It took over a dozen complaints from freezing inmates to get heating fixed in Hamilton jail, advocate says

A local prisoner rights advocate says a heating issue in the Hamilton-Wentworth Detention Centre has been solved after over a dozen complaints from freezing inmates.

"It sounds like the issue has been resolved, at least for now," Cedar Hopperton, a volunteer with the Barton Prisoner Solidarity Project, told CBC Hamilton on Monday.

The advocacy group posted to Facebook saying 13 inmates contacted Ontario's ombudsman, saying the heat wasn't turned on in the jail which holds inmates waiting for their court date.

"Some guys have resorted to using towels to keep warm, wrapping them around their head and necks, cuddling together and sleeping in their shoes to stay warm," read the post.

CBC's climate dashboard shows Hamilton has seen seven days below 0 C since October. Hamilton was also under a winter travel advisory a week ago due to bursts of heavy snow.

'Heat is an essential service,' MPP says

Sarah Jama, Independent member of provincial parliament for Hamilton Centre, wrote a letter to Ontario's Ministry of the Solicitor General on Monday calling for an immediate investigation after her office heard from community groups and inmates' families.

"Being forced to live and sleep in temperatures below freezing is not only greatly uncomfortable, it's also dangerous … heat is an essential service," read the letter posted to X, formerly Twitter.

The letter says Jama heard inmates were sleeping in their shoes and huddling together for warmth.

Andrew Morrison, spokesperson for the Ministry of the Solicitor General, didn't offer more details about the complaints and circumstances, but said the facility's heating system "continues to operate routinely without interruption."

This isn't the first time inmates have complained about freezing temperatures.

A CBC Hamilton investigation earlier this year into Ontario's complaint system for inmates — a system they call "broken" — noted how a snowy night in February 2022, spurred five separate complaints from inmates who were up all night freezing and shivering because they didn't have enough blankets and bed sheets.

"It is impossible to sleep at night without the blankets and sheets," read one complaint.

At the time, Morrison said the ministry is "committed to the health and well-being of all inmates."