BC Corrections ordered to release video of excessive force to inmate

BC Corrections tried and failed to withhold from an inmate a 25-minute recording which showed several correctional officers using excessive force against them.

The former inmate was initially denied, but the province’s privacy regulator stepped in to order the public safety ministry to hand it over.

He argued use of force against inmates is a “systemic concern” and occurs more frequently within segregated cells, according to a June decision from the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner.

“The inside of prisons is often hidden from public view and inmates experience barriers to accessing information about their experiences there,” an adjudicator said, summarizing the former inmate’s argument.

He remained unnamed in the decision and the ministry was given until July 29 to release the video.

At Vancouver Island Correctional Centre, the inmate was the victim of excessive force by multiple officers after segregated within the jail. He was separated from other inmates for medical observation after an “incident of self-harm” in February 2023, according to the decision.

He has a lengthy criminal background, designated as a repeat violent offender, and has previously assaulted correctional officers and other inmates. What led to the “series” of altercations with officers while in segregation isn’t clear, but multiple internal reviews later found their use of force on the inmate was “not reasonable,” according to the decision.

BC Corrections initially only followed its “long-standing practice” of allowing an inmate’s lawyer to see the video and take notes, but he filed a Freedom of Information request for a copy upon his release.

The ministry said disclosure of the video would pose risks to facility safety, showing gaps in the surveillance system. It also said the inmate might use the video to identify officers for future retaliation. Both of these arguments were dismissed by the adjudicator because the video didn’t show many details of the jail’s surveillance system, then attached the condition that officers’ faces should be blurred

According to the decision, the adjudicator found the excessive nature of officer force wasn’t clear in the video, but still found its release would “contribute to the public’s ability to scrutinize the ministry’s activities.”

“The (correctional officers) were acting on behalf of the ministry and were guided by ministry policies on the use of force. I therefore find these images reveal something about the Ministry’s policies and activities, the disclosure of which would contribute to the public’s ability to scrutinize those policies and activities, particularly where, as is the case here, the use of force has been found to be excessive.”

Just how widespread excessive force against inmates is within BC jails isn’t clear. Incidents are often handled through internal reviews and investigations, but they’re not made public. Meanwhile, use of solitary confinement is restricted and only used as a last resort but remains controversial.