The Law Handbook 2024

Chapter 3.8: Imprisonment and the rights of people in prison 229 obtaining medical or psychiatric attention. Corrections Administration Permits (s 57A) Section 57A of the Corrections Act outlines that a Corrections Administration Permit ( CAP ) can be issued for the following purposes: • a purpose related to the health of the person in prison; • a purpose relating to the administration of justice; • to visit someone who is seriously ill or in acute need, if they have had a long standing personal relationship with that person; • to attend the funeral of a person with whom they’ve had a longstanding personal relationship; • to visit another prison. A CAP can be issued for up to three days, but can be issued for a longer period in limited circumstances. Rehabilitation and Transition Permits (s 57B) Rehabilitation and Transition Permits ( RTPs ) are issued to allow a person in prison to leave the prison for the purposes of preparing a person for their release from prison. RTPs can be issued to allow a person in prison to take part in a fitness, training or education course, to attend activities that will assist to extend their ties with their family, to look for employment or to attend a rehabilitation course. Often RTPs are issued for people who are placed in transitional centres and form part of their transitional plans. RTPs can be issued for up to 30 days. Programs The Corrections Victoria Reintegration Pathway ( CVRP ) provides some pre-release assessments and a number of pre-and-post release support programs. A list of available programs is available via the Corrections Victoria website: www.corrections.vic. gov.au/release/transitional-programs The availability (or rather limited availability) of programs is significant because it can impact people’s eligibility for parole. To be eligible for parole, people must complete programs which the Court or Corrections has ordered, directed or believes that the person should engage with. There is often limited availability of pre-parole programs, and a general lack of gender responsive and culturally appropriate programs available in prisons, which can make it challenging for people to access parole. Visits, phone calls and letters Prison visits Visits from relatives and friends All people in prison can have up to 10 personal visitors on their visitors list (excluding children who do not need to be listed as a visitor). The number of personal visitors a person can have at any one time depends on the rules of the particular prison (e.g. visits at the Melbourne Assessment Prison are different to visits in regional, minimum-security prisons, where all-day visits are permitted on weekends). However, typically, a person can have up to three adult visitors and a number of children visit at one time. People in prison are entitled to one half-hour visit by relatives and friends each week. Visits are governed by section 37 of the Corrections Act and regulation 83 of the Corrections Regulations. See also section 38 and regulation 79, which govern contact and residential visiting programs. Restrictions on visits involve the number of persons who may visit, time limitations, the degree of supervision and whether body contact is permitted. The restrictions imposed depend upon the person’s classification. During visits, the person may be permitted physical contact with visitors to varying degrees. Prison officers supervise visits, and people at maximum-security prisons are required to wear approved contact-visit overalls. Prior to visiting, partners, friends and relatives of the person in prison should make sure that the person they are visiting has put them on their visit list. All prison visitors are subject to prison regulations and orders. Disobeying prison orders is an offence and could result in a visitor being banned from a prison. It is best to check with the prison to