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1 98.3 FLY FM :: Breaking News 1 of 1 06/12/2006 3:00 PM Home News Contests On Air Features Morning Show Events Multimedia Music Contac Local News NEWS National News International News Guards Happy With Announcement from Feds Monday, December 04, 2006 Officials with the Union of Canadian Correctional Officers say an announcement today by the Federal Government should hinder organized crime in prisons. Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day says the government will not continue a pilot project that offered tattoos to inmates in an effort to cut down on disease transmission. President of the Ontario region of the Union Jason Godin says they have been against that program since the beginning. He says the program as a whole was a failure and wasn't stopping inmates from performing illegal tattoos. One of those tattoo parlors was set up at the Bath institution. Copyright , Fly FM and CHUM Radio. All rights reserved. Privacy Statement Privacy Brochure Terms of Use Site Map Site design by WDSI

BCNG Portals Page http://www.abbynews.com/portals-code/list.cgi?paper=38&cat=23&id=.

ast Farmer Tattoo pilot project ends at two Abbotsford prisons Dec 05 2006 Friends of UCF

2 BCNG Portals Page West Coast Farmer Tattoo pilot project ends at two Abbotsford prisons Dec Friends of UCFV Real Estate Review CONTESTS! Win a Beetle! Journalism B.C. Press Council Sister Newspapers Burnaby NewsLeader Chilliwack Progress Surrey Leader North Shore Outlook Langley Times Mission City Record Peace Arch News Richmond Review Westender South Delta Leader Maple Ridge News Tricity News City Scene Tourism Abbotsford City of Abbotsford Abbotsford Airport Abbotsford Police Abbotsford School District Abbotsford Men's Basketball League United Way Cool Sites The federal government announced Monday it will end a pilot project that offered tattoos to inmates at six prisons in Canada including two in Abbotsford. Our government will not spend taxpayers money on providing tattoos for convicted criminals, said federal Minister of Public Safety Stockwell Day. Our priority is to have an effective federal corrections system that protects Canadians, while providing inmates with access to acceptable health care and treatment programs. Under the previous government, Correctional Service of Canada began a pilot project in six of its 58 federal correctional institutions in August 2005 to offer inmates tattoos. The institutions included Matsqui Institution and Fraser Valley institution. Both are located in Abbotsford. The cost of the one-year operation was approximately $600,000, plus prior start-up costs, which totaled approximately $350,000, Day said. Corrections Canada, in partnership with Health Canada and other outside organizations, continues to implement health and education programs to help reduce the transmission of infectious diseases within the correctional setting. These health and education programs include immunization against Hepatitis A and B, voluntary screening for early detection and treatment of infection, and education to ensure inmates understand the risks associated with illicit tattoo practices. Copyright 2006 Abbotsford News Planet Glitter Sports Pools 1 of 1 B.C. Books 06/12/2006 3:05 PM

http://www.ottawasun.com/comment/editorial/2006/12/05/pf-2636958.

3 1 of 1 05/12/2006 1:10 PM Ink think December 5, 2006 The question isn't whether or not Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day did the right thing yesterday in announcing the end of a taxpayer-funded tattoo program for federal prisoners. What many Canadians are far more likely to be asking is what on Earth was a previous government thinking when it approved the pilot project at six federal prisons in the first place? The rationale was that cons put one another at risk of contracting a deadly disease when they reuse tattooing needles to give themselves a little body art to wile away the time while they're inside. Since we're not aware of any constitutional right to acquire a tattoo in prison, we'd have thought the reasonable way to reduce the spread of AIDS and hepatitis C would be to tell the cons to wait until they're back on the street before ordering up their tats. That, however, might not have been popular with prisoners who have become increasingly used to dictating the terms of their incarceration. We've seen the riots that break out when dinner's late or not up to snuff or when television rights are taken away. So if you can't just say no to the cons, apparently the thinking went, maybe it would be best to set them up with clean rooms, sanitary supplies and even a smidgen of training so they could perfect their art form. We've seen that kind of rationale before, of course, in the establishment of safe injection sites -- including one here in Ottawa -- where drug addicts are handed clean equipment with which to pump illegal substances into their veins or their lungs. Apparently being a junkie is okay, as long as your health isn't put at risk. The prison tattoo program cost the taxpayers of Canada $350,000 in start-up costs and another $600,000 in annual operating costs at the six prisons where it was being offered before it was put on hold at the end of September. The Canadian Taxpayers Federation estimates the annual cost to expand the program to all 58 federal correctional facilities at $5.8 million, plus $2.6 million in one-time start-up costs. CTF federal director JohnWilliamson calls the program "a prime example of goofy government spending" and says Day did the right thing today by terminating it. We're inclined to agree, and remind prisoners' rights advocates who will argue the opposite that jail shouldn't be considered a lifestyle choice.

