A/HRC/16/52/Add.3
76.
Tracy Roach, aged 43, had been detained at the airport. She was questioned there
by the police, and although there was no ill-treatment, their behaviour was demeaning. She
was then taken to Duhaney Park Police Station, where she was interrogated without a
lawyer or a Justice of the Peace. She later had access to a lawyer. She had first pleaded not
guilty because she was scared, but later changed her plea. She was detained at Duhaney
Park for one month and was never beaten. However, she suffered from depression and had
gone through drug withdrawal without receiving the necessary medication. Her skin was
breaking and her body was going through shock, but she had not been taken to the hospital
until she fainted. Concerning Fort Augusta, she noted that no one was abused, but that the
warders performed strip searches. She complained that she had not received her medication
in two weeks, but she was able to see a psychiatrist.
77.
Janet Douglas, aged 39, was arrested on 24 November 2000 and spent three months
in a police station, at Horizon, and finally transferred to Fort Augusta in 2001. She had been
verbally ill-treated by warders but never beaten by them. In March 2009 she went through a
new trial since the first one was deemed unfair. She was then put in a new dorm, together
with convicted women. One of them had threatened to kill her one night. She complained
and the guards found a knife on the other woman. On 19 June 2009, she got into a fight and
was then surrounded by ten officers who assaulted her. She fell on the floor and was
dragged from dorm 5 to dorm 2. She sustained 29 medically recorded injuries and suffered
from a back problem which forced her to walk with a crutch. She was taken to Kingston
Public Hospital only five days later. She complained that the guards should be more
receptive to the medical needs of the detainees. Since she did not lodge a formal complaint,
this incident was not properly investigated.
78.
The Superintendent told the Special Rapporteur that her wounds were probably
“self-inflicted”. However, the findings of the forensic expert of the Special Rapporteur
were strongly supportive of the allegations, and self-infliction was not a credible
explanation for the type, number and pattern of injuries.
79.
S.S.B., aged 25, was arrested on 26 October 2009 at the airport. She was taken to the
narcotics office in Spanish town, where she spent a couple of hours. Narcotics officer Jones
told her that she did not have to go to prison if she cooperated. She told the truth about her
crime and provided the officers with names. A Justice of the Peace was present during the
interrogation. However, on 2 December 2009 she was sentenced to 18 months in prison.
She was transferred to Duhaney Park Police Station, where she stayed from 26 October to
17 November 2009. The police station was severely overcrowded with six persons per cell,
and the detainees had to sleep on the floor. There was no light in the cell. The detainees
were only allowed out of the cell for a shower; the toilet and a sink were within the cell.
She suffered from stomach problems, for which she was provided with some medication in
Fort Augusta. Her wrists bore marks from the tight handcuffs. The detainees reportedly
bribed the officers for certain privileges or services. She added that girls should not be
detained in a prison for adults and that they were constantly fighting with each other.
Portmore (100 Man) Police Station, St. Catherine South
Visited on 16 February 2010
General Information
80.
The Special Rapporteur was received by Sergeant Marcher, Custody Officer and
Deputy Superintendent Foster Turner (Ms). At the time of the visit, 86 persons were in
custody in 13 cells; the maximum capacity of the lock-up was 69.
81.
The Special Rapporteur perceived a violent atmosphere at the police station. A
detainee was openly threatened not to speak to the Special Rapporteur’s team. Although the
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