“Think of the knives with which meat or vegetables are cut during cooking activities,” reports the Judicial Institutions Agency (DJI) on Monday. It is one of six measures taken after the fatal stabbing last month in Den Hey-Acker youth prison in Breda and “previous serious incidents.”
A knife to lubricate a sandwich will remain available. “The measure to ban sharp knives will take at least half a year,” according to the DJI.
Group size is also taken into account. “We have been working for many years with eight to ten young people in one group. Because the target group has demonstrably changed and hardened, the group approach is once again being discussed at administrative level.”
Other measures consist of developing and working with an alert list that focuses on the mental status of young people, and improving security against contraband. A team of specialists will also look into the rules and customs within juvenile detention centers and then “enter into discussion with the group leaders.” In addition, it is examined how the image can be improved.
The State Juvenile Detention Center consists of four locations: Den Hey-Acker in Breda, De Hartelborgt in Spijkenisse, De Hunnerberg in Nijmegen and Horsterveen in Evertsoord. The age of the detained young people is between 12 and 23 years.
In the fatal stabbing in Den Hey-Acker, a 19-year-old detainee from Enschede was killed and a 20-year-old detainee from Nijmegen was injured. An 18-year-old man from The Hague is suspected.
The juvenile detention center made headlines a few months ago when a juvenile who was incarcerated escaped. The young detainee had a firearm and was taking DJI staff hostage with it. He was eventually shot dead by the police in Belgium.