4 Tories axe tattoo program at federal prisons despite AIDS concerns 1 of 2 06/12/2006 3:10 PM Tories axe tattoo program at federal prisons despite AIDS concerns Published: Monday, December 4, :42 PM ET Canadian Press: JIM BRONSKILL OTTAWA (CP) - The Conservative government is axing a safe-tattoo program for federal prisoners despite concerns the move will increase the spread of AIDS and hepatitis C. Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day announced Monday that the government will not extend a pilot project offering tattoos to inmates, saying the initiative failed to improve inmate health. "Taxpayers' dollars are something that we want to respect," Day told a news conference. "And when you have taxpayer dollars going into something that does not work, then you shouldn't be supporting it." Advocates of the project say safe tattooing is a wise financial and social investment because it prevents AIDS and hepatitis C, which can be contracted by using tainted needles. "We know that tattooing is going on in prisons. We know that it can't be stopped," said Leon Mar of the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network. Unless the Correctional Service provides prisoners with a means of acquiring tattoos safely, the practice will be driven underground, Mar said. Hepatitis C is a blood-borne virus that often attacks the liver and can be fatal. One of the most common methods of transmission is having a tattoo applied with unsanitary equipment, or with tools previously used by an infected person. Tattoo parlours at six federal prisons across Canada have been sitting idle since the one-year pilot project ended Sept. 30. The $600,000 project was aimed at controlling the spread of disease by teaching inmates about sanitary tattoo inking and how to avoid infection. Some prisoners were also taught to give tattoos to fellow inmates. Day indicated that an analysis of the project showed it "has not been demonstrably effective." Results of the analysis were not available, however, prompting questions about Day's assessment. "Where are the facts and figures showing what he claims to be an unsuccessful program?" asked Mar. Inmates are up to 10 times more likely to contract HIV, the virus that leads to AIDS, than the general Canadian population. Their likelihood of contracting hepatitis C is about 30 times higher. The annual cost of treating someone with HIV is $20,000, while caring for a hepatitis C patient costs $25,000, said Mar. "These are prisoners who are going to be released eventually back into the community and bring with them whatever diseases they've acquired," he said. "So it just doesn't make sense." Day said the prison service, in partnership with Health Canada and outside organizations, will continue to run

5 Tories axe tattoo program at federal prisons despite AIDS concerns 2 of 2 06/12/2006 3:10 PM health and education programs to help reduce transmission of infectious diseases. The Union of Canadian Correctional Officers applauded cancellation of the tattoo project, saying there was no evidence it deterred inmates from inking their own illicit designs. "We are extremely pleased that finally we have a minister that's got a backbone, that can stand up and say, 'Enough foolishness'," said Sylvain Martel, the union's national president. Martel said the key to tackling infectious diseases in prison is a tough, zero-tolerance policy on the drugs prisoners inject with dirty syringes. The Canadian Taxpayers Federation also hailed the tattoo project's demise, calling it a "prime example of goofy government spending." The federation's John Williamson estimated the annual cost to taxpayers to expand the program to all 58 federal correctional facilities at $5.8 million, plus $2.6 million in startup costs. "If they want to spend money on anything, they ought to look at a tattoo removal program," he said, "not one that encourages inmates to tattoo themselves." The Canadian Press, 2006

