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| Body scanner to drug-proof women's jail |
| By theage.com |
| Published: 04/11/2011 |
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A FULL-BODY scanner will be installed in Victoria's largest women's jail within months, as prison authorities grapple with the problem of drug smuggling. The new X-ray machine will be shipped from the Netherlands and tested at the Dame Phyllis Frost Centre, amid ongoing concern that illicit drugs are entering the prison in high volumes, despite repeated attempts to tighten security. Justice Department figures show between December 1, 2009, and November 30 last year, 74 prisoners returned positive drug tests (58 more refused to be tested). The year before, there were 126 positive tests (41 refusals) and two years prior, 71 positive tests (42 refusals). Within the prison system, refusing to take a drug test is regarded as an admission of guilt. Advertisement: Story continues below Corrections Commissioner Bob Hastings said the body scanner - which will have the capacity to detect drugs inside body cavities - would be installed at Dame Phyllis Frost in a bid to keep prisoners safe. ''[The scanner] will certainly be able to both detect contraband that's being brought into the system and also act as another deterrent for those who want to bring contraband in,'' he said. Over the past decade, Victoria's women's prison population has increased by almost 68 per cent, partly on the back of a big rise in the number of women jailed on drug-related offences. State Coroner figures show that of 21 deaths among women in prison, or on community-based orders over the 10 years to March 2010, 85 per cent could be attributed to drug-related causes. Read More. |
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