Lake Alice siege ends quietly

Press, 28 May 1982, Page 1

Lake Alice siege ends quietly

PA Wanganui Eleven of New Zealand’s most dangerous prisoners surrendered quietly to police yesterday afternoon after a seven-hour siege at the Lake Alice Psychiatric Hospital, near Marton.

The prisoners, who had all been committed to the hospital after having been found criminally insane, had barricaded themselves in the kitchen of the hospital's maxi-mum-security wing after a breakfast-time riot which broke out over a cup of tea, according to the hospital's superintendent. Dr S. L. Pugmire.

They smashed furniture to obtain chair legs and other makeshift weapons and went on a rampage, wrecking the kitchen and the dining room. They broke television-sur-veillance cameras, smashed windows, and ripped electric cookers and other appliances from the walls. Three warders were slightly-injured when the riot began about 9 a.m. Dr Pugmire said that the riot had started when a warder had warned an

overweight inmate who had been about to drink his third cup of tea to follow doctor's orders to reduce his liquid intake.

About 50 policemen, including armed-offenders units and dog patrols, ringed the hospital throughout the dav.

the siege ended without further incident or injury after the police had given an ultimatum telling the prisoners to give themselves up quietly or be shifted by force.

The prisoners walked out after having compiled a list of grievances about conditions in the hospital. The grievances included demands to be allowed to grow long hair and beards, to wear own clothing, and to write to women.

Dr Pugmire paid tribute to a Maori clergyman, the Rev. Haipi Whiniata. who talked to the prisoners, all of them Maoris, for almost five hours before persuading them to give themselves up. The prisoners had earlier asked the Rev. Whiniata. of the Rangitikei-Manawatu

Maori Anglican Pastorage. to be brought from his home in Palmerston North to mediate on their grievances. Dr Pugmire said that Mr Whiniata. who was described in Palmerston North as being a spiritual leader of many of the Maori people in the region, had been -responsible for “solving the situation without any further violence occurring." Dr Pugmire said that the riot had been the first at the hospital, which was opened in 1966 to hold persons judged by the "courts to he criminally insane and dangerous.

"We have had nothing like this before: it came totally out of the blue." he said.

Security precautions had been thought to have been adequate, “but perhaps we were too complacent. We never dreamed anything like this would happen." Police squads were immediately sent from Wanganui and Palmerston North when the alarm was first raised by the Marton police.

Policemen ana traffic officers closed the access road to the hospital, which is about 10km south of Marton, off the Bulls-Turakina main highway, and set up road blocks ’ in the hospital grounds.

The maximum security wing is isolated from the rest of the hospital and staff members had confined the prisoners, who had not taken any hostages, to the kitchen. The police said earlier that they were of the prisoners could escape. Staff’ members had removed most knives and other potentially dangerous objects from the’ kitchen. Nevertheless. policemen at the scene were equipped with tear-gas and long batons. Early yesterday (afternoon, the prisoners werecgiven an hour to .draw list of grievances and were' given an .assurance that, these would 1 be considered at a meeting with the .authorities and Mr Whitiana. 'When 'the hour had expired, Detective Senior-Ser-

geant R. L. Buller, of Wanganui. said that the prisoners were "indulging in unnecessary stalling tactics," and that the police's patience was running out.

The prisoners were then given an ultimatum to come out quietly or be forced out. After talks with Mr Whitiana. they agreed to leave. They filed out of the wrecked kitchen one by one, were searched for weapons, and were taken away to their maximum security units.

Detective Senior-Sergeant Butler said, “they came out under our terms and .offered no resistance. We were not prepared to wait indefinitely, and wanted it settled in daylight hours." Dr Pugmire said that he had given assurances that he would meet each of the prisoners individually to discuss their grievances. Because the prisoners were all patients in the hospital. no . charges would be laid against them and they would not be punished. .

However, all of the 47 prisoners in the maximumsecurity wing would have to be given their meals in their rooms until the kitchen and

dining room could be repaired. “We will have to tighten security, including splitting the patients into two groups for meals in future so that we reduce the number that could be involved in any similar take-over," he said.

The patients’ grievances had not been the reason for the riot. “They were invented afterwards."

The patients had not been allowed to wear beards or to grow long hair because the police insisted that they be clean-shaven for identification purposes. The prisoners were allowed to wear a variety of clothing, and did not have to wear a uniform, but their personal clothes were retained until their discharge. Dr Pugmire indicated that one of the prisoners' demands. that they be allowed to play sports against teams from outside, would not be met.

“We are concerned about the possibility that opponents could be taken hostage." he said. This was the same reason why children and babies were not’allowed to be taken

to visit patients, which was another demand made by the prisoners.

The maximum-security wing, at the hospital is New Zealand’s only security facility for the criminally insane. The director of Mental Health. Dr Basil James, said that the 47 inmates had a serious mental illness connected with a serious offence.

The wing, was geographically isolated from the rest of the 300-bed hospital and had high security arrangements. both inside, and out.

Most of the patients stayed in the wing for five or six years, depending on their illness and the security need. They were classified as special patients and could not he discharged. They could be transferred to an ordinary. psychiatric hospital only on the recommendation of a panel of four independent psychiatrists.

Leave restrictions were very severe for special patients and there was a careful procedure for changing a patient’s legal status to that of an ordinary committed psychiatric patient.