Correctional officer at Lindsay jail slashed by inmate with ceramic blade

A correctional officer was slashed with a ceramic blade at the Central East Correctional Centre in Lindsay on Monday.

According to the union, the incident happened just before lunchtime when the inmate was refusing lock up.

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He allegedly slashed the officer in the leg three times. The officer was rushed to hospital where he received 24 stitches. Since the incident, the officer has been segregated.

“He’s at home recovering. It’s PTSD and things that we got to get on right away in order to help people mentally to deal with the trauma that they face in these places,” said President of Local 368, Chris Butsch.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "He's at home recovering. It's PTSD and things that we got to get on right away in order to help people mentally to deal with the trauma that they face in these places," said President of Local 368, Chris Butsch.

A similar incident took place on April 8th, when another officer was stabbed.

Butsch said that after yesterday’s events, the union and executive and health and safety teams are trying to get the jail cleared of ceramic blades and drugs by a systematic search using a body scanner.

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“Jails are some of the worst places in Ontario to work, I think, for safety,” said Butsch.

“We need to look at changing the health and safety act in order to give us more protection as workers in here because most often the Ministry of Labour comes in and says it’s an inherent part of our job, they’re not recognising that people can hurt people.”