CCJC’s Corrections News can now be viewed mobile devises at mobile.ccjc.org
07/29/10: Colorado: Jail inmates won't be sending personal letters anymore
From now on, the only sealed envelopes coming out of the El Paso County Criminal Justice Center will be addressed to lawyers. Inmates wanting to write family and friends will use postcards issued by the jail, and marked with the sheriff's star. Sheriff Terry Maketa says the new policy will save money and headaches, while increasing security at the facility.
By J. Adrian Stanley, Colorado Springs Independent
07/29/10: Georgia: Deputy on mend after jail attack
A Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Department deputy is expected to recover following a violent attack by a jail inmate whose mental health has recently been questioned, according to officials and court documents. Deputy William Lamb, 47, was working a housing unit Wednesday evening when inmate James Leon Washington, 18, suddenly attacked, striking the deputy in the face and pounding his head into a concrete floor, said Sheriff’s Department spokeswoman Stacey Bourbonnais. Two other inmates rushed to Lamb’s aid, pulling Washington away and restraining him until other staff members could respond, Bourbonnais said.
By Josh Green, Daily Post
07/29/10: Illinois: Staffing shortages, inadequate treatment plague STC youth prison
The youth prison in St. Charles suffers from acute staffing shortages and inadequate
treatment programs, according to a study released Thursday. And it’s not alone. Illinois
Models for Change, which is part of a multi-state juvenile justice systems reform
effort funded by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, found deficiencies
throughout the eight Illinois Youth Centers.
By Ashley Rhodebeck, Kane County Chronicle
07/29/10: New Jersey: Probation officers honored in Toms River
Two senior probation officers in Ocean County were honored for their work at an awards ceremony last week. Dan Stiles and Kellie Duff received awards from the Chief Probation Officers of New Jersey on July 21. The ceremony was held during National Probation, Parole and Community Supervision Week to honor probation staff for outstanding leadership, achievements and meritorious service in the supervision of adult and juvenile offenders and in child-support enforcement.
Asbury Park Press
07/28/10: Florida: Hernando County gives jail firm a deadline to settle inventory dispute
Corrections Corporation of America has until 5 p.m. today to reach an agreement with the county over its jail furnishings inventory dispute or face immediate legal action. County commissioners on Tuesday voiced concerns that CCA has said it will begin removing from the jail items that it believes are owned by the firm in the coming days. Commission Chairman John Druzbick asked about security at the jail if CCA begins removing beds, mattresses, cameras and other safety equipment before their contract ends and the sheriff takes over the facility late next month.
By Barbara Behrendt, Times
07/28/10: Maryland: 14-year-old charged with murder, rape at P.G. juvenile facility
A 14-year-old boy has been accused in the beating death of a counselor at the Cheltenham youth detention facility. He was arraigned Wednesday in Prince George’s County juvenile court. The boy is accused of killing 65-year-old Hannah Wheeling in February.
By Emily Babay, Examier
07/28/10: Maryland: Officials: Prison Cell Phone Crackdown Is Working
Fewer phones are finding their way inside state prisons, and officials say that's leading to less crime both in and outside prison walls. Cell phone sniffing dogs are one tool the Division of Correction uses in confiscating cell phones in prison. "The proliferation of cell phones increases chances for prison violence fueled by illegal activity," said Gary Maynard, Secretary, Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services.
By Andrea Jujii, WJZ News
07/28/10: Pennsylvania: Other juvenile detention centers struggling; loss is Lancaster County's gain
York County closed its juvenile detention center earlier this month. On Wednesday, six York County youths were sitting in Lancaster County's Youth Intervention Center. Also on Wednesday, Dauphin County commissioners heard a proposal to close their juvenile detention facility. If that happens, Dauphin officials said, at least some of their juvenile offenders would be sent to the Lancaster YIC as well.
By P J Reilly, Intelligencer Journal
07/27/10: Arkansas: Prison guard killed in apparent accident
An Arkansas prison guard was killed Sunday in an apparent accident on the grounds of the Tucker Maximum Security Correctional Facility in Jefferson County, a prison spokeswoman said today. Capt. Jackie Davis, 51, was killed about 3:30 p.m. Sunday when his girlfriend backed her car into him outside the couple’s residence on prison grounds, said Dina Tyler, spokeswoman for the state Department of Correction. State police are investigating the incident.
By John Lyon, Arkansas News Bureau
07/27/10: Illinois: Union opposes youth prison merger
The union representing workers in the state’s youth prison system is panning a plan to restructure the agency for the second time in four years. In a report released Tuesday, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Council 31 says merging the Department of Juvenile Justice with the Department of Children and Family Services won’t solve problems facing the youth. Rather, the union says the state could solve problems within the agency by stepping up hiring for education and treatment of the youthful offenders.
