Tensions rise in Vic police holding cells Prisoners and police are unhappy that offenders are kept in police cells due to overcrowded jails. PRISONERS and police officers are unhappy that offenders are kept in police cells due to overcrowded jails. The Police Association of Victoria says fights have broken out between prisoners kept in police holding areas due to the cramped conditions, putting further pressure on officers. Court cases will be scheduled on weekends as part of attempts to get matters dealt with as quickly as possible and tackle the problem of overcrowded remand cells. Police Association assistant secretary Bruce McKenzie says officers are outraged at being taken away from police duties to babysit prisoners. "We are getting inundated with complaints from our members who have police cells attached to them, who are overburdened by the responsibilities of looking after prisoners in police cells who ought to be in Corrections Victoria facilities," Mr McKenzie said. Mr McKenzie says the situation has passed crisis point and was becoming a safety concern for prisoners and police officers. "It is extremely tense in police cells, prisoners are being kept in there for too long," he said. He said police cells were unsuitable for prisoners and never designed to accommodate them long-term due to the lack of exercise facilities, no programs and not enough access to natural light. Mr McKenzie says the government needs to act quickly and find a temporary place to hold low-risk prisoners such as a disused military or government facility. He says prisoners in cells in Ringwood have been fighting with each other due to the cramped conditions. Attorney-General Robert Clark said weekend court sittings were "well-advanced" and were being scheduled while new prison places are constructed, with the government, corrections and police working together. Opposition police spokeswoman Jacinta Allan said the prison system was not coping with the crisis that was created by overcrowding. "It is a significant problem, it is a system that is at crisis and breaking point," Ms Allan said. "Communities in the suburbs and regional victoria are deeply concerned about what it means for their community safety and law and order," she said. She said up to 500 police a week are being taken off frontline duties to babysit prisoners in police cells. Costs have recently been awarded against Corrections Victoria in cases where prisoners have not been brought to court, including a $2300 order made on Wednesday because a defendant was not taken to court on the first day of his murder committal hearing last week. Corrections Victoria says temporary accommodation is being created at prisons to help ease the backlog while prisoners may appear in court via videolink where possible.