A class action lawsuit alleging a pattern of “cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment” toward more than 9,000 inmates at a Southern Ontario prison has been slowly making its way through the court system.

The $325-million class action is the first certified lawsuit in Ontario against a prison. Led by London-based lawyer Kevin Egan, it covers all inmates who were at the jail from Jan. 1, 2010, to Aug. 25, 2013. It alleges a pattern of systemic negligence at the Elgin Middlesex Detention Centre in London, stating that “overcrowded, unsanitary and unsafe conditions” and a lack of supervision that violated inmates’ charter rights.

According to these inmates’ affidavits, health records and court testimonies, the prison subjected them to a culture of violence and intimidation and a lack of proper medical care and rehabilitation facilities. A report shows that the 40-year-old institution mainly incarcerates those serving short custody times as they await bail or trial. Half of the 9,076 inmates were in custody for one month or less; in fact, a negligible number stayed longer than six months.

Over the past four years, the provincial Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services has fought Egan’s efforts to certify the class action suit, arguing that the inmates’ experiences were too different and that there are other avenues they could use, such as submitting a written complaint to the jail superintendent.

In its statements of defence, the ministry denies all incidents, stating that, if they had occurred, “they did not occur as a result of any breach of duty on behalf of the Crown.” It denies allegations of negligence as well, clarifying that the complaints of overcrowding and lack of supervision are “based on budgetary constraints” and not a systemic breach of care.

“The population density experienced by a particular inmate is wholly dependent on which unit they are bunked in, which particular cell they occupy, and on which day,” the ministry wrote in its motion of appeal.

Despite the appeals, Superior Court Justice Duncan Grace certified the class action suit in August 2016.

The legal stalemate that has ensued since could soon be at an end, however, after a motion, issued Nov. 10, granted permission and access to the records of all inmates who have spent time at Elgin Middlesex.

A large number of inmates affected by the class action have a history of convictions that date back to their teenage years, Egan said. Their files were protected by the Youth Criminal Justice Act. A judge’s order is needed to access their files and provide notice that they are eligible to be a member of the class action if they so choose.

Laura Van Colen, 28, is one such inmate. She was arrested for assault and drug-related charges over the past 10 years. She was in and out of Elgin Middlesex over a five-year period as she awaited bail and trial. For her, the class action is a way to reclaim the rights inmates should have.

“I’ve never been more humiliated,” Van Colen said. “There’s so much damage that’s being done there … I have been traumatized.”

“When you’re under (the guard’s) lock and their key, you have to do what they say,” she said. “Nobody is going to listen, let alone believe half the things that you say to them because you’re the criminal,” she said. “You’re the one that broke the law. You’re the one that is being punished.”

According to the affidavits and testimonies of the plaintiffs and other named inmates of this class action, other complaints against the Elgin Middlesex include:

Overcrowded cells: The Elgin Middlesex was designed to hold approximately 150 inmates when it was built in the late 1970s. The number of people in custody, however, regularly exceeded 400. The cells, designed to occupy two inmates at a time, frequently housed up to five, with people sleeping on mattresses, sometimes next to the cell toilet.

Unsanitary conditions: Bed bugs and black mould were common, according to the statement of claim. Sick prisoners were not housed separately. Cells were not cleaned often. Toilets overflowed frequently.

Frequent lockdowns: Prisoners were often confined to their cells for periods of time, sometimes lasting three to four days or up to a week.

Violence: Glenn Johnson, a former inmate at the Elgin Middlesex told the court during the certification about Friday fight nights. Two male inmates would be forced to square off against each other, Johnson alleged; one would be bigger than the other. Everybody had to fight. It is alleged the guards did not stop the fights.

An official notice of allegations from a different inmate spoke about the handwritten notices posted around the prison, allegedly advising all inmates to take their direction from senior inmates. The inmate describes being advised by a guard on his first day at the jail to keep his head down and become familiar with the internal rules or “he would get hurt.”

“Through the grapevine staff will hear about (everything),” said Johnson, in a cross-examination. “Oh, it was this guy that said something? So then that guard might not like you and say, ‘Hey guys, want an extra meal? Take that guy in the bathroom and punch the crap out of him.’ ”

Lack of medical care: Inmates claim that there was no infirmary at Elgin Middlesex and there was no access to medical staff or health care between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m., a period of time when fights were most common, according to the testimonies of inmates.

In response to inquiries about these allegations, a ministry of corrections spokesperson told the Star in emails that there is still no infirmary at the jail, and the gymnasium has only recently reopened, having been closed since 2002. The jail is running under capacity, wrote the spokesperson. At present, there are 391 inmates at Elgin Middlesex, 360 male and 31 female.

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The ministry said that it has made a number of improvements over the past couple of years. These include:

357 new security cameras, six metal detectors and a new baggage X-ray machine;

24-hour nursing coverage for the inmates;

A new Regional Intermittent Centre for those who are serving a sentence of 90 days or less—a way to help resolve overcrowding issues; and

More full-time staff, including 80 new correctional officers, eight nurses, two mental health nurses, two psychologists, two social workers, two sergeants, six recreation officers, one rehabilitation officer, one volunteer coordinator and a deputy superintendent.

Marie-France Lalonde, the minister of correctional services, said in an email that it new legislation will be introduced this fall that “if passed, will redefine correctional services in Ontario and help us improve conditions and outcomes for those in our custody and care.”

The ministry is also looking for sites to build new correctional centres in Thunder Bay and Ottawa. It is also researching independent oversight models to find a system for Ontario “that will enhance accountability to the public and ensure a high degree of evidence-based standards in corrections.”

But, Egan remains skeptical. For starters, the new facilities will not reduce the problems in London’s jail, he said.

Egan and other lawyers in the province say they keep receiving more and more reports about prison conditions. The complaints shed light on issues ranging from segregation to lockdowns.

For this reason, Jonathan Ptak, a Toronto-based class action lawyer, believes that a lawsuit like this, if successful, “will have a sweeping effect on the prison system.” Ptak is not involved with this class action.

“It’s something that’s of great importance to society,” Ptak said, “judging how we house and the conditions upon which we house people who are charged with crimes, many of whom will be acquitted.”

Egan would like to get compensation for those who have suffered, “but more than that we would like to see the situation corrected so that more people don’t suffer, more families don’t lose loved ones,” he said. “And actually, it becomes a rehabilitation centre as intended by the legislation, and not just a warehouse to store people in.”

For Van Colen, it’s an attempt to change the culture and perception of prisons and inmates. She is still angry at the way she alleges she was treated — the overflowing toilets, the delayed health care, the physical assaults.

The guards “were all in the mindset that they can do whatever they want because we’re animals,” she said. “Because we’re their prisoners.”