With the federal election happening, a front-page news story from here in the 905 is not getting much attention.

The Toronto Star for the past week has published a series of articles on abuse and inhumane conditions at Maplehurst Correctional Facility in Milton. The facility is an Ontario-owned and operated jail, where most inmates are charged with crimes and are awaiting their day in court to have the charges proven in a court of law. It is important to highlight that the majority of these inmates are still considered innocent in the eyes of the law.

The stories have focused on conditions in which the facility is over capacity, leading to overcrowding in cells. Toilets are backed up for weeks on end, leading to inmates being forced to use noodle cups instead. Lack of basic needs like toilet paper abounds. And one inmate reported a rash on their body, due to not being able to shower regularly. The big standout issue, though, is the reporting of the use of the Institutional Crisis Intervention Unit, the Riot Squad, to strip search and punish inmates in December of 2023.

We reached out to the investigative reporter who is covering this story to come on and talk about this in depth. Joining Joel today is Brendan Kennedy from the Toronto Star, to discuss how this happened at Maplehurst, what led to this culture and what is being done or not done to address the issue.

Brendan's journalism can be found here:

Ontario's Jails are Deadlier than Ever - and This One is Worst in Every Respect

She thought leaving her nephew in jail would help him get clean. His fatal

overdose raises hard questions about how drugs get inside

‘Welcome to Wong-tanamo Bay’: Maplehurst jail officials conspired to ‘cover up’ mass strip-search of inmates, court document alleges

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