VISITS BY THE JOINT COMMISSION The facility offers a wide range of school and vocational training measures. As at 1 January 2014 a total of 85.3% of its juvenile prisoners were either working, undergoing training, or were in school and vocational training measures. In addition, the facility offers an extremely wide and varied programme of leisure-time activities. Finally, positive mention must be made of the good atmosphere in the facility and the respectful, friendly manner in which the staff and juveniles interact. no longer used or are covered with a screw joint which only staff can open. Where this is not the case, the majority of prisoners agree to the peepholes being covered up, unless they need to be kept under obser30 vation in an individual case. In Raßnitz Juvenile Institution disciplinary detention is enforced in special disciplinary detention rooms in which the toilet is not partitioned off from the remainder of the room, in contrast to established practice in normal cells. The toilet is visible through a peephole. For the aforementioned reasons, it should be ensured that the toilets in the disciplinary detention rooms can be used without privacy being invaded on account of the possibility of being observed through the peephole. Response: The recommendations will be implemented. No peepholes were fitted in Burg Prison, which opened in 2009. Where the doors in older prisons still have peepholes, the procedure recommended in the report will be applied. The specially secured rooms in the Juvenile Institution are fitted with surveillance cameras which also film the toilet. In addition, there is a large window in the wall between the two doors into the rooms which has a blind; the entire room is visible through the window. According to staff and the head of the facility, the blind is generally pulled up when someone is in the cell, as a result of which the person placed in the room can be observed at any time and without prior warning from the anteroom. The considerations regarding safeguarding privacy raised in section 1, point 5.1.1 above also apply to placement in a specially secured room. On account of the special situation which placement in the specially secured room represents, no fundamental objections can be raised to carrying out CCTV monitoring. However, privacy should be protected here as well by taking the corresponding measures, for example partial pixellation of the image on screen. Also, visibility of the specially secured room through the window should be restricted in such a manner that it is not possible to see the toilet. Only where there is an acute danger of self-harm or suicide does it appear conceivable, in carefully considered, substantiated and documented individual cases, to permit unrestricted monitoring of a specially secured room. The person concerned must at any rate be informed of the fact that optical surveillance is in 31 operation. Response: For security reasons, the suggestions made regarding protecting privacy by taking corresponding measures and visibility of the toilet cannot be taken into consideration. During placement in a specially secured room juvenile prisoners again and again make attempts, using a 2.2 – RASSNITZ JUVENILE INSTITUTION, 20 FEBRUARY 2014 The Joint Commission visited Raßnitz Juvenile Institution on 20 February 2014. Raßnitz Juvenile Institution is responsible for enforcing youth imprisonment against male sentenced prisoners, pre-trial detention against male juveniles and young adults, pre-trial detention against male adults, and confinement for contempt of court, precautionary detention, coercive detention and arrest to enforce a court order against male juveniles and young adults. It has a capacity of 382. On the day of the visit the facility was holding 17 juvenile pre-trial detainees and 218 prisoners serving youth imprisonment. There were also 19 prisoners in the open unit and 52 male adults in pre-trial detention. The delegation visited various blocks, the pre-trial detention unit for juveniles and young adults, and the social therapy unit. It also inspected various prisoner files. During the visit the delegation spoke with members of staff in various units, the prison chaplain and three juvenile prisoners. 2.2.1 – Recommendations and response All the cell doors have peepholes. Prisoners are not allowed to stick anything over or to cover up the peepholes and are punished if they do so repeatedly. In 1991 the Federal Court of Justice already ruled that ordering prisoners to keep the peephole in their cell door open requires an examination of each individual 29 case. Humane conditions of detention for those deprived of their liberty requires that measures be taken to protect their private and intimate sphere. Being aware that one could be being observed at any time by third parties can be a major source of stress. Following an enquiry which the National Agency sent to all the Länder in 2013 regarding the use of peepholes, several Länder reported that when new prisons were built doors would not be fitted with peepholes. In addition, any peepholes which had been fitted are 29 30 Federal Court of Justice, order of 8 May 1991, file no. 5 AR Vollz 39/90, margin no. 6 et seqq. (juris) 31 34 see National Agency, Annual Report 2013, p. 27 see National Agency, Annual Report 2013, p. 27–28