Inmate access troubles raised by lawyers

(CNS): Local defence attorneys have raised concerns that access to their clients being held on remand is getting tougher. A combination of video link appearances, prison troubles and the mounting number of legal aid clients charged with criminal offences is making consultations more difficult to schedule and having a knock-on impact on the progress of criminal cases through the courts.

There are a catalogue of issues that are preventing the courts from disposing of criminal cases at the rate the chief justice has said he wants to see, which includes court room space, the problems with legal budgets and the shortage of lawyers, but the access problem is now an additional issue set to undermine the progress.

There are currently fifty-one remand prisoners at HMP Northward and another five women on remand at Fairbanks, all of whom need to see lawyers. Prisoners already sentenced also require access to attorneys because of appeals.

The prison is understood to be suffering from staff shortages, though officials said they were unable to comment on that issue until the prison director, who is currently on leave, returns next week.

But lawyers scheduling late afternoon appointments with their clients on remand at Northwood have been turned away recently because they were told there were no prison officers available to bring prisoners to their legal appointments. The prison confirmed that all bookings for lawyers’ visits stop at 3:00 in the afternoon but officials said they do try to accommodate meetings wherever possible if attorneys pre-arrange out of hours visits.

However, with less than two dozen local attorneys taking care of the hundreds of legal aid cases going through the courts, when they are appearing for multiple clients in trials, sentencing hearings and other mentions, sources told CNS that getting to Northward before the jail’s official cut-off point is becoming increasingly difficult.

The prison said it tries to accommodate lawyers but late afternoon visits pose problems. This is a critical period within the prison regime, which officials described as “resource intensive” and when there is a lot of activity with prisoners taking place.

“It is also one of our most vulnerable periods in terms of security,” prison officials stated. “The Prison Department has always been accommodating to lawyers, even on weekends and public holidays, but the department does request that they call ahead of their arrival in order that the department can make the necessary arrangements to have their client ready for them.”

Lawyers are complaining, however, that even when appointments have been made well in advance they are still being denied access and that telephone calls are also a problem. The prison confirmed that the telephones on the cell blocks are provided for staff only and prisoners must use the reception office.

The problem, revealed in the court last week, is further compounded by the use of video-links between the court and prison for the various case hearings ahead of trials. Some attorneys have stated that when their clients appear on video, it is one more occasion where they once had access to clients that has been lost. Unable to talk privately or consult with their clients before their appearances, as they would have done in the past when the prisoners were brought in person, the need to go to the prison has increased but the windows of opportunity there are decreasing.

Access to legal advice and consultation for remand prisoners is further compounded by the tiny percentage of local lawyers doing legal aid criminal work. Despite the fact that there are over 600 registered practicing attorneys in Cayman, less than five per cent are prepared to do legal aid work and even less do so on a regular basis.