Rimutaka Prisoner Kevin*, was accused of shoving a Corrections officer who told him to stand aside so she could search his cell. The result - he will have to answer for his actions at an internal prison hearing. Prosecuting Kevin will be Mike Dowding, one of the two prosecutors who serves the Wellington region.
When a prisoner is accused of breaking any prison rule – such as disobeying a lawful order or behaving in a threatening manner – they are prosecuted by a Prison Services prosecutor. Only if the offence is really serious will it go to Court for Police prosecution.
At Kevin’s hearing, Mike will stand up in front of a Visiting Justice to prosecute the case against Kevin. Kevin’s unit manager and the charging officer (in this case the Corrections officer who was pushed by Kevin) will also attend.
The Visiting Justice, who is an independent person and not employed by Corrections, weighs the evidence and will impose a penalty – such as confinement to cell or loss of privileges – if Kevin is found guilty.
Mike and his fellow prosecutor deal with about 1000 hearings a year at Rimutaka Prison, and about 250 at Arohata Prison.
He says the atmosphere at a prison hearing is fairly formal. “It’s business-like, but not quite as formal as in a Court. For example, we don’t use legal language.
“The Visiting Justice is always painstaking in explaining things to the prisoners so they know exactly why they’re there and what’s going on.”
Usually prisoners speak for themselves, as the charges tend to be fairly minor, but they can apply for a lawyer, and can also have a support person, usually another prisoner, present if they wish.
“Sometimes, if the prisoner isn’t sure how to defend themselves, the Visiting Justice will help them. And I explain things to them beforehand too, if they’re not sure what will happen,” says Mike.
Once the hearing is completed, the prosecutor sends copies of the paperwork to head office, the prisoner’s unit manager and the prisoner.
Principal Corrections Officer Nigel Petrie trains prison prosecutors – he has many years of experience in the role, and before joining Corrections was a Police prosecutor. He believes it’s a robust system.
“Not one of our prosecutors has the attitude ‘to win is to win for the sake of it’ – they’re interested in being professional and finding out the truth.”
At Hawke’s Bay Prison, where Nigel is based, there might be three or four defended hearings (i.e. hearings where the prisoner pleads “not guilty”) a day, though he’s known complex cases to last all day.
“Drug offences are often the most complex. There’s a lot you have to prove, and the Environmental Science and Research (ESR) evidence – urine tests and so on – is not always black and white.”
Prison prosecutors sometimes also have duties as Corrections officers in smaller prisons, but Nigel says prisoners usually have no ill-feeling against the prosecutor.
“Of course, the prisoners know the prosecutors will present the case against them to the best of their ability – but they’re fair, and the prisoners respect that.”
If the offence is serious enough, the visiting justice or adjudicator will decide to get the Police to prosecute in open Court instead.
“It’s up to the Visiting Justice or adjudicator to decide, but a minor assault, such as if the prisoner pushed someone, would probably be dealt with in the prison. If they punched someone, that would be likely to go to Court.” 
And does the discipline work? Nigel says it does in most cases.
“We do get a few people we prosecute again and again, who just don’t seem to care, and a few we keep seeing for drug offences.
“But most prisoners soon realise bad behaviour in prison has consequences. They know if they keep getting into trouble not only do they have to pay the initial penalty of loss of privileges or whatever, but also their security rating could well be increased – and this will affect whether they can attend programmes and whether the Parole Board will look favourably on them.”
* not his real name
Prison Service prisoner discipline - confinement to cell and loss of privileges are typical penalties.
NB – penalties vary depending on the circumstances around the offence and are decided on a case-by-case basis by the Visiting Justice or hearing adjudicator.
| Found in possession of a cell phone | 10 days confinement to cell and 10 days loss of privileges* |
| Behaves in a threatening manner | 10 days confinement to cell and 50 days loss of privileges |
| First offence: possessing a drug | 2 days of confinement to cell and 7 days loss of privileges |
| Third offence: possessing a drug | 8 days confinement to cell |
| Ninth offence: possessing a drug | 12 days confinement to cell and 60 days loss of privileges, 50 days loss of earnings |
* – “Loss of privileges” means, for example, the prisoner is not allowed to make phone calls after the evening meal, participate in a hobby or recreation that is not part of their management plan, and is not allowed to use a TV, radio or CD player.
In July this year, prison prosecutors from around the country met in Wellington for the first in a series of training workshops aimed at ensuring Corrections has the same high standards of prosecution throughout its 21 prisons.
National Education Officer for the Royal Federation of Justices’ Associations Inc, Valerie Redshaw, is responsible for training Visiting Justices and also helped with training the prosecutors.
“The standard of prison prosecutors is very high – and they showed a real desire to learn and improve,” she says.
Principal Corrections Officer Nigel Petrie, who was a prosecutor himself for many years and was the key trainer at the workshops, says he can’t overstate the skills of the prosecutors he worked with.
“They have great analytical skills and can think on their feet while always remaining fair and neutral.
“They have a pretty strong network and often contact each other to talk an issue through, but the training gave them the chance to meet, which was very useful,” says Nigel.
Nigel says he hopes the new prosecutors’ manual he has written and launched at the training, will complement the Prison Services’ Policy and Procedures Manual and help the prosecutors with their demanding jobs.
Nigel Petrie (left) and Valerie Redshaw (third from left) at one of the prosecutors' training days.
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