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Our community corrections facilities could almost be
termed the "silent service" of the Department in
comparison to the amount of attention prisons receive.
While prisons handle approximately 5000 people
annually, about 20,000 pass through our 16 community corrections
centres.
The State is divided into five regions for the
efficient operation of these centres. The regions are:
Community Correctional Centres are located at
Not only are these an administration centre for community corrections, but most have a workbase attached or close by for the supervision of offenders in community service work programs. It is from these centres that such offenders are organised into work crews for individual projects.
Work bases hold equipment and other facilities for this work to be completed.
These centres are staffed by community corrections officers some of whom are social workers or former prison officers psychologists and staff required to supervise community service work.
They supervise offenders on bail or home detention bail, home detention, parole and probationary bonds, and community service as a result of a sentence or a fine handed down by a court.
(In South Australia the courts have the power to remand a person on bail with home detention conditions. Generally these people are not permitted to leave their home unless they have prior approval.)
Staff administer programs aimed at resocialisation and rehabilitation and become involved in supporting and advising offenders on a wide range of issues.
Not all offenders deserve to be sent to prison. In prison they lose ties with the community and closeness of family, they are involved on a daily basis with other criminals and their maintenance, and in many cases that of their family, is dependent on the State.
The supervisory roles of community corrections are:
An accused person may be granted bail with or without conditions by a court. The conditions will be set by the court and can restrict a person’s movement or confine them to their home. Supervisory conditions may also be set which will result in the accused regularly reporting to a parole officer. These conditions will last for the duration of the court proceedings.
We supervise 300 to 400 people on bail each year.
Probation is a penalty which can be handed down by a court as an alternative to other penalties. This is often called a bond and is a contract between the offender and the court for a set period of time. Probation requires the offender to be of law abiding behaviour and supervised by a Community Corrections officer. Sometimes the court may order that a sum of money be paid which can be forfeited if the probation order is breached. There are about 1400 people supervised on probation by the Department each year.
This is an order from the Parole Board which allows a prisoner to be released following the completion of a non-parole period as part of a sentence. The prisoner will be supervised by a Community Corrections officer and usually there will be conditions of parole such as abstinence from alcohol and drugs. Serious breaches of conditions can lead to the parolee being returned to prison to complete their full sentence. If the prisoner has a life sentence, the Parole Board can recommend conditions of parole which must be approved by the Governor in Executive Council. On average more than 600 parole orders are issued by the Parole Board and supervised by the Department each year.
Offenders can perform community service which is work in return for committing an offence. Community service can be ordered by a court as a sentence. The court can order a maximum of 320 hours (40 days) of community service work over a maximum period of 18 months.
Up to 20 days can be worked in lieu of paying fines up to $2000. This equates to eight hours work for every $100.We supervise more than 12,000 community service orders annually.
Community service
is an exceptionally good restorative justice tool for the SA
justice system. Everybody benefits in some way ...the offender
who more than likely cannot afford to pay a fine or does not
deserve gaol, develops a work ethic and community spirit and the
community sees an improvement in facilities which otherwise may
not happen.
For example those groups of people seen walking beside major roads picking up rubbish are completing community service.
Waterways are cleaned, boat ramps have been constructed, historically important sites restored, parks maintained, charity groups helped, schools improved and kindergartens received equipment.
It is estimated that the SA community has annually benefited to the tune of $5 million from community service.
The photograph shows one of the community service projects, the restoration of the Steam Ranger train line and station at Mount Barker.
Part of the community service scheme is to form partnerships with local councils, Government departments and community organisations in ventures that result in work on projects that might otherwise not get done.
These partnerships involve the recipient organisation funding work by paying for the supervision of offenders. This supervisor can be either a person employed by the recipient organisation or paying the supervisor’s wages to Corrections.
Some projects also require the recipient organisation to supply equipment. This is usually of a minor nature such as rakes and shovels in an environmental clean-up.
However, major projects have also been completed by community service work.
For example offenders laid thousands of pavers at two big locations in the Adelaide Hills - the Brukunga fire training ground and Botanical Gardens carpark.
Both these projects were out of reach of the recipient organisation because of costs involved but for the labour this Department supplied.
The Department provides work crews in a partnership with Trans Adelaide to remove rubbish and graffiti from the tram and train line system.
Some schools, that do not have an income from their immediate area, also receive the benefit of community service work. A partnership has been formed with the Department for Education to improve some school buildings and surrounding grounds.
Many Community Service projects are of an environmental nature with offenders improving waterways for their future survival.
Three major projects of this nature involve Garden Island at Outer Harbour, Christies Creek and the River Torrens. In partnership with the Western Waste Management Board, offenders are keeping the mangroves and waterways of the island free of rubbish which has resulted in a regenerated mangrove growth and a return of waterfowl to the area.