By Kurt Erickson, Springfield News Bureau
07/27/10: Oregon: Youth Authority staffer honored
Colynn Elder, a juvenile parole and probation officer working with youth in Linn, Benton and Lincoln counties, has been honored for exemplary service to the Oregon Youth Authority and the youth the agency serves. Elder received one of the state juvenile corrections agency’s “coin awards,” a medal given to employees for excellence in reflecting agency values. Elder also works as the OYA foster care certifier for Linn, Benton, Lincoln and part of Marion counties.
Democrat-Herald
07/27/10: Pennsylvania: Prison officials grapple with geese waste
Officials at a state prison in northwestern Pennsylvania prison say they're having a harder time keeping geese out of the facility than they are keeping prisoners inside. Officials at the State Correctional Institution at Albion say an abundance of geese droppings are creating a sanitary problem inside the prison and in the parking lot outside. The inmates have been cleaning up the mess, but it's so big the U.S. Department of Agriculture is being asked to help.
Associated Press
07/26/10: California: State agrees to discuss prison lockdowns with rights group
Facing a threatened legal battle over alleged racial discrimination, California prison officials have agreed to meet with the Prison Law Office over the department’s controversial use of lockdowns on general population inmates. In a July 17 letter to the secretary of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Matt Cate, the Prison Law Office threatened to sue the department over lockdowns that singled out entire races for punishment – sometimes for months. Now, the department has agreed to meetings with the nonprofit law firm.
By Micahel Montgomery, California Watch
07/26/10: Kansas: Prison In Partial Lockdown
Officials placed a northeast Kansas prison on partial lockdown following a food fight in the dining hall. Lansing Correctional Facility spokesman Brett Peterson told KMBC-TV the food fight broke out around noon Monday. Peterson says that several inmates were involved, but none required hospitalization for their injuries and no staff members were hurt.
Associated Press
07/26/10: Mississippi: Geo Group inks extension to run Mississippi prison
Private prison operator Geo Group Inc. said Monday it signed a contract to keep managing a Mississippi prison that is expected to generate about $21.7 million in annual revenue. The Boca Raton, Fla., company said it will continue to manage the 1,500-bed East Mississippi Correctional Facility in Meridian, Miss., through March 15, 2015. Geo Group has managed the prison since 1999.
Associated Press
07/26/10: South Carolina: Prison farm expands
For three years, South Carolina's Department of Corrections has run a deficit. Now the agency has an innovative idea to cut costs and give inmates a chance to better themselves. Several hundred non-violent offenders earn the right to work at the Wateree River Correctional Facility. They produce everything from sweet potatoes to corn to eggs, which helps feed 24,000 inmates statewide.
ABC News 15
07/25/10: California: Under the U.S. Supreme Court: Opening prison doors for healthcare
The U.S. Supreme Court says it will hear argument next term on whether federal judges can force California to release nearly 50,000 prison inmates, mainly because of problems with providing healthcare. American families struggling with their own health insurance might have trouble understanding how a convicted criminal can get a free pass from prison because of inadequate healthcare. But the federal trial judges' panel in San Francisco that ordered the release said there was absolutely no other practical way to fix the constitutional problem
By Michael Kirkland, UPI
07/25/10: Florida: Idea may ease jail overcrowding
With the inevitable problem of overcrowding in the St. Johns County jail just a few years away, Sheriff David Shoar said he has found a temporary solution that could add up to 10 more years of life to the jail system. Shoar said the county will be taking over a building and parcel of land from the St. Johns Juvenile Correctional Residential Facility, a state-run facility for 50 to 60 high-risk juveniles located at 4500 Avenue D behind the sheriff's office and current jail. The sheriff said the county plans to build a "sprung structure" on what once was a playing field for the adjacent correctional facility.
By Justine Griffin, St. Augustine Record
07/25/10: Minnesota: Cost to jail illegal immigrants stirs debate in county
An attempt in Scott County to tally up the price of illegal immigrants who break the law is being both praised and panned. In response to inquiries from two county commissioners who face reelection challenges this year, County Attorney Pat Ciliberto told the County Board not long ago that it costs a fortune. University of Minnesota immigration expert Katherine Fennelly said the county's top prosecutor is "creating lots of smoke where there's no fire."
