Staffer stabbed in second violent incident at Townsville’s Cleveland Youth Detention Centre

A staffer was stabbed several times with broken glass in the second violent incident to rock a North Queensland youth detention centre involving the same group of kids within four days.

Cleveland Youth Detention Centre. PICTURE: MATT TAYLOR.

A staffer was stabbed several times with broken glass in the second violent incident to rock Cleveland Youth Detention Centre involving the same group of youths within four days.

The chaos erupted on Monday when around eight boys in a unit armed themselves with light fixtures and other makeshift weapons, prompting staff to intervene.

In the ensuing struggle, multiple staff members were assaulted, with one staffer suffering a leg injury after being stabbed multiple times with broken glass from a fluorescent light tube.

Inside sources say the staffer was rushed to hospital while the alleged stabber went into lockdown and was able to watch TV in his room and released the following day.

This latest incident follows closely on the heels of a similar outbreak last Thursday, where four staff members were assaulted, including one who was knocked unconscious while attempting to subdue the same group of boys during a property-damage rampage.

There has been two violent disturbances where staff have been assaulted by young detainees at Cleveland Bay Youth Detention Centre within a span of four days. Picture: Evan Morgan

Federal Herbert MP Phil Thompson has voiced serious concerns, attributing the escalation to a lack of consequences for the youths involved.

“We are seeing further critical incidents where a youth worker has been stabbed, which shows whatever punishments these offenders are getting aren’t working,” he said.

The Department of Youth Justice said it would hold the offenders accountable after last Thursday’s incident, but Mr Thompson argued that statement doesn’t match the reality of what the staff on the ground have been telling him.

“They got zero punishment for what they did on Thursday,” he said.

Member for Herbert Phillip Thompson has called for greater support for the staff at Cleveland Bay Youth Detention Centre. Picture: Alix Sweeney

“They should be in lockdown, but instead, they get bubble-wrapped and don’t face any real consequences.”

In response to questions from the Townsville Bulletin, Michael Drane, Deputy Director General of the Department of Youth Justice, addressed what had happened at Cleveland on Monday.

He described the incident as “completely unacceptable” and said the department would be undertaking a comprehensive review of what took place.

“Our detention centre staff operate in a complex and sometimes dangerous environment, but no employee deserves to be injured while at work,” he said.

Deputy Director General of the Department of Youth Justice, Michael Drane. Picture: Blair Jackson

“Executives from the department routinely provide support to staff and their families following serious incidents.

“The offences have been referred to the Queensland Police Service for investigation. It would be inappropriate to comment further while this process takes place.”

The Member for Herbert emphasised the need for more robust measures to ensure staff were safe and supported.

He warns failure to do so will only make staff retention struggles at the centre even worse.

“People’s lives and safety are in danger — more needs to be done,” Mr Thompson said.

“There’s already a high turnover rate, and if things continue like this, they’ll have to keep flying in people from Brisbane to fill the gaps, which creates a pressure cooker for all sorts of problems.”

David Crisafulli at Parliament House. Picture Lachie Millard

Opposition leader David Crisafulli said the Townsville stabbing showed the “absolute bedlam” that was happening inside the state’s youth detention centres as part of a “broken” youth justice system.

“Those staff, they don’t deserve to be bitten and spat at and stabbed - it’s complete and utter bedlam,” he said.

“If there’s no discipline inside corrective services facilities, how on earth can staff go to work and do their job safely and how on earth can you turn young kids around.

“It is a broken system … to continue to hear reports of (detention centre) staff being punched and bitten and now stabbed, well that is just absolute ground zero in terms of the crisis that’s going on inside those detention facilities.”

Originally published as Staffer stabbed in second violent incident at Townsville’s Cleveland Youth Detention Centre