Thinking outside the box: Reducing administrative segregation with Indigenous prisoners

This project looks at how correctional policy reforms in the near term can reduce admissions of Indigenous prisoners to administrative segregation in Canadian penitentiaries. In a given year, approximately one-third of Indigenous prisoners will spend time in segregation. While the federal government has introduced a bill to try to address the problematic aspects of the practice, Indigenous prisoners continue to suffer disproportionate impacts on correctional outcomes and rehabilitation as a result of their overrepresentation. This is supported by the BC Supreme Court ruling in BC Civil Liberties Association v. Canada (AG), Correctional Service Canada statistics, and by experts interviewed in this study. Drawing on a review of the literature, a scan of correctional systems in Australia, New Zealand, and the United States, and semi-structured qualitative elite interviews, three non-mutually exclusive policy options are explored. Through analysis of these sources, criteria for success are derived and the formation of an independent review panel is recommended in the near term. A secondary option to expand eligibility for Pathways Initiatives is also discussed, as well as longer-term considerations that fall out of scope of this project.