SAINT JEAN, NL – A retired Ontario health inspector says reports from inmates and judges of rodents at Newfoundland and Labrador’s largest prison indicate an “extreme” and long-standing infestation.

Marilyn Lee, professor emeritus at Metropolitan Toronto University’s School of Public and Professional Health, was surprised by reports that rodents at Her Majesty’s Prison in St. John’s were biting and climbing on inmates while they slept. She said the rodent infestation at the retirement facility poses serious health problems for guards and inmates.

“Prisoners or others should not have to endure rodent infestations of any kind,” said Ms. Lee, who inspected stores, restaurants and correctional facilities in Ontario in the 1980s.

Her Majesty’s Prison opened in 1859, although it has since undergone several improvements and overhauls. The dilapidated and outdated infrastructure is well documented, as is the endemic rodent problem.

A ruling from a provincial judge last year details a 25-year-old inmate who was bitten by a rodent while he slept. “He noticed what appeared to be tooth marks in the wound,” Judge Jacqueline Brazil wrote, adding that the prison nurse agreed the bite was likely from a rodent.

Ms. Lee was particularly affected by this incident.

“It would take a huge infestation” for a rodent to bite someone without provocation, she said, adding that in six years of health inspections, she has seen only one case of a rodent biting someone.

Rats bite more often than mice and can cause a disease called rat-bite fever, Ms. Lee said. She pointed out that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website says rat bite fever can cause “severe illness and death” if left untreated.

The inmate bitten in Her Majesty’s Prison was given antibiotics, the Brazilian judge said in her decision.

The Canadian Press spoke to several inmates last month. They stated that mice can be observed at any time of the day.

One said they climbed onto his body as he slept on the concrete floor, trying to escape the oppressive heat of the aging facility. Another occupant said that as the air passed through, mouse droppings came out of the vents.

“It’s quite extreme, it’s a very serious infestation,” Ms Lee said in response to their stories. Especially (when inmates) see rodents during the day.”

The inmates also described a strong, pungent smell of rodent urine, which Ms. Lee said was unmistakable.

Forcing people to live amid this smell is “unacceptable,” denounced Ms. Lee.

Rodents carry a variety of diseases in their saliva, urine and feces, Ms. Lee said. The most common risk in mice and rats is salmonella. They can also spread hantaviruses, although there are typically fewer than five cases each year in Canada, she said.

Complaints to the Human Rights Commission

The provincial justice ministry said professional pest control companies regularly visit the prison.

“The department takes the responsibility of caring for inmates very seriously,” the department said in an emailed statement Tuesday. Infrastructure issues are a challenge at Her Majesty’s Prison and as a department we work with the Department for Transport and Infrastructure to address maintenance issues that arise.”

The Newfoundland and Labrador Human Rights Commission receives constant calls from prison inmates about issues such as heat in cells and rodents running around on the floor, said Carey Majid, the agency’s executive director.

Complaints about conditions at the prison fall outside the purview of the commission set up to enforce the province’s human rights law. The law addresses discrimination based on protected grounds such as race, nationality and gender identity.

However, Majid added that Human Rights Commission staff would refer inmates’ complaints to the provincial citizen’s representative, who acts as a nationwide ombudsman for people who believe they have been treated unfairly by government departments and agencies.

Where possible, the commission works with the citizen’s representative to ensure complaints are addressed, she said in a recent interview.

Ms. Majid visited the prison several times. She questioned whether many inmates should be incarcerated, adding that it is more expensive to refer a person to the justice system than to provide them with social services that might have prevented them from going to prison in the first place.

“Just think of legal aid, judges, (incarceration) costs, police costs,” she listed. And what that person really needs is mental health support and quality, stable, safe housing or substance abuse support.”