Former WA Corrective Services Minister Bill Johnston defends decision to open Unit 18
The minister responsible for opening the controversial Unit 18 youth detention facility inside a maximum-security adult prison, has defended his decision, saying it was made in good faith. His comments come after a coronial inquest probing WA's first death in juvenile detention was told Unit 18 was created on a series of grievous lies. A warning the following story contains the image of an Aboriginal person who has died and discusses self-harm.
Transcript
00:00Former Corrective Services Minister Bill Johnston wasn't keen to speak at first.
00:06Would you have opened Unit 18 if you knew the truth about what was happening?
00:10Sorry, I mean, you'd need to talk to the Minister.
00:13You were the Minister at the time.
00:15But later broke his silence after weeks of bombshell evidence in the Coroner's Court,
00:19which is examining the death of 16-year-old Cleveland Dodd,
00:22a week after he self-harmed in Unit 18 last year.
00:26The former Director-General of the Justice Department told the inquest
00:29a note to then-Minister Johnston urging him to create the unit contained,
00:33in hindsight, a series of grievous lies.
00:36The Deputy Commissioner at the time, Christine Ginby,
00:39said Unit 18 was the least worst option in the time available.
00:43At the time that I was making the decisions, I had no reason to doubt the Department.
00:47Mr Johnston says he acted in good faith as Minister
00:51and rising tensions in detention, including staff assaults,
00:54led to the creation of Unit 18.
00:57Advocates want Unit 18 closed because they say it's hard to rehabilitate young people
01:01inside a maximum security adult prison.
01:04But both Mr Johnston and the current Minister, Paul Papalia,
01:07say it's necessary to allow more services to run at the main facility at Bankshire Hill.
01:13I make errors, but the good thing is to learn from those
01:17and apply that to your next challenge.
01:21Was opening Unit 18 one of those errors?
01:23No, I don't think opening Unit 18 was one of those errors
01:26because we had to have a secure environment.
01:29He would be the only person alive that has any remote interaction
01:34with juvenile justice that thinks it was a good idea.
01:36Coroner Philip Urquhart was asked if he'd consider calling Mr Johnston
01:40to appear at the inquest, but said he wouldn't.