Misdirected memo latest gaffe in Sask. jail escape
A government memo issued Thursday instructs members of the Saskatchewan legislature to stop providing information to the media about a break-out from the Regina jail.
The note — which was sent to an unintended recipient who passed it on to the media — is the latest in a series of communications gaffes that has dogged the government since six men smashed their way out of a provincial correctional centre on Sunday night. Five remain at large.
The misdirected memo — which came from the office of executive council, the administrative arm of the provincial cabinet — was supposed to go to government MLAs.
It says Darryl Hickie, Saskatchewan's minister of corrections, public safety and policing, "will not be making further public comment" until two investigations — one internal and one by an external consultant — are finished.
The note instructs MLAs that if they are asked about the escapes, "your message should be it is now under investigation and anyone who has any specific knowledge about the break-out should contact the investigators."
From the beginning of what Hickie has called an "embarrassing" escape, managing the flow and content of information has proven troublesome for politicians and officials.
It began on Monday with questions about the length of time that passed — about 15 hours — before the public was alerted to the escape.
It continued on Wednesday when Hickie, a former federal prison guard and police officer, told reporters ministry officials had provided him "with notes indicating that in fact we do not have a gang or violence issues in our provincial correctional system."
The minister later phoned reporters to say he was "mistaken."
Gangs in jails
In fact, the issue of criminal gangs was referred to in Hickie's Saskatchewan Party election campaign material. The party's platform, entitled "Securing the Future: The Saskatchewan Party's Plan and New Ideas" contains several specific points about the problem of gangs in jails.
On one page, the literature says the party will "Crack down on gangs and drugs in jails." In another section, the document lists seven ways the party would accomplish that goal, including "hiring more corrections workers to eliminate drugs and gangs in jails" and "banning gang colours and paraphernalia in jails by instituting jail uniforms."
During the same Wednesday news briefing, Hickie also botched information about whether jail officials had been warned that prisoners were planning an escape. Hickie said that if that were the case, there would have been a "lock-down" of the facility.
Later, he admitted there had been a tip about something being planned, but it was vague on details.