Five local prison officers will in May be participating in the United States’ annual Mock Prison Riot training, on the heels of this country’s worst prison revolt, which left 17 inmates dead and several others wounded.
The announcement was made yesterday by host of the government’s weekly post-Cabinet press briefing, Minister of Natural Resources Raphael Trotman, who said that cabinet this week agreed to this country’s participation, after an invite from Washington.
Government believes that the training being offered will equip the participants with the necessary riot management skills. “The training being offered is expected to increase the capacity of the Guyana Prison Service to respond to prison unrest or other similar emergencies,” Trotman said.
The event, held from May 1 to 4, 2016, at the retired West Virginia State Penitentiary will see prison wardens from across the globe receiving hands-on training.
According to the prison’s website, the Mock Prison Riot is an event where law enforcement and corrections practitioners can touch, see, and actually deploy technologies from the showcase under real-world conditions, utilizing the grounds of the decommissioned West Virginia Penitentiary to maximum advantage.
The Mock Prison Riot is a programme of the National Institute of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, United States Department of Justice and an initiative of the West Virginia High Technology Consortium Foundation, a 501(c) (3(3) non-profit corporation, the website states.
The officers participating are Cadet Officer Kafila Hill, Chief Prison Officers Peter Barker, Shawn Charles and Kirk Joseph and Principal Officer II Lionel Cave.
