Brandon v. Canada
(Correctional Service)

(1996), 131 D.L.R. (4th) 761, 105 F.T.R. 243, [1996] F.C.J. No.1 (F.C.T.D.)

    The applicant B served seven days in punitive segregation after pleading guilty for a disciplinary offence of failing to remain at his place of work after being caught with a female staff member in an unauthorized area. Upon completion of these seven days, B was kept in segregation for an additional forty days for the alleged purpose of maintaining the good order and discipline of the institution pursuant to section 40(1)(a) of the Penitentiary Service Regulations. Later, B was replaced in administrative segregation for another twenty-eight days for what was considered to be his efforts to play on the sympathies of a staff member by claiming falsely that his sister had just died. B filed an action arguing that the actions of the CSC in holding him in administrative segregation for the combined total of sixty-eight days were unjustified and amounted to false imprisonment.
    Gibson J.'s judgment was for the plaintiff inmate. It was acknowledged before that he had committed no offence. In the terms of section 40(1) of the Regulations, no evidence was adduced that satisfied Gibson J. that the director of the institution could have been satisfied that, for the maintenance of good order and discipline in the institution or, in the best interest of an inmate, it was necessary or desirable that B should be kept from associating with other inmates. While, on the basis of B's efforts to play on the sympathies of a staff member and on the basis of his prior history of misconduct with another staff member, the director could be reasonably satisfied that there was justification in terms of the maintenance of good order and discipline of the institution in keeping the inmate from associating with one or more institutional staff members, that is not a ground for dissociation. As a result, B was awarded $680 in damages, $3000 in exemplary or punitive damages, and costs for false imprisonment as a result of his unlawful placement into administrative segregation, on two separate occasions, for a total of 68 days.
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