THE HORIZON Remand Centre on Spanish Town Road, Kingston, resumed limited intake of remandees yesterday, as the Ministry of National Security tested new operational systems following serious teething problems at the facility.
According to Public Relations Officer in the Ministry, Donovan Nelson, the resumption was glitch-free. However, the Jamaica Defence Force will remain in charge of the centre while the changes are made, before intake can resume at normal levels. There are currently 250 remandees in the centre which has capacity for over 1,000. About 50 more inmates are expected to be added by week-end.
Nelson noted that the report submitted by the Broward County Correction Service team from South Florida, USA, had been reviewed and implemented, but, for security reasons, it is unlikely that details from the report will be made public. Intake at the centre was frozen at the beginning of July and JDF soldiers were sent in to administer the facility following a break-out. The Centre had been plagued with violent disturbances, staff problems and the poor installation of locks since intake began in March of this year.
On entering the centre, a JDF duty officer told The Gleaner that half of the facility was not suitable for use, with extensive damage to closed circuit television. As a result of the freeze on intake, police lock-ups have remained subject to problems of overcrowding.
It is hoped that normal intake will resume shortly providing the operational and managerial systems currently put in place prove effective, but it is not clear when the JDF will pull out.
Opposition Spokesperson on National Security, Derrick Smith, called the decision "a remarkable turn-around" and "a direct response to demands of the Opposition for some action to be taken."
"I am very happy that they will now begin to admit remandees," he said. "There will now be an easing of the pressure at the (police) stations that were overcrowded."
