Prison officers ask for batons as violent attacks rise

‘NEED FOR DECISIVE ACTION TO BOOST SAFETY’

has forced the Irish Prison Service to repurpose the Progression Unit on the Mountjoy campus for sex offenders.

Currently, 33 inmates are housed there, and this number is expected to rise.

Remand

“Sex offenders, both sentenced and on remand, were previously accommodated at four locations – Midlands Prison, Arbour Hill Prison, Castlerea Prison, and Mountjoy Training Unit,” Justice Minister Helen McEntee said this week.

She was responding to a parliamentary question from Green Party TD Patrick Costello.

Meanwhile, prisoners who are serving sentences for other offences at the unit will be moved to alternative accommodation.

PRISON officers are pleading to be allowed to use batons — as vicious attacks are on the rise behind bars.

The Prison Officers Association (POA) say the number of violent incidents in Irish prisons from 2020 to last year increased by 137 per cent, with a shocking 891 incidents in 2023, including 110 assaults against them by prisoners.

Speaking at the POA’s, Annual Delegate Conference in Sligo, Gabriel Keaveney, Deputy General Secretary gave a shocking example of how a prison officer was recently slashed in the face.

“Earlier this year one of our members had his face slashed after he intervened with a prisoner who was trying to escape.

“The prisoner is reported to have said, ‘I’ll stab the face off you, I’ll stab you to death’, as he carried out the assault.

“Last year, a female prison officer was left with life changing injuries, sustained in an attack by a prisoner,” he added.

His comments come as the POA are understood to be advocating for prison officers to be able to carry batons as a means of defence behind bars.

Spray

“If we could secure access to such items as incapacitant spray, concealed batons and conflict resolution dogs, we could take more decisive action and add to overall safety,” Mr Keaveney added.

“We have raised this important matter with the Irish Prison Service by letter earlier this week, and have stressed again our view that prison officers should be allowed to carry concealed

Despite these efforts to ensure that he was accompanied, however, he passed away before a staff member could make it to the hospital as his condition deteriorated rapidly.

The report noted the man had been committed to Cork Prison batons within the prison, as a way of protecting themselves and others.”

Currently, prison officers are not allowed to carry a baton unless they are on an escort or in the National Violence Reduction Unit.

Speaking about the rise in violent incidents in prisons, Mr Keaveney added that the overcrowding crisis in our jails is adding to the problem.

“We must face the fact that violent incidents are much more likely occur in our present overcrowded prison environment, where prisoners are not getting sufficient access to non-cell facilities, such as workshops and recreation.

“In 2023, we have had over 100 direct physical assaults on prison officers, while carrying out their duties in our prisons.”

Meanwhile, the Irish Prison Service Director General Caron McCaffrey also commented on the figures, saying assaults on prison officers are in fact down — but said 110 assaults are still too many. She did however acknowledge that assaults between prisoners has increased by 66 per cent.

“There has, however, been a reduction on the number of assaults on staff in 2023, but that’s not to say that any level of assaults against our staff is acceptable.

“There were 110 assaults too many.”