A senior psychologist treating children in the Cairns police watch house sent a “cry for help” letter detailing “horrendous” conditions and alleged human rights abuses in the lockup, including claims young people are not being provided adequate food, medical attention or legal support.
The letter, seen by Guardian Australia, was sent to senior Queensland officials and several others on Monday by Andrea Bates, a psychologist with the Cairns court liaison service.
“In all my years and experience working in government, NGOs and private practice, I have never witnessed the horrors we are currently expected to manage and have been managing for quite some time now,” Bates said.
The Queensland Labor government suspended its Human Rights Act last year to allow the indefinite custody of children in adult police watch houses, due to overcrowding in youth detention centres.
Guardian Australia reported on Monday that a police sergeant at the Cairns watch house said officers “cannot meet” expectations to care for children who spend extended periods in the cells – including providing regular food and toilet paper – due to overcrowding and other issues.
It is understood that last week, after Bates raised concerns that children appeared malnourished and were not being fed properly, officials held an “emergency meeting” to discuss the supply of snacks.
In her letter, Bates said giving children “a packet of Tiny Teddies … only when an officer gets a spare moment, can only be described as inhumane”.
“As a clinician, as a human being, and as a mother of a 13-year-old herself, I’m still flummoxed as to why the food issue had to get to the point of an ‘emergency’ meeting.
“Our [young people] are under their BMIs and this is a medical issue, particularly when we have [young people] in the [watch house for] up to 20 days now. Last week I think we were up to nine [young people in the watch house for] over 10 days.”
A ‘tipping point’ inside the watch house
In her email, Bates details anonymised cases of young people who she says are being placed at risk by conditions in the watch house. One includes a young person with a “serious mental health condition” who was placed in isolation in his cell.
“Not only is the [young person] at risk of further deterioration, but as a clinician I’m also at risk,” Bates said.
“If something were to happen, I would be called to answer for my actions at a coronial inquest.”
Bates said things reached a “tipping point” at the Cairns watch house last week, including several incidents involving young people.
“Some [young people are] not getting yard time for up to two days given juveniles and adults cannot be out there at the same time,” she said.
“[There are] four [children] to a cell at a time, having to urinate in front of each other. Mattresses on the floors. Open shower cubicles such that [young people] feel embarrassed to shower.
“It is exceptionally difficult to gauge a [young person’s] mental health state in an interview room, through a thick wall of glass with prisoners, both adult and child alike, screaming, yelling and banging.”
She said workers had left due to “unsafe clinical practice”.
Failure of multi-agency approach
Under political pressure to address youth crime, the Queensland government has championed a “multi-agency” model that attempts to coordinate a response between social and healthcare services, police and youth justice.
Bates said the approach was implemented “on the fly”.
“It was a knee-jerk reaction to public dissatisfaction around law-and-order issues,” she said.
“There was no thought as to its implementation; no funded administrator or central point of coordination or oversight from a lead agency; no formal policy or procedures drafted; no reporting guidelines; no infrastructure; no consultation with cultural advisors or experienced clinicians, social welfare/advocacy personnel who are in the field … as to what the critical issues are in the watch house and how best to address them.
“We have an orchestra, no conductor, and those of us working in the field are being effectively silenced and forced to play on while the Titanic sinks.”
Bates said she had spoken with an executive who acknowledged conditions were “horrendous”.
“Inevitably, young people in watch house custody … take their frustrations out on QPS, because they have little to no understanding that it’s the department of youth justice that is quite often responsible for their basic needs.
“It’s a scenario that’s increasing their risk of reoffending whilst in the watch house and increases the risk of harm to QPS staff (I think in the last week alone we’ve had two spitting incidents as well as hot coffee thrown at an officer).”
The Queensland Police Service referred to a previous statement that said it was working to reduce short-term capacity pressures on the watch house and that young people were “visited by organisations and government agencies to ensure their welfare needs are met”.
The youth justice department said its staff “visit and provide support to young people while they are in police watch houses”.
“This includes mental health supports, educational services, and family, cultural and legal visits as needed,” a spokesperson said.
“All services share detailed engagement notes to assist in addressing any ongoing needs and allowing others to prioritise actions as they arise.
“Youth Justice works closely with the QPS to minimise the time young people spend in police watch houses before being transferred to a youth detention centre.”
