Latest news with #DeanRoberts
CBC
6 days ago
- Health
- CBC
Judge approves B.C. inmate's class action over 'inhumane' prison isolation during pandemic
As chair of the inmate wellness committee at his prison, Dean Christopher Roberts was allowed to go cell to cell at Mission Institution to speak with inmates through the bars during some of the early weeks of the COVID-19 pandemic. The men in the medium-security facility in Mission, B.C., were being isolated in their rooms to prevent the spread of COVID-19. By April 2020, they were allowed out of their cells for 20 minutes a day — time that Roberts claims they could choose to use only for a shower or a phone call to family. "Within the first month of solitary confinement some men were showing me, [as] I went door to door, where they had developed bed sores and body pain from being sedentary and lying in bed all day," he wrote in an affidavit filed in B.C. Supreme Court. "Sadly, I encountered some men who had taken to scarring their face with long slashes and bloody lines. Others, who had slammed their heads into the wall, so consumed by the helplessness, isolation and fear of the unknown that they didn't even understand." Roberts, 56, is the lead plaintiff in a class-action lawsuit against the federal government that was greenlit in B.C. Supreme Court on Friday. The case claims the medical isolation that began in Canadian prisons in March 2020, when COVID-19 was declared a global pandemic, subjected prisoners to "inhumane rights restrictions" that amounted to solitary confinement. Class members include any inmate incarcerated in a Correctional Services Canada (CSC) prison during a COVID-19 outbreak declared at a site after March 11, 2020. Inmates would be eligible if they were confined to their cells for 20 or more hours a day and deprived of the chance to interact with others for less than two hours a day for 15 or more consecutive days, the ruling said. Patrick Dudding, Roberts's lawyer, estimated the class could include anywhere from hundreds to thousands of inmates. "We welcome the court's decision, and we'll take this through the next steps," he said in a phone interview on Wednesday. Inmates didn't know when isolation would end: lawsuit Mission Institution was declared COVID-free by mid-May 2020, but significant restrictions continued until mid-July, the judgment said. "That's 23'/4-hours-a-day in a 7x10 foot box with your head 18 inches from the toilet," Roberts said in his affidavit. "I cannot stress enough that worse than the solitary confinement was the absence of routine. On any given day staff seemed to invent a new routine for showers and phonecalls. We were left in our cages anxious, worried, angry what the day would bring and when would relief come." The United Nations' minimum rules for the treatment of prisoners, called the Nelson Mandela Rules, define solitary confinement as isolation for more than 22 hours a day and say solitary confinement that lasts longer than 15 consecutive days amounts to torture. During the pandemic, health-care professionals and advocates recognized the challenges that came with preventing the spread of COVID-19 within prisons. Typical advice for slowing the spread — like regular handwashing and physical distancing — could be virtually impossible in crowded prisons. Researchers in the United States, where overcrowded prisons faced similar health challenges, say medical isolation could be a beneficial public health tool if done properly. Mental health advocates and public health researchers have said officials needed to find ways to differentiate purposeful medical isolation from punitive solitary confinement to help inmates' cope psychologically. WATCH | Former Canadian diplomat recalls 6 months in solitary confinement: Michael Kovrig describes 'gruelling, painful' solitary confinement and interrogation 8 months ago Duration 0:50 Michael Kovrig, a former Canadian diplomat who was held in China for nearly three years, tells CBC News chief correspondent Adrienne Arsenault about the interrogation he endured during his six months in solitary confinement. 'They are trying to bully and torment and terrorize and coerce you' into believing you're guilty, even though you're not, he says. "The only commonality that solitary confinement should share with quarantine and medical isolation is a physical separation from other people," physicians from the University of California wrote in the Journal of General Internal Medicine on July 6, 2020. "This means that people in quarantine or medical isolation should have enhanced access to resources that can make their separation psychologically bearable—for example, television, tablets, radio, reading materials, and means of communicating with loved ones—since they are enduring isolation for the greater good, not for punishment." The Mental Health Commission of Canada said medical isolation that is run the same way as solitary confinement"poses significant human rights risk and should be done only as a last resort." It recommended low-risk prisoners or those near the end of their sentences be released from correctional facilities to reduce the pressure. In a statement on Wednesday, CSC said it was "committed to reducing the risks of COVID-19 in all its operations and keeping offenders, employees, and the public safe" during the pandemic. "During that time, we worked with public health experts, the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC), local public health agencies, our labour partners, and stakeholders to develop infection prevention and control measures to mitigate and contain the spread of COVID-19," it said in an email. "First and foremost, the health and safety of