Sessional_Paper_1920 — Page 48

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At the same time we may add that there are other weapons in the carpenter's, shoe- maker's, and tailor's shops which necessitate a much stricter search being made on prisoners when they come off duty than has been the case in the past. In fact some of the exhibits in the murder trial, such as the part of the shoemaker's knife, were probably conveyed by a prisoner from the shoemaker's or carpenter's shop.

6. With regard to the prisoners having escaped in suits of plain clothes, they pro- bably smuggled such suits (consisting of grey shirting material, out of the tailor's shop) under their prison clothes, and we are quite convinced that, with the small staff then available for supervision, such smuggling would have been a comparatively easy matter.

7. As regards the lighting system, it seems to us that the yard in the neighbour- hood of the block from which the prisoners escaped, requires further lighting, and we would suggest that electric lights be put in to supplement the present gas lights, and we would also suggest that in the interior of the block, from which the prisoners escaped, (which is the biggest block in the prison), further electric light should be put so as to permit of all the corridors being flooded with light in case of emergency.

8. As regards the alarm system, we think that the addition, which has been made since the occurrence, by which the alarm calls up the Police as well as the Gaol officers, is a considerable improvement on the practice existing at the time of the murder; and we do not think it necessary to make any further recommendation upon the subject except to say that in F. Block the alarm should be placed inside the grille enclosure, which we recommend hereafter for the Reserve Guard.

9. The recommendation of the jury that no less than two European Warders should be on duty inside of the prison at the same time at night has, we understand, been carried into effect.

10. With reference to the jury's recommendation that "an adequate supply of "firearms should be readily available in case of necessity", the Committee are of opinion--

() that it is not desirable or necessary that the officers doing duty inside the prison should be armed, inasmuch as prisoners might snatch the arms from the officers and use the arms against them;

(ii) that there should be a reserve of firearms in grilles, under the charge of

Reserve Guards.

11. With regard to the present locking system, we would observe-

(4) That it is clear from Mr. Franks' statements to us and from the way in which Prisoner 791 got out of his cell, that the system of locks in the gaol cells, by which a lock is only screwed on to the door from the inside of the cell instead of being rivetted on to it is a bad and precarious one, and in this connection we indorse Mr. Franks' recommendation that long iron bars in slots should be placed, each bar to cover three cells, in sockets outside of every cell so as to prevent the cell doors, all of which open outwards, from being opened by the prisoner even if the lock is removed or otherwise tampered with.

(i) We consider that the practice which has since been followed in F. Block, of locking one of the internal gates in the upper corridor, is good as a purely temporary measure and should be continued until the grille for the Reserve Guard in F. Block is completed.

(i) We also consider that the recommendation by Mr. Franks, that good Yale

locks should be put upon the various gates, leading from the various, blocks down to the yard, is a good one, and should be carried out as soon as possible, as that will mean two locks on those gates, instead of one, and we consider such an additional lock is the more desirable in view of the key which has been missing since April last.

While we think it regrettable that some remedial measure was not adopted after the loss of the key in April last, we think it only fair to add that:---

(1) The defaulters' book of the Gaol from 1894 to 1901, which is the only old defaulters' book which Mr. Franks has been able to get hold of, shows that between the years 1894 and 1901 keys were lost by Warders on no