Risdon prison hits the headlines again
In the past three days one man has been stabbed and other prisoner, has tried to commit suicide at Tasmania’s Risdon prison. The prison is no stranger to controversy, experiencing a riot in 2005 and several serious incidents causing lock downs since this time. In response to the incidents of self-harm, today legal reform advocates are calling for an overhaul similar to the one that transformed the prison system in New South Wales in the 1970s, after a spate of riots threw a spotlight on the dire state of conditions in correctional facilities there. Greg Barns is a criminal barrister and legal advisor to lobby group Prison Action Reform. He explained earlier why we should be concerned about when incarcerated members of our society deliberately harm themselves.