SRT head Robert Edmondson. Photo: Matthew Mirabelli

Discipline is the name of the game for former US army soldier Robert Edmondson, now heading the Special Response Team at Corradino Correctional Facility.

The new routines he has introduced in the two months he has been on the job are already bearing fruit and he expects the situation to improve drastically as more work practices are changed and new policies introduced.

“I came here and found nothing, or almost nothing. There were no policies and if they were there they were just verbal. Even the procedures were verbal and passed on from one employee to another through word of mouth. I want to change that and I am working on creating new policies and procedures for this prison facility to be safe and secure and free of all narcotics,” the 42-year-old American citizen, married to a Maltese, told Times of Malta.

With 10 years experience in the Special Weapons SWAT team and a two-year stint as a narcotics detective under his belt, Mr Edmondson is restructuring the SRT, giving it the good foundations it needs.

The dogs are more apt to go up to prisoners to get petted rather than to do their job

“We are introducing policies so that everyone is held accountable for their actions, from the highest grade to the lowest,” he said. The verbal procedures used in the past were creating conflicts when it came to interpretation, so he believes that having something written down will change the way things work inside the prison.

One of the first things introduced on his appointment was a physical efficiency test, repeated at three-month intervals. Daily training such as push-ups, sit-ups and running exercises have become standard for SRT members, “emulating day-to-day situations that we might have to deal with”.

“If you train the way you work, it just becomes second nature. This is what we need in here. You’re less likely to make mistakes or cause injuries to the inmates or to yourself,” he said.

He is also introducing tactical training but, due to its sensitivity, did not wish to go into the specifics.

He has a 23-man team but hopes to beef this up to “at least 35”, with plans to increase the night shift complement to more than just two officers.

Some six or seven ex-SRT officers were transferred to other sections after failing the physical endurance test.

“In the US, if you fail the test once you’re yellow carded but if you fail the second you’re struck off the team. This is the mentality change we need,” he said, adding that special concessions were made in the case of those injured. “I want the SRT to respond to a crisis in the right frame of mind. It’s all about training. My mantra is train like you’re going to do it.”

Without going into details on policy changes, Mr Edmondson said one was about the use of force, “which is the cornerstone of what we do”.

“We need an established policy so that people know how much force to use in any given situation, making sure things are well-documented,” he said, as he explained that this was usually used when a prisoner was fighting, not listening or simply disobeying orders.

It’s all about training.My mantra istrain like you’re going to do it

He wants to introduce videotaping of “planned actions” to serve as evidence of what kind of force had been used. This cannot be done in emergency situations. For example, if there is an inmate who is refusing to go back to his cell, the SRT team will meet to plan the action beforehand.

“Inmates are human beings. We don’t want to mistreat them or abuse them. They must be treated with respect. Even if they are convicted of a crime or awaiting judgment, they should still be treated with respect.”

Asked whether correctional officers, also known as prison warders, will be receiving some sort of training too, Mr Edmondson said there would be some cross-training. He said all officers were already offered a course in aikido, the martial art of peace. The course will be mandatory for all SRT officers.

Mr Edmondson is also setting up a brand new dog section at the prison and is in the process of replacing all the section’s dogs, “which were spoilt because of too much interaction with inmates”.

“Basically, we have four German Shepherds and a couple of Springer Spaniels who are up for adoption. They were allowed to interact with prisoners for far too long and now they are more apt to go up to prisoners to get petted rather than to do their job,” he said, adding that a long period of inactivity did not help the situation.

Turning to questions on narcotics detection, Mr Edmondson said he had introduced random searches by the SRT on everyone going in or out of prison, including vehicles. One of the first results of this was the discovery of heroin and methadone in the dashboard of a van supplying goods to prison.

“The more random the searches the better because it helps keeping everyone, including inmates, on their toes,” he said.

The searches are done on everyone, irrespective of who they are.

“Everybody inside here, including the director, the assistant director and the managers can and will be searched at random,” he said, adding that “complacency has no place here”.

“We have to think like them and see how to be proactive to always be one step ahead.”

He said he was confident that the new procedures would reap benefits for the CCF. “We are already seeing results and, hopefully, we’ll see more of them. I will not give up until we establish a good, secure facility and eliminate all possible drugs from prison,” he said.

mxuereb@timesofmalta.com