HMP Chief Wants “Archaic” Prison Laws Tossed

Dr. Rahming added that crucial parts of the 67-year-old Prisons Act simply have to go.

He was speaking to the media on Tuesday at a press conference at HMP.

He said it is time for the 1943 document to be updated, as working with outdated rules, regulations and mechanisms in the face of a growing and more creative criminal element does not bode well for the country.

Dr. Rahming said it is time for The Bahamas’ prison system to be brought up to speed with international best practices.

"The Prison Act says that male officers shall be trained in the use of firearms," Dr. Rahming said. "We had a crisis here a couple years ago and we had police women on the compound, loaded, defence force women on the compound, loaded, but female prison officers (had nothing)."

"I have to imagine that in a new Corrections Act, those kinds of discriminatory provisions would be a thing of the past, so that if you are a trained prison officer, irrespective of gender, whatever (goes) for one would (go) for another."

But Dr. Rahming added that this is just one of the many examples of provisions that should be eliminated.

"Only male inmates can go on the work scheme," he said. "A third example is that every inmate is entitled to 20 cigarettes per week."

He said a whopping $200,000 is spent each year on cigarettes alone.

Based on talks he has had with National Security Minister Tommy Turnquest, the prison superintendent said he thinks Minister Turnquest is looking to eliminate this provision.

Dr. Rahming said as a whole, Her Majesty’s Prison is not as bad as most people think and ranks among the top prisons in the Caribbean region.

But he said there is always room for improvement.

"Infrastructurally, I think that we are doing well," he said. "From a training standpoint, I think that we are lagging behind in training in terms of our standards of entrance, for instance.

"I know that we are behind most of the Caribbean. For example we require five BJCs (Bahamas Junior Certificate) for entrance while other Caribbean countries require five GCEs (General Certificate of Secondary Education).

Dr. Rahming said the country’s recidivism rate "ranks favorably" among other countries in the Caribbean.

"In most cases I would say it is lower, but in one or two cases it is higher; but we rank very favorably," he said.

In terms of security issues, Dr. Rahming said prisons, by their very nature, are prone to challenges, but HMP has been able to keep workers, visitors, inmates and Bahamians safe.

He said of the 2,400 inmates admitted last year, the prison has had about "one or two slip-ups" in keeping inmates safe.

Dr. Rahming added that the prison is also serious about weeding our rogue officers, upgrading prison facilities and cracking down harder on persons who smuggle in contraband.