IQALUIT - A representative of the Government of Nunavut appeared in court Wednesday to answer allegations of poor prisoner treatment due to overcrowding at Baffin Correctional Centre.

At the request of judge Beverly Browne, Lorraine Land, the acting director of legal and constitutional law in the Nunavut Department of Justice, came to court to address the complaints of defense lawyer Scott Wheildon and his client Darryl Qaqasiq.

Qaqasiq had been held in the cells of the Iqaluit RCMP detachment since arriving back May 30 from court circuit in Pangnirtung until his court date June 3, because the Baffin Correctional Centre was full.

Wheildon relayed a list of complaints from Qaqasiq which he said constituted illegally poor treatment. There was no access to a shower, no exercise, no change of clothing, the food was poor –- the men in custody were served TV dinners -- and there was 24-hours of light making it difficult to sleep, especially since sometimes Qaqasiq had to sleep on the floor because his two cell-mates got the beds.

Additionally, Wheildon said he had not known his client was in RCMP custody because no one had told him. When he called BCC to speak to Qaqasiq he was told he was still on court circuit. Qaqasiq could not call his lawyer to let him know he was at the RCMP detachment because he had no access to a telephone.

Wheildon told the court Qaqasiq's civil rights had been violated by his stay in the detachment and so he should be released.

Wheildon alleged even prisoners of war are entitled to better living conditions under international law.

Qaqasiq, who is facing several charges of assault, is "unreleasable," according to an opposing crown prosecutor.

"The fact that this has arisen is taken seriously," said Land. "This is an ongoing issue."

Land said BCC, with 95 prisoners on May 29, simply ran out of room. The jail's capacity is 65.

She said 10 prisoners ended up in RCMP cells until some space could be cleared by transferring inmates to a facility in Ontario. As of June 3 there were 88 prisoners at BCC and six more prisoners were scheduled for transfer once RCMP escorts became available.

RCMP Sgt. Peter Pilgrim said the detachment building was old and the police hoped to move to a new facility with greater capacity in the fall.

The RCMP cells have room for 20 prisoners, but the building is designed to keep a person only overnight and then send them to court or to BCC the next day.

Pilgrim said the showers in the aging building are broken.

Qaqasiq was scheduled for a transfer back to BCC, but Wheildon argued this situation would emerge again and again as long as there wasn't capacity in Nunavut's justice system to take in prisoners.

He asked the judge to require the RCMP to provide prisoners with the "minimum basic requirements" required by law such as hygiene, sleep, food, exercise and access to a phone to talk to lawyers.

Land said that would make the RCMP take on the role of a long-term detention facility, which they are not equipped for, as they only take in prisoners on an emergency basis.

Land said the new corrections facility going to start construction in Rankin Inlet this summer will have 32 beds to start. The government is also considering expanding BCC. Also, the government has just signed a new agreement with Nova Scotia to take in Nunavut's excess prisoners, in addition to Ontario and the NWT.