A former prison guard say managers did nothing to stop bullying from an inmate who sexually assaulted and tortured his sister, leading to her suicide. Barry Rhodes has submitted a complaint to the Human Rights Tribunal in the western province of British Columbia.
In December 2010, Rhodes’ younger sister went to police after she had been sexually assaulted and beaten by a man with a long criminal record. The man was arrested, charged and remanded to a prison in Saanich, the same one where Rhodes worked.
Other inmates joined in harassment
“This individual would walk by and sit there and point and laugh at me,” Rhodes told the public broadcaster, CBC. Other inmates learned of the situation and would repeatedly ask Rhodes how his sister was doing.
When he complained to the assistant deputy warder, Rhodes says he was told to “suck it up and get back to work.”
Worker safety board accepted injury claim
He eventually had to leave his job. He was found to suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and adjustment disorder as a result of conditions in the workplace and is not to do any work in corrections or law enforcement.
The province’s worker safety board accepted Rhode’s injury claim and he retrained, hoping to get a job operating heavy equipment.
‘It’s not a monetary thing”
The British Columbia Corrections service refused to comment on the case because it is before the human rights tribunal.
If the tribunal finds in Rhodes favour it could require an apology, policy changes or compensation. Rhodes says “It’s not a monetary thing. This is about an issue at hand that somebody has to take some accountability for their actions.”
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