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Location | Darwin, Northern Territory |
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Coordinates | 12°26′45″S 130°56′26″E / 12.445775°S 130.940616°ECoordinates: 12°26′45″S 130°56′26″E / 12.445775°S 130.940616°E |
Status | Closed (prison site now houses the Don Dale Youth Detention Centre) |
Security class | Maximum |
Capacity | 750 |
Opened | 1 September 1979 |
Closed | 28 November 2014 |
Managed by | Northern Territory Correctional Services |
Berrimah Prison, was an Australian maximum security prison for males formerly located in Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia. The centre was managed by Northern Territory Correctional Services, an agency of the Department of Justice of the Government of the Northern Territory. The centre detained sentenced and charged felons under Northern Territory and/or Commonwealth law.
Following significant overcrowding, decommission plans were put into place and the adult facility was closed on Friday 28 November 2014. The Don Dale Youth Detention Centre was moved to the Berrimah prison site following an incident at that prison.
The centre opened on 1 September 1979 and replaced the Fannie Bay Gaol. Initially built to hold 110 prisoners, Berrimah Prison in 2012 housed approximately 750 inmates.
In October 2010 it was reported that the prison changed visiting hours from seven days per week to weekends only, with the move likely being a cost-cutting measure, and at odds with the 2004 government-commissioned review recommending increased visits for prisoners.
In 2012, ABC News reported Berrimah Prison was crowded to the point of overflowing. Conditions at the prison in 2011 were reported to be 'Dickensian', with spoiled food, rats and mosquitoes, with the worst conditions endured by prisoners on remand.The Australian quoted Northern Territory Supreme Court Justice Dean Mildren as saying the conditions do not comply with Australia's international obligations; The Australian also cited the strongest criticisms of the prison's conditions as coming from the Territory's executive director of Correctional Services, Ken Middlebrook, while Correctional Services Minister Gerry McCarthy challenged the report that prisoners were served rotten food. Western Australia's former head of custodial services, Richard Harding, described Berrimah's conditions as "appalling".