PARENTS SLAM JAILING, PLEA TO RETURN BOY TO ASHLEY

THE parents of a 15-year-old boy yesterday condemned the legal system for
keeping their son in Risdon Prison.

The boy's stepfather, who cannot be named for legal reasons, said there was
something dramatically wrong with a system that caused a child to be locked
up in an adult prison.

"Because he is regarded as a child he is not allowed to mix with the adult
prisoners, which means he is locked in his cell all day long," the
stepfather said. "It's a cell so small it's almost hard to turn around in.

"No matter what they say he did ... he is a child and should be treated as
such and if he has to be locked up, it should be at Ashley (Juvenile
Detention Centre at Deloraine), not at Risdon."

A spokeswoman for the Police Prosecution Division said a section of the
Child Welfare Act allowed juveniles to be kept at Risdon in special
circumstances.

The boy's stepfather also criticised police for releasing a photo of the
boy after he escaped from Ashley.

"He's a juvenile so they aren't supposed to do anything that would identify
him - and they go and release his picture to the papers and TV," he said.

"It was not only inappropriate for him but for his two sisters, who had to
put up with a lot of garbage because of the photos."

Police media liaison officer Phil Pike said the photographs of the boy were
released on the advice of the Director of Public Prosecutions, who felt the
potential threat to the community outweighed the privacy requirement.

The boy's stepfather said his son was not a risk to the community and his
escape had more to do with his addiction to cigarettes.

"If they would give him a pack of cigarettes a day, he would stay anywhere
without a hassle," the stepfather said.

He said the boy also needed counselling following the bashing death of his
natural father when the boy was nine.

Late yesterday a government spokeswoman announced the boy would be
transferred to the new Remand Centre in Liverpool St, next to the
magistrates court.

The spokeswoman said the move was not a response to the protest by the
boy's parents.

"He is to be transferred to the Remand Centre and that's in the process (of
happening)," the spokeswoman said.

She said the move had been decided so the boy could be closer to his
parents and to support services.

She said the issue of where the boy was housed would be reviewed every day.