offenders, our employees, and the public remains our top priority." Attorney general says medical isolation 'entirely different' In his lawsuit, Roberts claims the federal government's isolation policy neglected or violated inmates' Charter rights to protect life, liberty and security of the person. The Attorney General of Canada argued the case shouldn't be certified as a class action because isolating inmates for medical purposes was "entirely different" from punitive solitary confinement, according to Friday's decision. It also said Roberts wasn't a suitable plaintiff for the case, which it described as overly broad without enough clarity. In his decision, B.C. Supreme Court Justice Michael Tammen ruled the lawsuit could go ahead. He said Ottawa could win the case on a few different points, like its argument that medical isolation isn't the same as solitary confinement or that the isolation was justifiable in an "unprecedented and unexpected" pandemic, but he said those would have to be decided at trial — "not at this preliminary stage." None of the allegations have been proven in court. Roberts has been serving a life sentence for the murders of his wife and twin sons in Cranbrook, B.C., in 1994. A jury convicted him of strangling his wife and one son, before setting a fire at the family home that killed the second son. Roberts, then 26, was also convicted of trying to kill his adopted three-year-old. The eldest child survived after being rescued from the burning house. He has maintained his innocence and pursued exoneration with the University of British Columbia's Innocence Project for more than 15 years, claiming his confession was the result of a flawed Mr. Big sting. He was granted the right to ask for a ministerial review of his case in 2021, seeking the opportunity to present fresh DNA evidence he says will prove his innocence.
CTV News
6 days ago
- Health
- CTV News
Federal inmates allege pandemic ill treatment in class-action lawsuit
The Law Courts building, which is home to B.C. Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal, is seen in Vancouver, on Thursday, Nov. 23, 2023. (Darryl Dyck / The Canadian Press) The British Columbia Supreme Court says a lawsuit by prison inmates alleging ill treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic can move forward as a class action against the federal government. Inmates claim they were 'subject to inhumane rights restrictions' during the pandemic, including being confined to cells for 20 hours or more each day without meaningful contact with other people. Plaintiff Dean Roberts, a multiple murderer incarcerated at B.C.'s Mission Institution, says in an affidavit the pandemic brought 'chaos' as pandemic measures sent prisoners into despair, including one who sewed his lips shut. The ruling says the Attorney General of Canada opposed certifying the lawsuit as a class action for several reasons, arguing the Correctional Service of Canada's response to the pandemic was medically necessary. It says arguments over the 'unprecedented and unexpected nature of the pandemic' are issues to be decided by a trial, rejecting the federal government's claim that inmates should pursue individual lawsuits instead of banding together as a class. Justice Michael Tammen's ruling says inmates 'frequently face inordinate hurdles' in the courts, being without the financial means to file individual lawsuits, and class actions are often their only realistic means to legally challenge conditions of confinement. Lawyer Patrick Dudding says he welcomes the court's decision and he and his associates are now tasked with getting the word out to current and former inmates to join the class, which he says could potentially involve thousands of people. The lawsuit was originally filed in 2020. This report by Darryl Greer of The Canadian Press was first published June 4, 2025.
Winnipeg Free Press
6 days ago
- Health
- Winnipeg Free Press
Federal inmates allege pandemic ill treatment in class-action lawsuit
VANCOUVER – The British Columbia Supreme Court says a lawsuit by prison inmates alleging ill treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic can move forward as a class action against the federal government. Inmates claim they were 'subject to inhumane rights restrictions' during the pandemic, including being confined to cells for 20 hours or more each day without meaningful contact with other people. Plaintiff Dean Roberts, a multiple murderer incarcerated at B.C.'s Mission Institution, says in an affidavit the pandemic brought 'chaos' as pandemic measures sent prisoners into despair, including one who sewed his lips shut. The ruling says the Attorney General of Canada opposed certifying the lawsuit as a class action for several reasons, arguing the Correctional Service of Canada's response to the pandemic was medically necessary. It says arguments over the 'unprecedented and unexpected nature of the pandemic' are issues to be decided by a trial, rejecting the federal government's claim that inmates should pursue individual lawsuits instead of banding together as a class. Justice Michael Tammen's ruling says inmates 'frequently face inordinate hurdles' in the courts, being without the financial means to file individual lawsuits, and class actions are often their only realistic means to legally challenge conditions of confinement. Lawyer Patrick Dudding says he welcomes the court's decision and he and his associates are now tasked with getting the word out to current and former inmates to join the class, which he says could potentially involve thousands of people. The lawsuit was originally filed in 2020. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 4, 2025.
