Detainees need to be monitored and medically examined more effectively in order to address this problem Chancellor of Justice Ülle Madise has stated.

The justice chancellor made her remarks in a letter to the PPS Director General Egert Belitšev.

Madise wrote: "Analysis of these deaths indicates that a shortage of personnel has hampered the supervision of detained individuals."

"Efforts, including among other things video surveillance, should continue to enhance the supervision of people held in PPA detention facilities. Whenever possible, a healthcare professional should be able to examine a detained person," Madise continued.

Madise added that police officers involved in working with detainees must regularly take part in relevant training, covering for instance first aid, the handling of intoxicated or potentially intoxicated individuals including those who may have ingested psychotropic substances, and dealing with those with mental health issues.

"After analysis of each fatality case, feedback should be regularly provided to PPA officers, even if no shortcomings were found with regard to their actions," the justice chancellor went on.

According to Madise, all "drunk tank" cells at PPA detention centers are already equipped with video surveillance.

"So as to ensure the effective supervision in short-term sobering-up cells, using both video surveillance and direct visual monitoring is recommended," she said.

"A video camera alone cannot monitor people or indicate potential health issues. Video surveillance is purely a pre-requisite tool for observing individuals brought in for sobering up, and/or detained people displaying other signs of danger," Madise noted.

Madise wrote that a change in the situation could be spotted by an attentive employee monitoring video footage, an officer who is not burdened with other tasks and can take sufficient breaks during their work hours.

The justice chancellor described that those individuals who had died while at PPA detention facilities had generally been in a cell provided with video surveillance, and were supposed to be under PPA monitoring.

In reality at PPA detention facilities, the duty officer or other staff member constantly has other responsibilities in front of them, in addition to monitoring: They must for instance regularly go out on patrol, receive visitors, escort detainees for exercise walks, distribute food to detainees etc.

All these activities serve to divert attention, and make the continuous monitoring of camera footage challenging to carry out.

Additionally, footage from multiple cameras may be displayed on a computer screen simultaneously, rendering them small in format.

The justice chancellor had noted in a 2024 recommendation to prisons that where there are many individuals to monitor, this dilutes officers' attention, making it less likely that dangerous situations will be spotted in time.

"A supervisory officer who discovered an individual who had committed suicide stated that in situations where video surveillance information from several cells is consolidated onto the one screen, having two large monitors would be beneficial," Madise outlined.

"The internal control office, which analyzed the incident, concluded that the preparations for the act of suicide would only have been noticed if one detainee was attentively monitored on a large screen. Unfortunately, this was not possible at the detention facility in question," the justice chancellor went on.

Monitoring must also extend to PPA vehicles, she said.

"Please enhance the supervision of individuals brought in for sobering up," Madise wrote to the PPA itself.

Madise also requested that the PPA and healthcare professionals strive to ensure that, wherever possible, a healthcare worker carefully examines all individuals arriving at PPA detention facilities.

This is especially important if the person is intoxicated, showing signs of intoxication, or otherwise requiring special attention, she noted.

"An intoxicated person who is incapable of contact or movement should not be placed in a sobering-up cell or any other PPA detention facility. Such individuals should remain under the supervision of a healthcare provider," Madise stressed.

Madise expects feedback from Belitšev on her recommendations by November 1 this year.

Between 2020 and 2023, 15 people died while incarcerated at PPA detention facilities or being transported thereto.

Five of these individuals died while inside police vehicles plus 10 in PPA detention buildings. In all bar one of the cases, the cause of death was alcohol or drug intoxication. One person committed suicide.

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