Story: Prisons

Former gang member Tuhoe Isaac is pictured outside Mt Eden Prison in December 2007. Isaac spent many years in Mt Eden, but now works to help at-risk youngsters turn away from crime. By the 1980s gang members made up a significant proportion of prisoners, with the majority being Māori or Pacific Islanders. The prevention of violence between rival gangs became a major factor in the way prisons were organised.