The closure of the Dornbirn branch of Feldkirch prison is met with resistance. The Justice Department’s “surprising action” is “not understandable at all,” said State Security Councilor Christian Gantner (ÖVP). The FCG union had strongly criticized on Friday that the branch had focused on rehabilitation and that there would only be detention in the future. The Justice Department pointed to the bureau’s underutilization.
“Contrary to all the big announcements about prison employment and rehabilitation, the only facility in Vorarlberg that actually met these requirements will be shut down without much ado,” said Gerhard Stoppel, a prison guards union representative. Gantner also criticized the fact that the well-functioning branch, the only one with a focus on rehabilitation, could not close its doors forever and the dedicated work there got under the wheels.
The situation in Feldkirch has been very tight and structurally inadequate for years. The fact that detainees are increasingly being transferred to Middle Austria due to overcrowding is also a burden on their relatives. A rapid reversal of the branch closure is “inevitable.” The ministry must finally provide sufficient staff and adequate working conditions for the guards and prisoners in Vorarlberg, Gantner demanded.
Ministry does not identify any disadvantages for rehabilitation
At the request of the APA, the Justice Department said the condition of the Dornbirn site has been criticized for a long time, including structural flaws and the lack of utilization of the day-discharge system. The number of released persons has fallen sharply for years, from six in 2021 and only two in 2022. There have been no prisoners in Dornbirn since September 30. Investments in the field office are therefore not compatible with the principles of economy, efficiency and economy.
In the run-up to the closure decided in 2022, the utilization in Feldkirch and Innsbruck has been closely examined. Feldkirch Prison is currently not fully used. Day-loaders could also be admitted in Innsbruck. The other inmates from the branch were transferred to Innsbruck and Feldkirch, but the detainees could still be held in a relaxed prison system and the ministry saw no drawbacks to rehabilitation.
Precarious situation in prison
The structural and personnel situation in the Vorarlberg penal system has been precarious for a long time. In August, the head of Feldkirch prison wrote to judges not to advertise prison cases for trial on one day of the week, because there were not enough prison guards to escort the inmates to trial each day. In addition, there was always overcrowding in the prison and desolate conditions in the sanitary area.
The Feldkirch institution was opened in 1905, a wing was added and renovated in 1964. A general renovation took place from 1992 to 1996. An expansion and modernization of the institution has been planned for more than ten years, but has been repeatedly postponed. “With regard to the planned construction projects in the coming years, the Feldkirch prison will be given priority,” the ministry promised on Friday, without being more specific.
Source: Krone
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