Female inmates from Alice Springs have been relocated 1,500 kilometres away to Darwin to ease pressure on a buckling prison system but lawyers say the move could impede access to legal services for vulnerable prisoners.
Lawyers say many women who end up in territory prisons charged with violent offences are domestic or family violence survivors who have been "misidentified".Female prisoners transferred from Alice Springs to Darwin have been cut off from vital support services and from their loved ones, sparking concerns for their welfare.
Commissioner Varley said the number of people in custody — which now sits at 2,363 — was still putting "immense pressure" on staff but that emergency measures were working and the risk of imminent industrial action had been avoided. "I have lots of women who say to police 'I was just defending myself, he hurt me first' but unfortunately, they end up being charged," she said.
Ms Collins warned the move put the women more at risk of missing out on critical legal help and left them and their loved ones in "distress". "What I would say is with a system that's at where it's at and the pressures we're facing, we're simply doing our best," he said.Ongoing funding woes at Legal Aid NT is further adding to concerns about access to justice, particularly for vulnerable prisoners.
"They might be able to get a lawyer on a duty basis but on an ongoing basis they're not able to apply for legal aid and they can't afford a private lawyer," she said.
Northern Teritory Prisons Alice Springs Darwin Prison Women's Prison Legal Aid Inmates Courts Justice System Naaja Prisoners
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