Australia: treatment of young offenders moved to Barwon prison akin to torture, former head of youth jail education says

The former chief of Victoria’s youth jail schooling system claims the State Government misled the public over the use of Barwon adult maximum security prison to jail young offenders — who he says are being treated in a manner he equates to “torture”.

Brendan Murray, who resigned in March as executive principal of Parkville College, also claims he was pressured by the Education Department to give favourable testimony to the Victorian Supreme Court about providing education to young inmates in the adult jail facility.

“I was told what the department would like the Supreme Court to hear and what the department wouldn’t like the Supreme Court to hear,” Mr Murray said.

The Education Department said those claims were false.

“The Department strongly rejects any suggestion that it was seeking to influence testimony,” a spokesman said in a statement.

Mr Murray said adequate education cannot be provided at Barwon and said alternative facilities could have been arranged.

He is the most senior youth justice insider to speak out about the crisis in the system. By blowing the whistle, he threatens his ability to work again in public education in Victoria.

His claims come as lawyers for the young Barwon inmates this week began a fresh Supreme Court challenge against the teens’ detention in the Grevillea wing of the adult jail.

‘Barwon is the worst I have ever seen’

Mr Murray is highly critical of the Government’s decision to send two dozen young inmates to the Grevillea wing of Barwon Prison.

He claims that when he visited the jail in November, young inmates were being intimidated by guards, denied medicine and locked in their cells for up to 23 hours a day.

“Each child told stories about not seeing sunlight, not being able to contact family, not receiving medication, being fed through a slot and being told that this is what they deserve,” he said.

“I have never seen anything like this in my time at youth justice. There were often isolated incidents of child cruelty, but the coordinated approach to emotional and physical abuse was confronting. “Teaching staff at Grevillea have all been distressed and most have made daily complaints to me, including in writing, about the conditions and treatment of detainees and how impossible it is to provide education in such a setting.”

Mr Murray clashed with the Education Department in January after it was discovered he had given information to human rights lawyers suing the State Government in the Supreme Court over the use of Barwon to jail young inmates after riots destroyed dozens of beds in the Parkville youth jail facility.

He was suspended but later cleared of wrongdoing for sending an email to the lawyers that suggested there were alternatives to using Barwon that were being confidentially considered by the Government.

Mr Murray insists there were alternatives to Barwon being considered by himself and senior officials and that the Government misled the public and the Supreme Court about how secure beds could have been arranged at Malmsbury youth jail.

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