Deputy Commissioner of Corrections Shirley Johnson says a mandate was issued to the acting superintendent at Armadale Juvenile Correctional Centre to convert her office to house some of the 61 wards, but this was never done.

When asked why the mandate was not fulfilled, Johnson told the commission of enquiry that she did not know.

"I should have asked. I must admit that I did not do that," she said. Johnson said consideration was given to converting the office prior to her starting duties at the Department of Correctional Services eight months ago.

She said the girls were moved from another building to the office dorm because of a fire and the ballooning population. Flames subsequently gutted the new dorm on May 22, leaving seven wards of the state dead.

Commenting on case conferences, which are a method that Everton Hesson, director of juvenile services, pointed to as a major part of rehabilitation, Johnson said it was being used at Armadale in St Ann where a group of professionals would meet and decide on how to deal with problems being faced by individual wards. She said the practice had been scaled down at the facility as no sessions were held since January.

Conferences never started

However, Hesson, who had testified before Johnson during yesterday's sitting of the com-mission of enquiry into the deadly fire, said case conferences had never been started at Armadale.

"It never got off the ground," he told the enquiry. Hesson explained that he had a meeting last September, with all the juvenile superintendents, to outline the importance of the method. A follow-up letter was sent but Faydene Ferreira, who was in charge of Armadale at the time, had difficulty finding personnel to employ.

Both Johnson and Hesson said they received requests from Ferreira for additional space and security officers. However, Hesson said he did not take any steps apart from discussions with the project manager. On the other hand, Johnson said additional security was provided, but she pointed to a lack of funding when asked about the space problems. She also claimed written reports from Hesson were not as detailed as a document that was shown to her yesterday, which pointed to some previous requests made by Ferreira.

Johnson resumes her testimony today at the Council of Voluntary Social Services in Kingston.

kimesha.walters@yahoo.com