National Preventive Mechanism Annual Report 2009–10 Criminal Justice Inspection Northern Ireland C riminal Justice Inspection Northern Ireland (CJINI) was established by the Justice (Northern Ireland) Act 2002 for the purpose of inspecting all aspects of the criminal justice system.71 Its role is not just to inspect places of detention, but also to inspect, for example, prosecution and probation services. CJINI describes one of its objectives as being ‘to provide independent scrutiny of the outcomes for, and treatment of, users of the criminal justice system’. The 2002 Act lists the organisations which CJINI must inspect and states that any inspection may cover any institution provided or managed by the organisation. The list is comprehensive and includes, for example, the Northern Ireland Prison Service and the Police Service of Northern Ireland. CJINI therefore has the power to inspect a wide range of places of detention, including prisons, a juvenile justice centre, police custody, court custody and secure care facilities for children. CJINI also carries out inspections of hostels for offenders who are released from prison but who are required to reside in ‘approved premises’ where they continue to take part in resettlement activities. While these premises may not strictly be considered places of detention, residents are required to abide by certain rules and to be present in keeping with curfew or license conditions. CJINI is not part of government and its staff do not form part of the civil service in Northern Ireland. Its Chief Inspector is appointed for a term of five years by the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland following an open recruitment process. He is supported by a Deputy Chief Inspector, seven inspectors, an inspection support officer and a small business support team. Methodology CJINI carries out both unannounced and announced inspections of places of detention and often does so in conjunction with other organisations, including other members of the NPM. For example, CJINI inspects prisons in association with HMIP and the Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority (RQIA). In the course of an inspection, CJINI has the power to enter places of detention within its remit and to require that documents and other information be provided. In practice, CJINI also carries out private interviews with detainees. Given the range of places of detention inspected, CJINI has no set frequency with which it inspects institutions, but does so on a regular basis taking into account the significance of, and risks associated with, the institution and its role within the criminal justice system. All inspections are underpinned by human rights standards. CJINI is required to report to the Northern Ireland Justice Minister on each inspection it carries out. CJINI lays its inspection reports before the Northern Ireland Assembly and is legally required to make all its reports publicly available. It also produces an annual report which covers its inspections of places of detention as well as its non detentionrelated work. OPCAT compliance and impact of NPM membership CJINI benefits from being a single inspectorate responsible for the whole of the justice system in Northern Ireland. Not only can it inspect individual places of detention, it can consider the interfaces between places of detention and the organisations that operate them. This facilitates, for example, the inspection of prisoner escorting which involves police, prison and private agencies. Nonetheless, CJINI 71 The inspection of courts was initially omitted from its mandate but was later added by the Justice and Security (Northern Ireland) Act 2007. 56