Christies Creek in the southern suburbs has heavy infestation of reeds. Offenders worked extremely hard removing these reeds which has resulted in a more sightly creek which adds to the beauty of several suburbs.
A partnership has also been formed with the Torrens River Catchment Water Management Board for work crews to remove a massive accumulation of rubbish from tributaries that run into the Torrens. It is hoped this will eventually see a reduction in pollution of the downstream sections of the Torrens.
Home detention is the ultimate
privilege for prisoners. Generally prisoners who have been
convicted of serious violent offences are not granted home
detention and it will rarely be granted for prisoners until they
are in the last six months of their sentence.
However, the Prisoner Assessment Committee, which has strong input from the police, community and victims besides Departmental representation, may in exceptional cases grant home detention for 12 months.
In such a case the prisoner would have to have displayed outstanding behaviour in prison, have an extremely supportive family and have full time work.
The idea behind home detention is to ease a prisoner back into the community and assist them to become stable within the community.
Most prisoners granted home detention will be required to remain within the confines of their place of residence and have an electronic bracelet or anklet attached to them
The Department has electronic means by which random telephone calls are made to this residence which has a device attached to the telephone. When the call comes, at any hour of the day, the prisoner must place the wristlet into the device to signify they are at home.
If this does not happen the home detention officer will immediately attend the residence and if the prisoner is not there the police are alerted.
More lately a state-of-the-art system is radio based. A minature radio transmitter is attached to the offender and a receiver placed in their home. Each receiver has a set alert distance which, if breached, will alert a supervisor.
This system also has a drive-by facility. A supervisor can simply drive past a place where an offender on home detention is supposed to be attending and the radio transmitter will be picked up indicating the person is there. This removes the intrusive nature of supervision that disturbs a workplace by personal visits.
Officers can also attend the residence at any time and also make personal telephone calls to the prisoner to make sure he or she remains there.
Home detainees will be required to remain drug and alcohol free and other conditions can be set.
If these conditions are found to be breached the prisoner will be returned to prison.
Over time if the prisoner displays success in living back in society, the supervision level may start to reduce.
If fact with time the prisoner may be relieved of the electronic system if the trust level is so high.
Prisoners in this category are permitted to attend work or education daily and they may also be allowed to venture into the community as long as they first apply for permission from their home detention officer.
Once the home detention period is over the person will either be on parole or have completed their sentence.
Home detention from prison is the prerogative of the Department. However, courts also have the power to place a remanded person on home detention bail. Strict supervisory conditions will generally apply in such cases.
The Department has two other units which supply advice and services - the Courts Unit and Volunteer Unit.
The Courts Unit, located in the Adelaide Magistrates Court provides an offender assessment, information and advisory service to the Supreme, District and Magistrates' Courts across the state. These services are provided to assist the judiciary in their decision making. At the request of the court, the Unit prepares Pre-Sentence Reports where the court is considering sentence after a conviction has been recorded and Bail Enquiry Reports where the court is considering a bail application.
Pre-Sentence Reports focus on the offender's behaviour with a view to addressing personal problems, values and attitudes that may have contributed to that behaviour. They provide information regarding specific programs designed to address the offending behaviour and/or the underlying problems with a view to reducing the risk of further offending.
The Unit also provides a culturally relevant assessment service to the courts in relation to indigenous offenders who are significantly over represented in the criminal justice system and particularly in the state’s prison system.
Bail Enquiry Reports focus on providing information on a defendant's circumstances that will assist the court in determining the risk associated with a defendant's release on bail.
By its location in the Adelaide Magistrates Court Unit staff are able to provide an on the spot service to the courts and are able to provide their reports orally at short notice in the city courts.
The Department enjoys the services of more than 100 volunteers in metropolitan and country areas.
These people provide a wide variety of assistance and support from running libraries in prisons to providing support to a prisoner in stress, assisting their families and transporting visitors to prisons.
All volunteers are assessed by experienced staff before they are permitted to have volunteer status.
The justice system of South Australia first began tackling domestic violence at its roots rather than its result when the first violence intervention program was established at the Elizabeth Magistrates Court in mid-1990.
It was a joint initiative between the Department and local magistrates.
The result was so successful that the program was extended to the Adelaide Magistrates Court in 1999 and since then has grown into the Central Violence Intervention Program (CVIP) that involves the courts, Salvation Army, police and the Department for Correctional Services.
The program is designed to assist men accept their responsibility for violent behaviour and provide alternatives to the use of violence and abuse; while also assisting those who are affected by such violence, women and children.
CVIP recently produced a Program Manual that fully details the framework and practices undertaken by the unit as it strives to reduce the amount of domestic violence in our community.
Not only is the manual an excellent information base, but it contains matters that may assist people caught up in domestic violence situations.
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