Coralee asleep at wheel
CONDITIONS at Townsville Correctional Centre have reached a critical point.
With up to six inmates in cells designed for four, tensions are rising to dangerous levels.
Staff say overcrowding is to blame for daily violent clashes between inmates.
And they warn it is only a matter of time before these fights result in a serious injury, or worse.
It is a tough challenge for the State Government because there is no quick, easy fix. Not a sensible one, anyway.
The worst outcome for Townsville would be any suggestion that judges and prosecutors were somehow encouraged to address this crisis by reducing the flow of custodial sentences. With crime already at unacceptable levels, that would be a disaster for this city.
Instead, the Government needs to urgently consider how it can accommodate these inmates in a more humane and sustainable manner.
One approach could be to reconfigure the Stuart prison. For instance, allocate less area to the more spacious residential units and more to the smaller secure cells. This would potentially free up space for dozens more inmates.
A longer- term solution, however, must also be contemplated.
It may be time to consider construction of a maximum- security prison to house the most dangerous and recidivist criminals.
As much as the Government would like to rehabilitate as many prisoners as possible with the ultimate ideal of releasing them as productive members of the community, there are prisoners who are beyond such redemption.
These are the offenders who have never exhibited any signs of rehabilitation and who pose a threat to other prisoners.
If they could be housed in a new highersecurity facility, it may leave those inmates with a desire and capacity to recover in a safer environment.
Moreover, the construction of a new prison could present a priceless economic opportunity to a more remote area of the state.
If it reduces the risk of tragedy at Stuart, it is worthy of consideration. IT SEEMS Coralee O’Rourke is about as much use as mudguards on a tortoise ( TB, 11/ 5).
The fact she has not even bothered to meet the Premier on a single occasion this year to champion our city is disgusting.
It is little wonder our great city is facing numerous challenges when the person who sits around the Cabinet table is only making up the numbers.
Why hasn’t the Member for Mundingburra been banging on the Premier’s door pleading with her to do something about the shocking crime rates, the massive unemployment rates, rising energy prices and the water issues that plague our city?
Where was Ms O’Rourke when Jackie Trad sneakily funded an inner- city extreme Greens group whose major objective is to stop Adani? Very simply put, Ms O’Rourke is a dud.
For Ms O’Rourke to try to justify herself by claiming credit for the City Deal is simply laughable. It was a Federal Government initiative announced during the last federal election.
She also claims she was pivotal in establishing the Water Taskforce, yet here we are on level three restrictions and no plan to fix the crisis.
She says she was instrumental in securing additional police resources, yet police budgets have been slashed and our city has the unenviable tag of being the crime capital of the state.
But Ms O’Rourke says one of her greatest achievements is establishing new youth justice measures – look how great that Labor policy has worked out for our city.
That has resulted in a revolving door where young thugs are given a slap on the wrist, treat our com- munity with disdain and continue to commit crimes at will. Townsville deserves someone who sticks up for the community they claim to represent, not someone who is only a passenger. ANDREW A. HENNESSY, Douglas.