CANADIAN JAILS

Maybe compared to Mexican, Columbian, Turkish and Russian jails they aren't so bad. Maybe. I don't know first hand. I have spent extremely limited time in them thank God. That being said I tell you the fact that I've spent even five seconds in them involuntarily is a damning indictment of our legal system and justice officials. I do not and have never had a criminal conviction. At one time I simply assumed that that was a given and would never change. Boy have my eyes been opened. At one time I thought that "criminal intent" had to be proven in order to get a criminal conviction. Boy have my eyes ever been opened. We now have so many incredible bull shit laws that if the powers to be want you in jail, you are on your way. I was arrested for trespass, thrown in jail and then woken up in the middle of the night and informed that my charge had been "upgraded" to Obstructing Police. Are you kidding me? I asked the guard if perhaps my snoring had upset someone. He was not terribly amused.

This criminal charge was dropped when my local lawyer, Wayne Rabley went to the Crown and gave him an audio recording of an officer at the Elmira Detachment of the Regional Police, giving me the O.K. to pick up my son from Conestogo Public School that afternoon as his mother couldn't make it. The only reason the police were involved was because senior liars at the Waterloo Region District School Board were actively involved in covering up for the inappropriate behaviour of one of their employees.

What kind of sweetheart deal has been going on for decades between the police and school board officials? This nonsense played out over a year until the Crown advised the Regional Police that they the Crown would no longer prosecute me on Trespass charges laid by the police. At that point the Regional Police then advised the Waterloo Region District School Board in writing that they would no longer attend and charge me for Trespass when I showed up appropriately at my son's school. At that point the senior liars at the WRDSB then wrote me a letter advising me that as my behaviour had improved they were now giving me permission to do exactly what I had been doing for the last year without their effing permission.

Throughout this bullshit and nonsense by the school board the Regional Police brass aided and abetted the legal and financial harassment of a citizen. Individual officers attending at the school generally were very professional. It was their superiors who have shamed themselves and the police force. This citizen has learned nothing but contempt for the cowards and bullies at the top of both the school board and the regional police. Our courts and legal system can be abused by petty authorities for the purpose of intimidating and harassing honest citizens whether protecting their children or involved in non violent protest and dissent.

Now I am reading various criticisms of our jails. These include newspaper reports such as the one published in the Waterloo Region Record on August 15/12 titled "Overcrowded jail could lead to violence: union boss". I have also been following a Blog written by Julian Ichim (titled "Julian Ichim") a local, well known activist and social critic. Decades ago I would have automatically dismissed out of hand many of his allegations and conclusions concerning rot and corruption within our political systems. Not anymore. Recently he has published articles about our prison systems and jails. The pettiness and abuse of authority is stunning. One of his published articles mentions the Metro West Detention Centre in Toronto. What shocked me more than the actual allegation was the casual nature of its' mention. The allegation is that guards have killed multiple inmates. While I have zero first hand knowledge, nevertheless I am appalled and concerned. Could this allegation be true? Are our judicial and prison systems no better than those mentioned in the first sentence? Can individual bullies and evil overcome legislation and decency? Unfortunately I do know the answer to that last question. Good people can end up in jail. Innocent people get arrested AND convicted. The state owes an absolute duty to protect from harm those people it determines need to be incarcerated. Jail abuses and if true deaths need to be vigorously investigated and heads should roll including criminal prosecutions of those in charge and control.