AUSTRALIA'S HARDEST PRISON

Over the past decade Australia’s prison population has doubled. But of all the States, it’s Western Australia that has the highest number of prisoners per population. Incarceration rates here are 40 percent higher than the national average. So what is it about the ‘Big Empty’ that causes blokes to end up behind bars? Is it more lawless out West? Are the coppers better at catching crooks? Does the convict past have a stronger influence in Australia’s largest State? One thing is for sure. Serving time in a WA prison is not for the faint hearted. With prison capacity at an all time high, the cell blocks are overflowing. Casuarina, Western Australia’s Maximum Security Prison, is designed for 360 inmates. It currently houses almost double that. For the first time ever, our cameras go inside Casuarina Prison to witness life behind bars in an Australian Super Max.