Lockdown at Ottawa jail for ‘security reasons’ leads to court delays

A lockdown was ordered at the troubled Ottawa-Carleton Detention Centre on Friday morning.

The Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services would only say the jail was locked down for “security reasons.” The lockdown affected several court cases that were scheduled to take place at the Ottawa courthouse, as people being held at the Innes Road facility were not allowed to leave.

“The ministry advised the affected courts and judiciary of the security-related delay earlier today,” said Andrew Morrison, a spokesman for the ministry.

“Lockdowns at Ontario correctional facilities are necessary at times, to keep both staff and inmates safe, and can occur for a variety of reasons, including a search of the institution, unexpected staff absences, or for security reasons.”

The Innes Road jail has come under fire from the Ontario Public Services Employee Union, defence lawyers, opposition MPPs, advocacy groups and even the jail’s own provincially appointed Community Advisory Board, who have criticized everything from the lack of programming at the facility, to the way prison guards use segregation, to its cleanliness and even the quality of its food.

There were 147 lockdowns or partial lockdowns at the facility in 2015. While statistics for 2016 have not yet been released, early indications suggested the facility was on pace to beat its 2015 totals.

A task force was formed by the Ontario government last year to report back on the conditions at the prison and provide recommendations as to how the facility could be improved.

The government reported on Jan. 31 that it had acted on all of the task force’s short-term recommendations and was continuing to work to address other issues at the jail.