Despite opposition from the government, the Federal Court has legalized a class-action lawsuit opposed to Canada’s system, alleging anti-black racism experienced by inmates.
Court declared that the lawsuit — claiming systemic negligence resulting in the abuse of Black inmates as well as Charter breaches against Black inmates — can proceed as a class action, meaning it is litigated on behalf of a group of people rather than an individual.
The elegance consisted of black inmates alleging physical, emotional, or mental abuse while incarcerated in a Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) facility since 1985.
The lawsuit was filed last year through Abel Araya, a Canadian citizen of Eritrean descent who served a criminal sentence for drug trafficking. He served two years of his three-year sentence in two federal penitentiaries.
Araya was incarcerated at the Drumheller Institution in Alberta and William Head Institution in British Columbia before his release in 2020.
He alleges in his complaint that he racially abuses CSC staff and other inmates while at the Vancouver Island minimum security prison, but not at the Alberta prison, which is primarily medium security.
His lawsuit claims that the White Guards ignored or fired him and treated him differently than white inmates.
He said he was ignored when he first sought medical treatment for a serious head injury. He said there were no systems available, particularly for black prisoners.
He said he was treated differently and subjected to racial stereotyping. He claims his white parole officer said she would not want him coaching her children’s sports teams because he was “clearly a drug dealer,” while a CSC nurse said he wouldn’t want someone like him living in his community.
He said a white prisoner constantly hurled offensive racial slurs at him. When Araya told him that it was better to prevent it or he would have to “solve” the matter, it was Araya who reprimanded him.
The court heard that Araya complained of racism to William Head, but did not file a formal complaint for fear of being punished by criminal personnel.
Even after leaving prison and living at a halfway house during the COVID-19 pandemic, he said he experienced racism, including being pressured to leave the facility to make room for “vulnerable” prisoners, all of whom were white, he claimed.
These incidents, he explained, amplified the emotions of helplessness, panic attacks, insomnia, anxiety and depression upon his release.
The court heard from Akwasi Owusu-Bempah, a criminology professor at the University of Toronto who studies racism in the criminal justice system.
Owusu-Bempah said that “CSC’s practices, procedures, instruments, policies and other acts and omissions systematically disadvantage racialized prisoners in comparison to white prisoners.”
He stated that several reports from the Office of the Correctional Investigator show that, compared to white male inmates, black male inmates are more likely to be subjected to the use of force, less likely to be placed in minimum security institutions, and have more likely to be placed in minimum security institutions. They are placed in solitary confinement, score lower on their reintegration prospects, and are disproportionately denied leave of absence. and probation.
Ottawa objected to certifying the lawsuit as an action of elegance and disputed Owusu-Bempah’s testimony, saying he testified outdoors about his experience and was more of an advocate than an objective expert.
The attorney for the Attorney General of Canada also argued that Araya’s claim does not demonstrate a moderate cause of action, that elegance is too broad, and that there are no questions of law or fact not unusual among plaintiffs in elegance. Ottawa also argued that a class action lawsuit was not the best way to address members’ grievances and that Araya was not suitable as a class representative.
Araya has filed a separate civil lawsuit in B.C. Supreme Court alleging he was denied medical care for his head injury. Prisons also have an internal grievance system to handle complaints, the government said. Lawyers said he received full parole at the earliest opportunity, with the support of his parole officer and he was never the subject of a disciplinary charge.
In a ruling published Tuesday, Judge Simon Fothergill said he was confident that Araya had sufficient credibility to act as a representative plaintiff and that Owusu-Bempah’s testimony was broadly helpful and admissible.
Fothergill said that alleged violations of the Charter, adding unjustified deprivation of life, liberty or security of the person, as well as discriminatory cover or obtaining advantages under the law, were debatable issues.
“A court action alleging systemic negligence involving acts and omissions of other perpetrators in various institutional settings over an extended period presents formidable challenges,” Fothergill wrote in his decision.
But there have been previous cases that faced challenges, and a recent class-action lawsuit alleging racism filed against the RCMP was added.
“Rather, the plaintiff characterizes inmates as a vulnerable population. If this proposed elegance action is not certified, it is unlikely that individual members of elegance will seek another relief bureaucracy on their own. To the extent that the allegations made in the application are substantiated, no damage suffered through the proposed elegance will be reimbursed, unless it is by means of a collective procedure.
He ordered that the definition of elegance be lowered and that the time limit be reduced, but allowed the action to continue as a continuous elegance.
Esther Mailhot, CSC’s senior adviser for problem management and media relations, said it is beside the point to comment on the details of this case while the claims are before the courts.
“CSC has an ethnically diverse offender population. Once in our custody, we are committed to striving to remove the systemic social barriers faced by offenders by offering systems that meet their needs.
“We are committed to ensuring that Black and ethnocultural offenders get the same protection, dignity and reparation as everyone else,” Mailhot said.
Araya’s lead attorney, Patrick Dudding, may be able to be contacted before the deadline.
The CSC uses 28 categories of racial identification for inmates when they are processed for prison intake. The self-identification of Black inmates often includes geographic-base qualifiers, such as Caribbean or Sub-Sahara African.
The procedure and when members of elegance can opt out of the procedure have been established.
• Email: ahumphreys@postmedia. com | X: AD_Humphreys
Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark nationalpost.com and sign up for our newsletters here.
Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion and encourage all readers to share their views on our articles. Comments may take up to an hour for moderation before appearing on the site. We ask you to keep your comments relevant and respectful. We have enabled email notifications—you will now receive an email if you receive a reply to your comment, there is an update to a comment thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information and details on how to adjust your email settings.
365 Bloor Street East, Toronto, Ontario, M4W 3L4
© 2023 Sudbury Star, a department of Postmedia Network Inc. All rights reserved. Unauthorized distribution or transmission is strictly prohibited.
This website uses cookies to personalize your content (including ads), and allows us to analyze our traffic. Read more about cookies here. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.