• Home /
• Statewatch Database /
• Germany: Privatisation, outbreaks and prisons for the elderly

Germany: Privatisation, outbreaks and prisons for the elderly

01 November 2004

The German branch of the British company Serco will take over the partial running of the newly built Hessian prison, providing 99 of the future 231. It is planned to open next year in Hünfeld. Private staff will be responsible for cooking, maintenance and drugs and debt advice and not, as in the UK, for security. North-Rhine Westphalia wants to follow suit and build a partially privatised prison in Düsseldorf. Baden-Württemberg on the other hand is trying to reduce its outbreak quota and has been called an "escape paradise for criminals" by some regional MP's. The Mannheim prison has seen several complaints lodged by inmates against prison guards for stealing. An investigating into the complaints has been launched. Lower Saxony has other problems and is planning prisons for the elderly to deal with the dramatic increase of senior criminals. The regional justice ministry in Hanover is investigating possibilities to build a prison accommodating the needs of the elderly, such as wheelchair access, nurses and a leisure programme. Although some crimes committed by the elderly do make the headlines, (such as the three 63-74 year old bank robbers who stole around 400,000 euros in three robberies using pistols, hand grenades and sledge-hammers or the 70+ "bank robber granny" who committed three successful bank robberies in Düsseldorf before vanishing), most crimes committed by senior citizens are due to poverty: collapsing pensions force many to improve their incomes through shoplifting or fare dodging.

Süddeutsche Zeitung 10, 15 & 29.11.04.