B.C. association files lawsuit to stop practices akin to solitary confinement
A B.C. association has filed a lawsuit against the federal government in the hope of stopping practices it says are not unlike solitary confinement.
In a statement Wednesday, the BC Civil Liberties Association said it hoped the lawsuit would stop wardens and federal prisons from isolating people using lockdowns and "restrictive movement routines."
The organization alleges these practices are used to lock down institutions as a whole or to set restrictive schedules "that isolate people to their cells for days, weeks and months at a time."
"We know that isolating people indefinitely has devastating impacts on their physical and mental health. It dramatically increases the risk of suicide," said Megan Tweedie, senior counsel for BCCLA, in a news release.
"Long-term solitary confinement by any name cannot be allowed to continue."
The BCCLA claims in its lawsuit that prisons don't have the authority to introduce indefinite lockdowns and restrictive movement routines, and argues the practices violate charter rights.
In 2019, the BCCLA challenged an administration segregation law and won.
"The administrative segregation law is gone, but, tragically, solitary confinement is not," said Grace Pastine, BCCLA's litigation director, in the release.
"We're going back to court because no one deserves to be held in such inhumane and degrading conditions … it's time to end this broken and dangerous system which causes extreme and sometimes permanent harm to the people who endure it."
The lawsuit will be heard in B.C. Supreme Court.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
He didn't trust police but sought their help anyway. Two days later, he was dead
Jameek Lowery was among more than 330 Black people who died after police stopped them with tactics that aren’t supposed to be deadly, like physical restraint and use of stun guns, The Associated Press found.
Fluid in eye cells can 'boil' if you watch the eclipse without protection: expert
Millions of people in parts of Eastern and Atlantic Canada will be able to see the rare solar eclipse happening on April 8. But they should only look up if they have proper eye protection, experts say.
NEW More unauthorized products for skin, sexual enhancement, recalled: Here are the recalls of this week
Health Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency recalled various items this week, including torches, beef biltong and unauthorized products related to skin care and sexual enhancement.
Where is the worst place for allergy sufferers in Canada?
The spring allergy season has started early in many parts of Canada, with high levels of pollen in some cities already. Experts weigh in on which areas have it worse so far this season.
Do these exercises for core strength if you can't stomach doing planks
Planks are one of the most effective exercises for strengthening your midsection, as they target all of your major core muscles: the transverse abdominis, rectus abdominis, external obliques and internal obliques. Yet despite the popularity of various 10-minute plank challenges, planking is actually one of the most dreaded core exercises, according to many fitness experts.
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Angst and calls for resting places as Surrey, B.C., pet cemetery development continues
A single headstone is all that remains of dozens of markers for long-buried pets in a subdivision in Surrey’s Newton neighbourhood, where a half-acre parcel bears a large sign announcing the proposed construction of new homes.
Polar ice is melting and changing Earth's rotation. It's messing with time itself
One day in the next couple of years, everyone in the world will lose a second of their time. Exactly when that will happen is being influenced by humans, according to a new study, as melting polar ice alters the Earth’s rotation and changes time itself.