A new district jail for Thunder Bay seems less and less likely to be realized, after a visit from Ontario’s Corrections Minister Yasir Naqvi Wednesday morning.
Naqvi says he’s not in any position to say if the province will build a replacement to give new life to the nearly 100-year old MacDougall Street facility.
He says his ministry is focused on addressing aging infrastructure and alike issues, such as overcapacity, by not building more jails, but rather finding ways to reduce the need for them.
Naqvi says people awaiting trial should be in treatment programs, not behind bars, and that’s something the province is looking at as it develops a transformation strategy.
Naqvi adds the province is piloting a separate weekend jail in London for those serving intermittent sentences, but notes it’s too early in the game to see something like that in Thunder Bay. He says they’re starting with an overhaul of the criminal justice system. (Photo: Caryn Ceolin)
