Prisoners hear hard-hitting road safety message

(File)
(File)

Prison seems an unlikely place to educate about road safety, but a group in Hawke's Bay is doing just that.

A total of 176 prisoners from the regional jail went through its programme in 2015, and it's helping men turn their lives around.

Some men are in the Hawke's Bay Regional Prison because of problems with drugs and alcohol, some of which are in a treatment programme, serving sentences between six months and life.

Most will get back behind the wheel someday, and Road Safe Hawke's Bay is helping them change their behaviour.

"Initially they come in reasonably sceptical and I can understand it dressed as I am," says Senior Constable Iain Cheyne.

Snr Const Cheyne talks to them about a fatal crash he investigated involving alcohol and speed.

Being a sober driver is an easy solution many of these prisoners have ignored in the past.

One prisoner found out just yesterday a family member was in a crash. They received a letter from their sister saying she's learning to walk again, from her "making a silly decision drinking and driving" – a silly decision two prisoners say they won't make again

The programme's manager, Linda Anderson, says that's the aim.

"We can't save the world but there are a lot of men wanting to make change," she says.

She says what resonates most with the prisoners is hearing from Tori Morrison – the mother of a boy critically injured in a crash.

"I was that mum screaming and yelling and crying and punching walls, and screaming to let me be by my boy," she told them.

Ms Morrison's son, Ben, was travelling in a van with six other young people when it crossed the centre line and crashed into an oncoming vehicle. Two people died.

There was alcohol involved; most people weren't wearing their seatbelts and the driver was only on her learner's licence.

The programme finishes with them seeing the van first-hand.

Any scepticism from the start of the day is gone as they thank the group with a performance and take away a message that should stay with them when they get out.

Because, as one prisoner now says, if you drink and drive you're booking yourself a fatal ticket.

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