Apology to staff a step in the right direction

An apology letter from a prisoner involved in a disturbance at Spring Hill Corrections Facility in North Waikato won’t excuse the prisoner’s actions, but is a step in the right direction, says Prison Manager Gavin Dalziel.

“It’s not common for staff to receive letters from prisoners apologising for incidents they have been involved in. In over 30 years working in prisons I haven’t seen many,” says Mr Dalziel.

The letter was addressed to the Unit Manager and Principal Corrections Officer of the unit where the incident happened. The author apologised for the actions of himself and two other prisoners and admitted that their actions were ‘uncalled for’ and that they knew officers were only doing their jobs.

The incident that the prisoner was referring to occurred on 29 January, when another prisoner was informed that his application to leave the prison on an escorted outing into the community had been declined. He began a spontaneous fight with another prisoner in the unit and when staff went to stop the fight five of them were assaulted by a number of prisoners.

“Nine prisoners were identified as taking part in the incident and were moved that afternoon to maximum security at Auckland Prison. Police were advised and also laid criminal charges against them,” says Mr Dalziel.

“Although a letter won’t get him out of the charges in court, it does go some way towards him learning to take responsibility for his actions. For many prisoners, apologising doesn’t even cross their minds, but it is the first step to acknowledging you have hurt people and perhaps you need to look at why, and then figure out how to stop it from happening again.”

In his letter, the prisoner explained that he was concerned for the wellbeing of his peers in the unit, and had broken protocol by acting impulsively. He also asked for staff to forgive him.

“Staff work in an environment that can be often unpredictable and dangerous, and they do this to protect our communities from crime. I think staff deserve the apology because the entire incident was unnecessary, and I think the prisoners know that too. I was very proud of the way staff handled it – it was bought under control quickly, safely and without staff sustaining major injury to themselves – the mark of a job very well done.”

ENDS

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