ALBERTA USES DOGS TO ATTACK DRUGS IN JAIL

Get-Tough Plan In The Works

Sniffer dogs used in surprise spot checks for drugs in jails, and
electronic monitoring of prisoners in the community are part of a get-tough
initiative to be unveiled by the province's solicitor general, the Herald
has learned.

The province will use the dogs in snap raids on provincial jails in a bid
to stem the flow of illegal narcotics behind bars.

Drug dogs aren't regularly in provincial prisons. That is set to change, as
drugs smuggled into jails have been identified as a big problem by
Solicitor General Heather Forsyth and the union representing provincial
prison guards.

Sources said Forsyth plans to roll out plans for the canine program later
this month.

The solicitor general is also expected to release details of a pilot
program that would see convicts sentenced to house arrest monitored by
satellite.

These prisoners would be fitted with an electronic wrist or ankle bracelet
that would be tracked by a global positioning system, so their exact
location could be pinpointed at any time, day or night.

Over the past several years, the courts have increasingly moved to allowing
convicted criminals to serve community sentences, generally involving
curfews and periods of house arrest.

A common complaint from corrections staff is the difficulty monitoring
these inmates.

Details of the electronic bracelet project are expected in the budget March 24.

Shawn Howard, managing director of the Canadian Justice Foundation,
supported the province's initiative.

"If they want to increase their drug detection capabilities in prisons, we
applaud that. Quite often it's difficult in a prison setting to dedicate
the manpower that's needed," said Howard.

He said he was interested in seeing how many dogs the province planned to
use. To be most effective, he added, several canine units would have to be
cycled through.

"If that's the direction they want to go, our organization will certainly
support that." said Howard.

On electronic monitoring, Howard said his group would prefer prisoners were
forced to spend more time in lockup. "Organizations like ours would
certainly support building more jails and putting them behind bars," he said.

Failing that, however, using electronic monitoring to help authorities keep
tabs on cons is a good move.

Forsyth refused comment on either initiative.

Laurie Blakeman, the Liberal's justice critic, said sniffer dogs would be
fine and relatively cheap to implement. But she accused the government of
doing nothing to protect prisoners who take drugs from diseases such as
AIDS and hepatitis C through programs such as needle exchanges and
bleaching kits to sterilize syringes.

"If they can't stop the drugs once they're in prison, and they can't . . .
then they have to take harm-reduction measures," said Blakeman.

"I don't know why they're being so pig-headed about this because all it's
doing is harming people."

As for satellite tracking, Blakeman said it's an unproven technology and
Alberta shouldn't spend money on the equipment until it's been tested fully
in other jurisdictions. A better solution, she said, would be to hire more
corrections staff to track criminals.

Finally, Blakeman accused Forsyth of leaking these and other facts from a
still-secret report on the correctional system, instead of just releasing
the entire report.

Dan McLellan, president of the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees, which
represents corrections staff, said inmates often prepare for prison time by
smuggling drugs in with them.

"They will ingest hundreds of pills or something, either by swallowing them
in a condom or hiding them in a body cavity," said McLellan. "It's part of
the sentencing process for some. They head for sentencing, know they're
going to be going into remand so (they) bring drugs with them."

McLellan said electronic monitoring is a good idea, but said the courts are
loathe to sharpen the punishment for convicts who break the terms of their
community sentences.