❓ Question regarding an incident at Eastern Goldfields Regional Prison involving a Honeywell contractor and subsequent actions taken by the Department of Corrective Services, including media access and CCTV footage release.
AnsweredQoN 5252Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
I refer to your response (ref 65-08045) to my letter in respect to the Eastern Goldfields Regional Prison, and ask: (a) Have all reviews been completed in respect to the Honeywell contractor: (i) If yes, will the Minister table the reviews; and (ii) If no, why not; (b) Has the matter been investigated by the Professional Standards Division: (i) If yes, will the Minister table the outcomes of the investigation; and (ii) If not, why not; (c) Has there been any formal action taken toward either the Honeywell contractor or any corrective service officers in respect to the incident referred to in the letter: (i) If so, what actions have been taken; and (ii) If not, why not; (d) In respect to any state prison, has the Department of Corrective Services released any prison CCTV footage to media outlets in the past, and if so for what purposes has it been released; and (e) Can the Minister confirm there was a media crew producing footage of prisoners in relation to musical talents on the day of my visit to the Eastern Goldfields Prison in March: (i) If so, was the footage checked prior to it leaving the prison grounds; and (ii) If so, who checked the footage?
AnswerView source ↗
Answered
6 August 2019
Responded by
Minister for Emergency Services; Corrective Services
Response time
4 days
(a) – (b) The Professional Standards Division’s Integrity and Accountability Directorate conducted a desk top analysis of the incident and determined the matter could be managed at a local level. Subsequently the matter was formally allocated to the Superintendent of the Eastern Goldfields Regional Prison. The local enquires were reported back in an internal memo dated 1 April 2019 that detailed the following:
(c) Yes. The Honeywell Contractor’s employment was terminated as a consequence of his actions and local Prison Officers were counselled and the required security processes reinforced by the Superintendent. The Professional Standards Division did not identify suspected staff misconduct by Prison Officers that warranted any disciplinary action further to the local actions taken by the Superintendent.
(d) Yes. The Department has previously released CCTV footage to media outlets in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 1992 where it does not pose risks to the security and good order of the prison. I reiterate my offer for you to view the footage in private.
(e) Yes.
(i) An ABC reporter entered the prison Education Centre and took photographs with a digital camera. No video recordings were made.
(ii) The photographs were physically checked by the Campus Manager before the reporter left the prison.
(c) Yes. The Honeywell Contractor’s employment was terminated as a consequence of his actions and local Prison Officers were counselled and the required security processes reinforced by the Superintendent. The Professional Standards Division did not identify suspected staff misconduct by Prison Officers that warranted any disciplinary action further to the local actions taken by the Superintendent.
(d) Yes. The Department has previously released CCTV footage to media outlets in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 1992 where it does not pose risks to the security and good order of the prison. I reiterate my offer for you to view the footage in private.
(e) Yes.
(i) An ABC reporter entered the prison Education Centre and took photographs with a digital camera. No video recordings were made.
(ii) The photographs were physically checked by the Campus Manager before the reporter left the prison.
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