Tensions
were high following an incident on April 22, 1994 at
the Prison for Women in Kingston, Ontario. Several inmates
placed in the segregation unit for disciplinary measures
turned on correctional officers on duty that night,
kicking and choking them
Fearing
an escalation in the violence, the Warden later called
in the Institutional Emergency Response Team (IERT)
an all-male riot squad. Dressed in black head and body
gear, brandishing riot shields and batons, they entered
the prisoners’ cells and proceed to shackle, strip
search and remove them. The excessive force of the riot
squad left the inmates traumatized.
One
year later a commission of inquiry was called to investigate
the incidents, headed by Justice Louise Arbour. Justice
Arbour made several recommendations in The Commission
of Inquiry Into Certain Events At The Prison For Women
In Kingston. Some of those recommendations are listed
below: