Inmate population continues to grow in provincial jails

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This article was published 05/07/2023 (826 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Manitoba’s jail population is growing at a rate not seen in nearly a decade, prompting concerns corrections facilities will be left shorthanded and communities disenfranchised.

Adult inmate counts increased by more than 12 per cent during the 2022-23 fiscal year, according to statistics published by the Manitoba government.

The annual average inmate count was also six per cent higher than 2021-22, and outpaced annual population growth for the past nine years (the most readily available numbers).

“It’s a significant increase and probably one of the larger percentage increases we’ve seen in the last decade, certainly on a sustained level,” Justice Minister Kelvin Goertzen said in an interview.

On Tuesday, there were 2,073 adults in custody at jails and 100 youth in correctional facilities, a provincial spokesperson said. The province reported an average population of 1,846 adults and 86 youth for the quarter ending March 31.

Goertzen attributed the higher incarceration rate to an increase in violent crime, as well as targeted government initiatives aimed at getting repeat offenders off the street.

In November 2022, the Progressive Conservative government announced an integrated law enforcement unit dedicated to tracking down people wanted on warrants and to supervise offenders on probation and bail considered a high risk to reoffend.

“You’re going to end up with a higher prison population, which again isn’t a bad thing, if it’s taking those who would otherwise be at risk to the community and taking them off the street,” the Tory MLA for Steinbach said.

The Winnipeg Police Service reported 2022 was the city’s worst year for violent crime in 13 years, with drastic increases in overall, property and violent offences year-over-year. Meantime, drug, traffic and other offences, such as administrative court breaches, dropped.

It was also the deadliest year on record, with 53 homicides.

Goertzen said he is not alarmed by the increase in the jail population and expects it to continue to grow, so long as violent crime rates persist.

People who pose a risk to the community should be held in custody while awaiting trial, he said. About 75 per cent of the adult inmate population in the 2022-23 fiscal year were on remand.

“My hope would be that we see a significant decrease in violent crime quickly, for the safety of the community, and then ultimately that would work its way through the system into a decrease of people in the prison population,” he said.

Manitoba Government and General Employees’ Union member services director Janet Kehler said corrections officers were already under significant strain before the inmate population ballooned.

“Without question, there’s strong evidence of a very significant recruitment and retention issue within corrections,” Kehler said. “Probably the most compelling evidence is that corrections officers are working an extraordinary amount overtime.”

Kehler said the job vacancy rate for corrections officers was not immediately available, but MGEU estimates about 20 per cent of positions across the civil service are empty.

Staffing challenges have significant and immediate consequences within corrections, as officers are forced to move from a direct supervision model — which Kehler described as providing improved service and support to inmates — to a static supervision model when shifts go unfilled.

Jails are not yet filled to the point where the union is concerned about double- and triple-bunking, but the ratio of inmates to officers is not ideal, Kehler said.

According to the province, four out of its six adult jails are over their rated capacity.

“The population of inmates has shown a steady increase, but the rate of hiring has not kept pace,” Kehler said, noting the government will have to offer competitive wages and more full-time positions in the next collective agreement.

Goertzen said the justice department is running more training courses for corrections officers, courses are full, and people are graduating at a higher rate than in the past two to three years.

University of Winnipeg criminal justice Prof. Kevin Walby said the increased jail population could signal a decrease in the amount of community supervision offered to people on probation or a reduction in diversion programs.

However, the trend is not something to celebrate as communities and families are fragmented, he said.

“I would expect that it will actually lead to more distress and more transgression the more that we have targeted policing campaigns in various already marginalized parts of Manitoba cities,” Walby said.

“If we wanted to create real safety, we wouldn’t be trying to put more people in jail. We’d be trying to address root issues that make people distressed, that make people turn to transgression in the beginning.”

The Tory government’s take on increased inmate population is an attempt to score political points by playing on people’s fears, he added.

“That 12 per cent, it seems like an abstract thing… but when I hear 12 per cent, I think that is a lot of harm. They’re harming a lot of families, they’re harming a lot of social networks, and it’s going to take generations to repair.”

Manitoba Liberal Leader Dougald Lamont attributed the growing inmate population to the justice system catching up from the COVID-19 pandemic and an increased focus on jailing people who are on remand.

“It’s not related to violent crime — it really should be, but it’s not,” Lamont said, adding the current system incarcerates people who should not be in jail.

“(The Tories) have made it more likely for people to be rearrested, and more likely for them to reoffend, and more likely for them to be caught and thrown in jail for something minor, rather than putting effort where it needs to go, which is cracking down on violent crime and anti-gang and organized crime initiatives.”

» Winnipeg Free Press