Proposed changes to Ontario's segregation laws not enough to protect inmates: rights commission

Recently proposed amendments to segregation laws will do little to protect inmates from abusive conditions, Ontario's human rights commission says.

The changes, the commission says in a submission, do not addresspractices found to violate both the Canadian charter and the Ontariohuman rights code.

"The [commission]is disappointed with the proposed amendments,which do nothing to substantively address serious issues withOntario's continued abuse of segregation," the submission states.

"The ministry has not moved forward with urgent and necessary legislative protections."

Changes not good enough, says commission

Regulation 778, which governs adult correctional institutions and the use of segregation, require a superintendent to reviewsegregation placements at least every five days. The rules alsoallow prisoners to be placed in disciplinary segregation for up to 30 days in a row.

The ministry says the change aligns with existing operationalpolicy. The commission, however, says the proposed changes aren't good enough. At best, it says, they would afford inmates the "absolute minimum" protection mandated by the Constitution.

No segregation for inmates with mental health disabilities

Last year, the then-Liberal governmentagreed to stop placing inmates with mental health disabilitiesin solitary confinement at its 26 correctional facilities, barringexceptional circumstances. The proposed changes to a now 30-year-old regulation would apply to all inmates.

The commission points out the Legislature last year passed theCorrectional Services and Reintegration Act, which mandates effective oversight of, and time limits for, segregation. However, 18 months later, the act has yet to become law.

The government, the commission says, needs to say what its plans are regarding the legislation.

Commission urging 15-day cap on segregation placements

The government would not say when it might proclaim the law butchief commissioner Renu Mandhane said doing so would go a long wayto "address many of the systemic human rights issues associatedwith the use of segregation in Ontario."

"The government is taking responsible steps to comply with these new legal obligations by moving forward with regulatory updates,"Morrison said.

The commission, however, is urging the province to set a hard 15-day cap on all segregation placements, and to limit its use to nomore than 60 days a year. It also wants an external, independentreview process that includes judicial oversight for segregation decisions.

Segregation should be completely off-limits for pregnant women ornew mothers, inmates who are chronically self-harming or suicidal, have a mental disability, and are mobility impaired, the commission says.