Comments on: The next visit… http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2007/12/02/the-next-visit/ Feminist, anti-racist, pro-fat, plus whatever else we feel like talking about. Thu, 20 Nov 2008 17:06:19 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.2 By: Sailorman http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2007/12/02/the-next-visit/#comment-311700 Sailorman Wed, 05 Dec 2007 00:26:30 +0000 http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2007/12/02/the-next-visit/#comment-311700 Thanks, Maia, for the explanation. Yes, you're correct that we have many prisoners awaiting bail hearings, and others who have been denied bail but are not yet tried. The bail system is actually a source of great prosecutor abuse, though I won't side track here (ask me some time if you're curious.) Thanks, Maia, for the explanation. Yes, you’re correct that we have many prisoners awaiting bail hearings, and others who have been denied bail but are not yet tried. The bail system is actually a source of great prosecutor abuse, though I won’t side track here (ask me some time if you’re curious.)

]]> By: Joe http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2007/12/02/the-next-visit/#comment-311423 Joe Mon, 03 Dec 2007 01:38:57 +0000 http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2007/12/02/the-next-visit/#comment-311423 This is a digression, so please remove as you like, but I'd love to learn the reasons behind the disparity that you've observed. This is a digression, so please remove as you like, but I’d love to learn the reasons behind the disparity that you’ve observed.

]]> By: Maia http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2007/12/02/the-next-visit/#comment-311400 Maia Sun, 02 Dec 2007 22:12:19 +0000 http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2007/12/02/the-next-visit/#comment-311400 I know you have remand prisoners in America, but I don't know what they're called. They're prisoners who have been arrested but not released on bail who are waiting for trial. Like I said in my previous post bail is much esaier to get in NZ than it is in America. Remand prisoners are kept seperate from the rest of the population and theoretically have more visiting time, because they haven't been convicted of anything. New Zealand only has one prison system and one jurisdiction. The prisons I'm referring to are the prisons for women and men in the Wellington region (133 and 637 prisoners respectively at the last census. The nearest male prison is two hours drive away, the nearest women's prison is 10 hours drive away. So the prisons hold almost all remand and sentanced prisons in the Wellington Region. There is one other prison in the region, but that caters only for segregated male prisoners. Segregated prisoners are prisoners who ask to be separated from the general population for their own safety. People who have abused children, police officers, narks and so on. I also visited Auckland Central Remand Prison and Auckland Women's Region Corrections Facility. They're what their names describe. The women's prison holds female prisoners for the entire Upper North Island, and the remand prison is specifically for prisoners who are on remand. There are different levels of security classification within the prisons, low, low medium, high medium and high. And different units within the prisons have slightly different regimes. But each of the prisons I visited held a wide variety of prisoners in the region. As far as I could tell, most of the differences between the units prison were to help manage prisons. For example, in Auckland Central Remand Prison there were two units that were paired together - one had ten different gangs in it and was really violent, with prisoners beating each other up all the time. After one night in that unit, my friend was moved to the paired unit, which held mostly deportation cases, and people who wouldn't get into fights (or would lose them - my friend was most). The threat in the less violent unit was that if people misbehaved they'd go back to the other unit, where they would get the shit beaten out of them (because if people who left and came back obviously weren't hard enough). There didn't seem to be anything like that within the women's prisons, but that was because there were so many fewer prisoners. I think it may be slightly different with sentenced prisoners, but not that different. Yes - my friends were arrested on Arms Act charges awaiting to see if they were going to be charged under the Terrorism Suppression Act. I know you have remand prisoners in America, but I don’t know what they’re called. They’re prisoners who have been arrested but not released on bail who are waiting for trial. Like I said in my previous post bail is much esaier to get in NZ than it is in America. Remand prisoners are kept seperate from the rest of the population and theoretically have more visiting time, because they haven’t been convicted of anything.

New Zealand only has one prison system and one jurisdiction. The prisons I’m referring to are the prisons for women and men in the Wellington region (133 and 637 prisoners respectively at the last census. The nearest male prison is two hours drive away, the nearest women’s prison is 10 hours drive away. So the prisons hold almost all remand and sentanced prisons in the Wellington Region.

There is one other prison in the region, but that caters only for segregated male prisoners. Segregated prisoners are prisoners who ask to be separated from the general population for their own safety. People who have abused children, police officers, narks and so on.

I also visited Auckland Central Remand Prison and Auckland Women’s Region Corrections Facility. They’re what their names describe. The women’s prison holds female prisoners for the entire Upper North Island, and the remand prison is specifically for prisoners who are on remand.

There are different levels of security classification within the prisons, low, low medium, high medium and high. And different units within the prisons have slightly different regimes. But each of the prisons I visited held a wide variety of prisoners in the region.

As far as I could tell, most of the differences between the units prison were to help manage prisons. For example, in Auckland Central Remand Prison there were two units that were paired together - one had ten different gangs in it and was really violent, with prisoners beating each other up all the time. After one night in that unit, my friend was moved to the paired unit, which held mostly deportation cases, and people who wouldn’t get into fights (or would lose them - my friend was most). The threat in the less violent unit was that if people misbehaved they’d go back to the other unit, where they would get the shit beaten out of them (because if people who left and came back obviously weren’t hard enough).

There didn’t seem to be anything like that within the women’s prisons, but that was because there were so many fewer prisoners. I think it may be slightly different with sentenced prisoners, but not that different.

Yes - my friends were arrested on Arms Act charges awaiting to see if they were going to be charged under the Terrorism Suppression Act.

]]> By: Sailorman http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2007/12/02/the-next-visit/#comment-311394 Sailorman Sun, 02 Dec 2007 16:09:28 +0000 http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2007/12/02/the-next-visit/#comment-311394 Great post, again. Couple of quick questions, though, which would help my understanding if you have a moment to answer them: -what's a "remand prisoner" and are they different from other prisoners? -Does NZ have prison levels like the U.S. (different security levels and harshness)? Does it have two systems (we have state and federal prisons)? Where in the NZ scheme is this type of prison? -are the prisoners you're visiting the same three friends you talk about in "where I've been"? thx Great post, again. Couple of quick questions, though, which would help my understanding if you have a moment to answer them:

-what’s a “remand prisoner” and are they different from other prisoners?

-Does NZ have prison levels like the U.S. (different security levels and harshness)? Does it have two systems (we have state and federal prisons)? Where in the NZ scheme is this type of prison?

-are the prisoners you’re visiting the same three friends you talk about in “where I’ve been”?

thx

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