A recent High Court ruling awarding over TT$2.5 million in damages to a former female inmate who endured sexual abuse at the hands of a serving prison officer has sparked urgent calls for a comprehensive audit of operational, administrative, and record-keeping frameworks across Trinidad and Tobago’s national prison service, according to the Prison Officers’ Association of Trinidad and Tobago (POATT).
In the wake of the landmark judgment, acting Prisons Commissioner Elvin Scanterbury has already launched an internal review into all case-related prison documentation, with plans to conduct a full line-by-line review of the court’s ruling to map the alleged sequence of events and identify any required disciplinary or policy changes.
Speaking exclusively to local outlet *Express* on Thursday, POATT General Secretary Lester Logie acknowledged the gravity of the allegations, noting that public scrutiny of the case has already taken a significant toll on the accused officer and their family. However, he stopped short of drawing definitive conclusions, explaining that he has not yet reviewed the full court judgment to understand the legal basis for the damages award or the court’s specific factual findings.
Logie highlighted several systemic red flags raised by the case, starting with gaps in administrative accountability. “The devil is in the details. I would like to read the judgment to see exactly what the justice said,” he explained, pointing to concerns over missing or incomplete prison records and documentation that could have been critical to the court proceedings. He also questioned why the sexual assault allegations, a criminal offence under Trinidad and Tobago law, were resolved through a civil claim rather than criminal prosecution, saying, “Why this matter was not brought before [the criminal courts] beats me.”
Drawing on established prison protocol, Logie noted that the alleged incident reportedly occurred in the early hours of the morning, a window when strict movement controls are already in place. Under standard policy, inmates are not permitted to leave their cells as early as 4 a.m. unless they are assigned to work in the facility’s ration room, and all off-hours movements require pre-approval from supervisory staff, formal logging in official records, and specific key access that only senior supervisors can grant. “We have procedures in place that have a check and balance,” Logie said, adding that all relevant documentation of these protocols and movements must be fully examined as part of the internal review.
Another key point of concern for Logie is the quality of legal representation provided to the Prison Service and the accused officer during the civil proceedings. Based on his current understanding of the case, the accused officer never provided in-person testimony, and the court ruled solely on the basis of sworn affidavits submitted by both parties. “My opinion on the matter, so far, is that this matter probably wasn’t defended well,” Logie said. He added that the physical layout of prison dorms and common areas, as well as the presence of other inmates and staff on duty at the time of the alleged incident, are critical details that should have been brought forward to the court.
Logie emphasized he is not seeking to downplay or dismiss the serious sexual abuse allegations, stressing that the claims demand full, transparent investigation. He said he supports Scanterbury’s internal review and hopes the process will not only bring clarity to the current case but also identify gaps in existing policies that can be closed to prevent similar allegations and systemic failures from arising in the future.