PD 25 years on: nobody expects miracles

Press, 23 November 1988, Page 21

PD 25 years on: nobody expects miracles

It is 25 years since a new sentence called periodic detention first appeared in New Zealand’s criminal justice system. This unique New Zealand concept of making the punishment fit the crime has shifted from being a radical social experiment to a generally accepted, valued and effective form of sentence. For Paul Griffin, warden of the Christchurch Periodic Detention Centre, such detention is "strictly fair and fairly strict.” The Department of Justice describes it as a constructive option to custodial sentence. For detainees, PD means a compulsory weekly commitment to a community-based project and fellow detainees. For perhaps the first time in their lives, many individuals will confront the reality of teamwork. A sentence of periodic detention is not designed to provide officers with a soft legal safety net. It means hard manual exercise, mental and physical discipline. While no-one expects miracles to emerge, lives, can be, and often are, remoulded and redirected.

The majority of Christchurch detainees report for nine hours work at 8 a.m. each Saturday, arriving at the double gates of the Brisbane Street centre to join their supervisors on projects which range from painting a house roof to major construction and renovation.

Other detainees report during the week or attend night classes at the centres. Ages range from 15 to 73.

The Christchurch centre illustrates what can be achieved by detainees. The double-storey concrete block structure replaced a building destroyed by a fire bomb in 1980. For 14 months, detainees, full and part-time staff worked together to rebuild the centre. Many detainees worked beyond

their sentence requirements. Others worked after the completion of their sentences, returning to check on progress. Much material used for the rebuilding was salvaged from the old Christchurch Supreme Court building, adding a nicely ironic touch to the project. The centre was officially opened in 1984.

Today, it is base for 400 detainees, making Christchurch the largest periodic detention centre in the country. Other centres are in outlying areas, including Ashburton and Rangiora.

Introduction of periodic detention sentences during the early 1960 s involved a re-examination of the New Zealand penal system by the Department of Justice. Imprisonment for young and inexperienced offenders had come to be regarded as a last resort. Periodic detention was seen as part-time imprisonment which would punish, introduce a form of reparation and encourage a greater sense of individual responsibility to other members of the community. While a term of imprisonment isolates the individual, periodic detainees remain in and part of the community. The Justice Department believed that the concept of certain groups of offenders being punished by being required to work during leisure time has gained wide public approval. In 1963, Auckland become the first part of New Zealand to experiment with a scheme, which was gradually extended. Periodic detention was later made an available option for older male offenders and a wider range of sentences. In 1974, it was enlarged to include female offenders and became an option for sentencing all offenders aged 15 and over.

In 1971, about 1000 individuals were sentenced to periodic detention. Last year, the figure had risen to about 15,000. Despite the increase in numbers of detainees and changing social pressures, the basic philosophies behind

periodic detention remain unaltered. Throughout the country, between 5000 and 6000 individuals will report each week for work at 42 PD centres from North Cape to Bluff. During the course

of a year, they will contribute more than a million working hours to community projects. This year, periodic detention celebrates the silver anniversary of a form of sentence which appears to be accepted by liberal

and conservative critics of the country’s criminal justice system. Between 5000 and 6000 New Zealanders serve prison sentences annually at a cost of $20,000 for each prisoner together with the cost of support-

ing their families. The financial benefits of periodic detention becomes immediately apparent, according to the department. “We were the first justice system in the world to launch such a scheme,” Paul Griffin says. “PD remains an innovative form of sentencing, one which seems to suit the New Zealand character.

“The nature of offending may have changed from the larrikinism and vandals to urban guerillas, but I believe that detainees view, the sentence as a tough one which does not free them fromtheir domestic or personal problems.

“PD is not a soft option. Detainees have to face responsibility in their everyday lives and handle the obligations of their sentence.”

Periodic detenion projects are solely done for local bodies, schools, educational institutions, hospitals and homes, often in conjunction with service and church groups.

The schedule for the Christchurch centre demonstrates the scope of work now facing detainees — a painting project at the Tai Tapu County Hall, work at the Y.M.C.A. night shelter and the Rangiora B.M.X. track, renovation of the old Lyttelton cemetery.

Periodic detention, unlike life behind the closed gates of a prison, is continually in the public eye. Detainees' work is constantly monitored and inspected by the community. “We find that the public reacts well,” says Paul Griffin. “Some elderly people are initially apprehensive at the thought of detainees working on their home or garden, but when the job is finished, they miss the company. They often make friendships with the individual detainees.

“While we are working with individuals or large community organisations, we are constantly conscious of quality control. “Simply because the work involves periodic detention doesn’t mean that we can settle for second best.”

Latecomers face disciplinary action. (“There are no excuses for being late.”) Consistent failure to report, or failure to comply with the rules, can result

in a detainee being referred back to the court where a possible fine of up to $lOOO or a maximum of three months imprisonment is faced. Demands placed on centre wardens have changed since ", periodic detention started. In the beginning, wardens were seen as combinations of military style group leaders, supervisors and teachers.

Today the wardens have emerged as managers responsible for budgets up to $750,000, fleets of 30 vehicles, food, supplies and the work of detainees.

Wardens are also required to keep records of attendance and behaviour and occasionally give evidence in court.

Eventually, many wardens talk about “my team” with some pride.

Although their motivation may develop into a genuine concern for the welfare of their “team,” staff are not encouraged to see themselves as social workers. Their primary role is custodial, supervising and co-ordinating work which lasts from Tuesday until Saturday, and which contains the potential for violence and stress.

“Periodic detention may be a last chance for many offenders, but more positively it can build up a team spirit and individual self-esteem for many others,” Paul Griffin says.

“The sentence involves much more than doing time at a work centre. It is still a social gamble, but one which often pays dividends in terms of setting people on the right path.” There has teen no recent study into the levels of reoffending among detainees. It appears that recidivism patterns are similar to the statistics recorded in prisons, with the largest number of offenders and re-offenders in the 16 to 25 age group.

Worked to rebuild centre

Sense of responsibility

Wardens proud of their teams