys for the Joint Services have an unlimited time to cross examine witnesses.
He also noted that there are numerous interruptions by the other Attorneys without any point of order during his line of questioning.
However, the lawyer’s objection did not receive a favourable response from Chairman of the Commission, Justice James Patterson, who pointed out that the tribunal, is not a court hearing and that the time permitted to any Attorney is based on his discretion.
Given the Judge’s response, the Attorney became visibly enraged telling the Chairman that the Bar Association was no longer interested in being a part of the Inquiry.
Joint Services Attorney Selwyn Pieters then uttered to the Commission that Ram as the Bar Association President took the decision in a one-sided manner which should not have happened.
To this the Attorney responded, “You give me a break,” before he stormed out of the room.
Last month, Ram filed an application on behalf of the Guyana Bar Association to have the Commission allow its members to participate in the Inquiry.
He said that the Association believes that its participation would further the conduct of the Inquiry and further believes that its participation would contribute to the openness and fairness of the Inquiry.

Meanwhile, in continuation of evidence before the Commission, Senior Superintendent Samuels maintained his story that the prison authority did everything in its power to save the lives of the 17 men who perished in the March 3 fire at the Camp Street Prison.
Under cross examination by Attorney for relatives of affected inmates Melvin Duke, Samuels told the Commission that Georgetown Prison consists of two types if inmates, convicted prisons and those on remand awaiting trial.
He said that upon entry each prisoner is processed; their age, offence committed and other …is taken into consideration before they are placed in cells.
Samuels noted that that those heavily publicized in the media are considered “very influential,” and would be placed in the current new Capital Building with the other high profile prisoners.
Recalling the March 3 incident, the witness noted that the Capital A of the building was filled with prisoners on remand.
He told Counsel for the Commission, Excellence Dazzell, that despite the chaos, threats and pieces of concrete blocks thrown at prison officers and other members of the joint services, officials of the prisons carried out their duty in accordance with their training and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).
The witness said that he was prepared to deal with the situation based on his training and that he did so accordingly.
He reiterated that he worked the prisons for 15 years and would from time to time order or conduct searches within the various sections of the facilities.
These operations, he said were not recorded via video or otherwise.
Samuels noted that on the day of the fire a similar search was being conducted to sanitise the prison of a number of contraband including weapons that had somehow found its way inside the prison walls.
The witness recalled that day, that prison officers faced resistance from several inmates, some of whom could be described as usual mischief makers or ringleaders.
Samuels said that in addition to the resistance by the prisoners, the prison officers found difficulty opening the doors of Capital A. The door was only opened after officers of the Fire Service arrived and aided in the operation.
Asked about the problems such as overcrowding at the prisons, Samuels stated that this is due to the fact that there are no alternative accommodations for the inmates.
On the other hand, the Deputy Director noted that the prison has a series of remedial activities. He said that persons, who passed through the prison systems, participated in those activities and are better off today.
Samuels commenced testifying before the Commission on Tuesday categorically rejecting claims that he had given the orders which led to the death of the 17 inmates of the Georgetown Prisons. The men perished in a fire during what was described as one of the worst prison riots in the nation’s history.
The victims and at least eight other injured inmates were allegedly trapped in raging flames in the Capital ‘A’ Block of the Camp Street Prison.
Following the incident, several damning accusations of misconduct were leveled against Samuels, a prison official with years of experience under his belt.
The Deputy Director was sent on leave with immediate effect, in light of a number of alleged transgressions against prisoners. During his evidence in chief before the three-member tribunal, the prison official firmly dismissed claims by the inmates that he had instructed that the men be left inside the building to burn.

---

---