LONDON, Ont. -- The inmates of a London, Ont., detention centre have launched a multimillion-dollar class action lawsuit against the Ontario government, claiming the facility is violent and overcrowded.
The proposed lawsuit is being brought on behalf of all people incarcerated at the Elgin-Middlesex Detention Centre between Jan. 1, 2010 and Aug. 25, 2013.
It seeks damages of $300 million as well as a declaration that the conditions in the detention centre violate certain Charter rights and freedoms.
Representative plaintiff Glenn Johnson says the centre is a "scary place" with conditions "far worse than you can imagine." He alleges that overcrowding and treatment of prisoners at the centre "makes people worse" and "less ready" to reintegrate into society.
Lawyer Kevin Egan, who is representing the plaintiffs, says his firm has been inundated with complains by former inmates about what he calls "deplorable conditions" at the centre.
A spokesman for Ministry of Community Safety and Corrections said he would not comment because the matter was headed for the courts.
Statistics from the ministry have shown that nearly half of Ontario's jails are overcrowded as the province struggles with an increasing amount of inmates who have yet to have their day in court.
On an average day last year 14 of the province's 29 jails held more prisoners than they were designed for.