6 Print Story - canada.com network 1 of 2 04/12/ :37 PM Monday» December 4» 2006 Tories can tattoo program Meagan Fitzpatrick CanWest News Service Monday, December 04, 2006 OTTAWA - Inmates getting inked at taxpayers' expense is a thing of the past, the federal government announced Monday. Stockwell Day, Minister of Public Safety, said the government decided to cancel a one-year tattooing pilot program that was started by the previous Liberal government in August Prisoners at six Canadian penitentiaries have been able to legally obtain tattoos for about $5 to $15 each, as part an effort to cut down on the spread of HIV-AIDS and hepatitis C through dirty needles. "Our government will not spend taxpayers' money on providing tattoos for convicted criminals," Day said in a statement. "Our priority is to have an effective federal corrections system that protects Canadians, while providing inmates with access to acceptable health care and treatment programs." The one-year operation cost approximately $600,000, plus start-up costs which totaled about $350,000. Its cancellation does not come as a total surprise, Day told Correctional Service Canada he wanted to review the program immediately after assuming his portfolio last February. The government said it will continue to educate inmates about the risks associated with illicit tattoo practices. The penitentiaries offering tattoos are Atlantic Institution in Renous, N.B., Cowansville in Quebec, Bath Institution near Kingston, Rockywood in Stony Mountain, Man., Matsqui Institution in Abootsford, B.C., and the Fraser Valley Institution for Women in B.C. The program has had its supporters and its detractors. A spokesman for the union representing prison guards said earlier this summer that the pilot project has been a waste of money and that backroom tattooing is as prevalent as ever. Prisoners use whatever makeshift implements they can get their hands on, from razors to guitar strings, and ink from a ballpoint pen, he said. "It won't ever stop illegal tattooing. That's just part of the culture of living in prison," said John Williams of the Union of Canadian Corrections Officers in Abbotsford, B.C. Tattoos traditionally have been part of prison culture, with almost half of offenders getting tattoos while incarcerated, according to a federal survey. With files from Janice Tibbetts CanWest News Service 2006

http://winnipegsun.com/news/canada/2006/12/05/pf-2636607.

7 1 of 1 06/12/2006 3:09 PM December 5, 2006 Prison tattoo program nixed By KATHLEEN HARRIS, NATIONAL BUREAU OTTAWA -- Taxpayer-financed tattoo parlours are being pulled out of federal prisons. Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day canned the controversial pilot program yesterday, calling it a failure and a waste of money despite concerns its cancellation will lead to a rise in infectious diseases. "Having a tattoo program for federal prisoners is not an efficient use of taxpayer dollars. It has not been demonstratively effective," he said. The program cost $350,000 to start up plus another $600,000 in annual operating costs at six prisons. Day said convicted criminals at all 58 institutions will have access to educational and health programs to reduce the incidence of HIV and hepatitis. Kevin Grabowsky, Prairie president of the Union of Canadian Correctional Officers, said his union was happy to hear the Conservatives canned the program. Rockwood Institution inmate Ray Trottier applies a tattoo to fellow inmate Don Morgan in this November 2005 file photo. (BRIAN DONOGH/ SUN FILES) "It was a waste of money and created more work for us," said Grabowsky. "And it didn't curb any of the tattooing that goes on in cells." Rockwood Institution, a minimum-security federal prison beside Stony Mountain Penitentiary north of Winnipeg, was the only facility in Manitoba to offer the safe tattoo service. Manitoba Tory justice critic Kelvin Goertzen said the money to run the tattoo parlour would be better spent on other programs. John Williamson, federal director for the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, echoed Goertzen. "It just doesn't make sense that people who commit crimes, in some cases violent crimes, are treated to a buffet of free tattoos when sent to prison." Joanne Csete, executive director of the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network, said Day's decision is shortsighted from a human rights and heath perspective.

Gangs, Tattooing, and Piercing

Gangs, Tattooing, and Piercing What You NEED to Know A guide for refugee and immigrant youth and their families regarding the risks of certain behaviors in American culture. Alana Schriver, Omaha Public