Imprisonment and the rights of people in prison

A person’s arrival at a prison, and their initial period of incarceration, is known as ‘reception’. In Victoria, the main reception points for men in prisons are the Melbourne Assessment Prison, Melbourne Remand Centre, Ravenhall Correctional Centre, and Port Phillip Prison. For women, the main reception point is the Dame Phyllis Frost Centre. Before arriving at one of these locations, people may be held in police cells for a limited period. At reception, a person:

• has their identity confirmed, is measured and photographed;
• hands over personal property (including clothing) that will be stored while they are in custody;
• undergoes a strip search by prison officers;
• changes into prison-issue clothing (unless on remand, where they may be permitted to wear their own clothes);
• nominates the people who can visit them, and lists the people they want to phone while in custody;
• can phone a friend, a family member or a lawyer. In addition, people in prison may also be required to provide a sample of DNA to Victoria Police if, when sentenced to imprisonment, they were ordered to do so by the court under section 464ZF of the Crimes Act 1958 (Vic). It is important for a person, during the reception phase of entering a prison, to ensure that they are informed of their earliest eligible release date. By doing so, they can establish whether or not their pre-sentence detention has been taken into account. If pre-sentence detention has not been credited, the person should contact their lawyer, so that the matter can be relisted before the court that imposed the sentence.

After reception, a person is assessed. A person undergoes an initial risk assessment to identify any special needs and is referred to the appropriate prison services (e.g. disability or interpreter services). The assessment should include a health examination by medical staff. Where relevant, a mental health assessment is carried out by psychiatric staff.

Following the assessment, a person is given an orientation of the prison. During orientation, the prison manager must ensure that the person is given, in a readily understandable manner, information about prison routines and programs.

Typically, orientation includes the following topics:

• the prison’s rules and routines;
• the sentencing management system;
• procedures, including disciplinary processes;
• access to visits, correspondence, calls, money and property;
• access to health services;
• voting entitlements;
• the rights of people in prisons to marry;
• work, vocational training, education and programs; and
• people in prisons’ rights and recourse, including the complaints procedures.

Each person in prison is given a security rating. There are four levels of security rating: high, maximum, medium and minimum. Corrections Victoria assigns the security rating for each person.

When determining a security rating, Corrections Victoria considers the risk the person in prison presents to the prison community, to the community, to themselves or to any other person. Corrections Victoria must also consider other factors, including:

• the nature of the person’s offence;
• the risk of the person attempting to escape;
• the risk of the person committing a further offence and the impact of this on the prison community;
• any risk the person poses to the management, security and good order of the prison;
• any risk the person poses to their own welfare, or that of others;
• the length of the person’s sentence or the maximum sentence applicable to the person’s offences;
• any other matter that is considered relevant to the management, security and good order of the prison, and to the safe custody and welfare of the person in prison.

Can people in prisons apply for a change in security rating?

At any time during their period of imprisonment, a person may apply in writing for a change to their security rating or classification. These applications are sent to the Case Management Review Committee (CMRC). The CMRC submits the application, together with its comments and recommendations, to the Sentence Management Panel for a decision. The CMRC is required to consider relevant matters, and to allow people in prisons to make submissions. Therefore, the CMRC considers written submissions from friends, relatives, and a solicitor.

Failure by the Sentence Management Panel and/ or the CMRC to consider relevant matters and to allow people in prisons to make submissions to it before its decision may be subject to judicial review.

Usually, significant weight is given to the decisions of correctional administrators about matters such as classification. This is consistent with the view expressed by the Victorian Supreme Court that the process of classification is a ‘holistic process’ and not simply a ‘physical and geographical matter’ (see Knight v Spadano (2003) 145 A Crim R 1 at 13 per Justice Cummins).