NT Corrections and Police unions call out use of watch-houses as prisons following Darwin City escape

The Police union has warned conditions inside the prison watch-houses could lead to ‘serious incidents or a death in custody’.

The Northern Territory’s use of police prisons is a “disaster waiting to happen” as staff warn long periods in the overnight cells were making prisoners “increasingly aggressive and frustrated”.

NT Corrections said it was reviewing “vulnerabilities” in the Darwin City watch-house after two prisoners managed to smash through secure, laminated glass and used a makeshift sheet ladder to escape on Wednesday morning.

Following the fugitives’ recapture 12 hours later, a Corrections spokesman said there was an “ongoing investigation” into their escape, with a review into the centre’s monitoring, changing procedures and its security logs and CCTV.

However, both the corrections and police unions have condemned the ongoing use of short-stint watch-house cells as unfit and unsafe for long-term prisoners.

Unions NT secretary Erina Early. Picture: Floss Adams

United Workers Union NT secretary Erina Early, who represents prison workers, said there had been increasing concerns over lengthy stays in the cop shops.

“The biggest thing is that prisoners are only meant to be in the watch-house for up to six weeks maximum,” Ms Early said.

“Some of them have been in there for up to three months.”

During NT estimates in 2023, Corrections Commissioner Matthew Varley said the watch-house had set a maximum limit of 14 days before low-security prisoners were rotated out, saying “we have to manage it carefully and make sure people do not stay too long”.

Corrections Commissioner Matthew Varley as Police are on the hunt for two prisoners who allegedly escaped custody in Darwin. An NT Police spokesman said the two men fled the Darwin Watch House on Knuckey St about 4.50am Wednesday. Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin

Ms Early said up to 40 men were being split between 16 watch-house cells — with four shower cubicles between them — had no access to outdoor areas or sunlight, and were unable to get family visits.

She said all of these conditions had led to prisoners “getting frustrated”.

“Officers have been notifying management that these ‘prisoners have been here too long, they need to be rotated out’ and those requests have been ignored,” Ms Early said

She was unsure how long the two escapees had been in the Darwin Police Station cells.

Corrections data revealed at the time of the escape there were 93 prisoners held in watch-houses, with 39 in the Darwin police prison, 14 in Peter McAulay Centre, six at the Palmerston watchhouse and another 34 in Alice Springs — not including those in police custody.

One per cent of the NT’s adult population is locked up, with 2261 people behind bars at the time of the breakout.

On Wednesday, newly appointed Corrections Minister Gerard Maley said it was “crucial” for police to get their watch-houses back, and for prisons to have “suitable accommodation for the right category of prisoner”.

“Overall, this is a piece of work we are urgently undertaking because to support a safer community, we have to make sure police and corrections are well supported,” he said.

Newly appointed Corrections Minister Gerard Maley said it was “crucial” for police to get their watch houses back. Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin

NT Police Association president Nathan Finn said it was his understanding “there have been no further discussions between Corrections and the NT Police... regarding the timeline for the transition from corrections back to police”.

Mr Finn has previously warned conditions inside could lead to a death in custody, demanding an “urgent resolution” to the use of cop shops for prison overflow saying it was “a disaster waiting to happen”.

In letters to former chief minister Eva Lawler and police minister Brent Potter obtained by the NT News, Mr Finn said the attempted escape of three prisoners from the Alice Springs watch-house on March 14 highlighted the inadequacy of facilities.

In March, Mr Finn said there were 45 prisoners in the watch-house — alongside the people in police custody — when the trio pushed past a Corrections officer during a “toilet run”.

“The toilet run was necessary because there are currently up to 13 prisoners jammed into a single cell,” he said.

Northern Territory Police Association (NTPA) President Nathan Finn. Picture: Fia Walsh

Mr Finn said the prisoners were being held for up to two-weeks “with no time outside”, and were becoming “increasingly aggressive and frustrated at the conditions in which they are being incarcerated”.

“It is only a matter of time before there is a serious custody incident,” he said.

“In the event of a serious injury, or fatality of a police officer, corrections officer or prisoner, you and your government will be held responsible for failing to provide suitable facilities and resources to accommodate prisoners.”

In her response to Mr Finn’s letter Ms Lawler acknowledged it was a “measure of last resort” in “extraordinary times” with Corrections using all other avenues to manage rising prisoner numbers.

Originally published as NT Corrections and Police unions call out use of watch-houses as prisons following Darwin City escape