Daily Mail
09-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Mysterious boy: Peter Andre tries to go incognito in Australia as he is slammed for 'vile' Instagram post - and bizarrely uses a fake name at the dry cleaner
Peter Andre did his best to go incognito this week as he stepped out to run some errands on the Gold Coast. The Mysterious Girl hitmaker, 52, is in Australia for the premiere of his first feature film, Jafaican, at the Gold Coast Film Festival. Peter was spotted stepping out to drop off some dry cleaning ahead of the auspicious occasion. Dressing casually for the outing, he wore a form-fitting white V-neck T-shirt that showed off the famous tribal-style ink on his bicep. The Aussie-born singer also wore a pair of dark blue tapered jeans and a pair of white Nike sneakers. Wanting to keep his identity under wraps as much as possible, Peter finished his ensemble with a blue New York Yankees baseball cap that was pulled down to his brow. The Mysterious Girl hitmaker, 52, is in Australia for the premiere of his first feature film, Jafaican, at the Gold Coast Film Festival Peter looked all business as he made his way to a Southport dry cleaners to drop off some clothes, possibly his fit for the big premiere. However, keeping the incognito theme going, Peter appeared to use a fake name at the dry cleaners, to avoid potential swooning from staff. He was seen carrying his dry cleaning ticket that appeared to bear the name 'Dean Roberts'. The singer certainly had no shortage of work for staff, walking into the shop with an array of jackets and shirts draped over his arm. Peter's surreptitious outing comes as he was shamed on social media for taking a family trip to SeaWorld during a recent holiday in Abu Dhabi. The reality star shared a snap of his children walking into animal theme park SeaWorld which was met with disapproval from animal lovers. Alongside the post, he wrote: 'We had the best time at @yasisland exploring all the parks. So special to have the whole family together, there truly is something for everyone. We'll definitely be back!' Unimpressed fans wrote: 'SeaWorld, definitely NOT a place for animal lovers'. Dressing casually for the outing, Peter wore a form-fitting white V-neck T-shirt that showed off tribal-style ink on his bicep 'Great photos until you showed SeaWorld, how sad'... 'Promoting cruel, unethical hell holes for animals, such as SeaWorld. Vile. Way to go @peterandre'. 'I'm so sad to see you visiting SeaWorld, the cruelty around these 'entertainment' parks are obvious and you could use your platform to help end the suffering endured by highly intelligent mammals. Very disappointing.' 'Definitely a no from me, poor sea creatures belong in their natural habitat.' However some of Pete's followers were quick to praise the snaps, writing: 'Beautiful family; We were here in Feb... it was the best holiday 'Beautiful photos, looks like a great place to visit. Wonderful memories made with your family; It was such a great destination, we went last summer and loved it 'Home last Wednesday from my first visit to Abu Dhabi - had the best holiday - gutted I never saw you and your gorgeous family. Great photos.' The Abu Dhabi Seaworld was the first in its history to be free of orcas, after the US-based park stopped breeding the whales in 2016, in the wake of growing backlash, and instead predominantly houses dolphins and seals. The first killer whale was born in a SeaWorld park in 1985. Since then, 30 have been born in the parks, including the first-ever births through artificial insemination. He was seen carrying his dry cleaning ticket that appeared to bear the name Dean Roberts as Peter's preferred pseudonym Peter also recently faced backlash after sharing the trailer for Jafaican. The singer stars as Gary Buckle in the crime-comedy, a con artist pretending to be a Jamaican gangster. Gary, also known as Gazza, must master Jamaican culture in 21 days in order to execute a fraud in London and Jamaica and earn the £35,000 he needs to pay for his grandmother's care. The trailer made one fan question: 'Did I wake up in 1998?!' 'Peter Andre starring as the lead character of a film called JAFAICAN where he's pretending to be a Jamaican and wearing a dreadlock wig is not something I was expecting to see in the year of our Lord 2025 but here we are...' 'There's a movie coming out with Peter Andre in a dreadlock wig pretending to be Jamaican. Is this really what we're doing in 2025?,' another offered. However the trailer didn't receive all negative comments after other social media users shared their excitement ahead of the film's release. One excited fans penned: 'Peter that looks amazing can't wait to see this brilliant'; 'Oh yes!!!! looking forward to this @peterandre can't wait'. 'I wish I could have watched this being filmed'. The world premiere of Jafaican kicks off on Friday night at the Gold Coast Film Festival, which runs until May 11.
