NSW Prison Officers Walk Off Job Over Lenient Inmate Assault Sentence Impacting Courts

Prison officers at Cessnock Correctional Centre and other facilities across New South Wales have walked off the job in protest after inmate Cameron Welsh, who violently attacked four guards earlier this year, was given a lenient sentence that may see him released soon. Welsh's assault left all four officers hospitalized, with two suffering injuries severe enough to prevent them from returning to work. Despite his violent history, including a 2023 arrest for attacking two men with a baseball bat, the magistrate did not add time to Welsh's sentence, prompting widespread outrage among prison staff and union leaders. The union criticized the sentence as a "slap on the wrist" that sends a dangerous message that assaults on prison officers will go unpunished, threatening the safety of corrections staff and the community. The strike has disrupted court proceedings and prison operations statewide, with the Public Service Association demanding urgent government action. Corrections officials have noted that Welsh was transferred to a high-security Supermax facility and isolated from other prisoners, while the police prosecutor is considering an appeal to the sentence.