By David Peterson, Star Tribune
07/25/10: New York: Feds: Ease up on kids
Children at four of New York's juvenile detention centers — including the Tryon Residential Center in Johnstown — have faced excessive force and lack of proper mental health treatment in violation of their constitutional rights, according to a report by the U.S. Department of Justice released Monday. The report details how staff at the four facilities — Tryon's two facilities, one for boys and one for girls, as well as the Lansing Residential Center and the Louis Gossett Jr. Residential Center in Lansing, Tompkins County — have routinely used "uncontrolled, unsafe applications of force" to gain control in every type of situation, departing from "generally accepted standards" as well as policies outlined by the state Office of Children and Family Services. "Anything from sneaking an extra cookie to initiating a fist fight may result in a full prone restraint with handcuffs," according to the report.
By Irene Jay Liu, Times Union
07/25/10: Ohio: Probation system fragmented
Ohio's probation system is a jumble of overlapping and fragmented agencies without common rules for improving the way the state treats offenders under supervision, according to a report to be released Monday. The study also says offenders who commit minor drug and property crimes are often supervised for years, while inmates who pose a high risk to public safety are released from prison without supervision. The study by the Council of State Government Justice Center also confirms something Ohio officials have known for years: A large number of offenders cycle through prisons with sentences of just a few months, placing a costly burden on an already-strapped agency.
By Andrew Welsh-Huggins, Associated Press
07/25/10: Texas: Teen opens fire at juvenile detention center
A 16-year-old boy from Kansas City has been charged with assault after firing several shots and threatening suicide at an East Texas juvenile detention center early Saturday, police said. The boy was treated for minor injuries from cut glass and returned to custody, the Tyler Police Department said in a statement. Police had arrested the boy late Friday because he had outstanding warrants against him as he arrived at the bus station in Tyler, some 98 miles east of Dallas.
Associated Press
07/24/10: Massachusetts: Man held in tire-iron assault on officer
A Lowell man is behind bars after he sought out a corrections officer living in Lowell, ambushed and beat him with a tire iron outside the officer's home, according to police. Trevor Derrick Washington, 25, of 228 Lawrence St., #2, Lowell, has been ordered held on $4,000 cash bail or $40,000 surety after pleading innocent this week in Lowell District Court to armed assault with intent to murder and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon. As a result of a search of Washington's car, he was also charged with possession of a class D drug with intent to distribute, and unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition.
By Lisa Redmond, Lowell Sun
07/22/10: Illinois: Law Makes Disabling Jail Cell Doors A Felony
Holding up a five-inch thick stack of work orders to fix jail doors, Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart on Wednesday hailed a new law making it a felony for inmates to jam objects into cell doors to prevent them from locking. Gov. Quinn signed the bill into law Wednesday at a news conference with Dart in a maximum-security wing of the Cook County Jail. "It is no small issue for us," Dart said.
Sun-Times
07/22/10: Oklahoma: Prisons to allow short-timers to smoke
A ban on smoking in prison will be lifted for inmates at Oklahoma's minimum-security facilities next month over the objections of a state legislator who is also a doctor. "We're short-staffed. Do we want to spend time chasing tobacco around the yards?" Oklahoma Department of Corrections spokesman Jerry Massie said.
Reuters
07/22/10: Texas: Lamar County jail under budget
Jail operations account for a large portion of nearly any county’s budget. For Lamar County, it comes to about $2.2 million in the new budget — about $75,000 more than the current year. And it has been operating very well, Sheriff B.J. McCoy said.
By Jeff Parish, Paris News
07/22/10: Texas: Private company wants to keep operating Fort Worth prison for parole violators
A private prison for parole violators is bidding for a new contract to continue operating at 4700 Blue Mound Road. The facility is run by The GEO Group, which has had a spotty record with some of its other Texas prison facilities the past several years. Before the contract is awarded, a public hearing will be held. "Their contract is set to expire ... and GEO is in the process of bidding on those beds again," said Jason Clark, spokesman for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. "The hearing is a chance for the public [to] provide feedback."
By Darren Barbee, Star-Telegram
07/21/10: Colorado: Jail adds citizenship status to public census
The Boulder County Jail has long maintained a daily online tally of the inmates under its supervision, but a recent change to that document now notes additional details, including citizenship. However, those who might be tempted to search the document for information about crimes committed by illegal immigrants in Boulder County won’t get too far. The data is reported by the inmates and unverified through federal channels. And, of course, citizenship and immigration status are not the same thing.
By Pierrette J Shields, Times Call
07/21/10: Georgia: Geo Group signs contract with Georgia
Private prison operator Geo Group said Wednesday it signed a contract with Georgia's Department of Corrections for the development and operation of a new 1,500-bed correctional facility. The facility will be located in Milledgeville, Ga. Under the deal, GEO will finance, develop, and operate the $80 million facility on state-owned land pursuant to a 40-year ground lease. The facility is expected to generate about $28 million in annual revenue and open in the first quarter of 2012.
Associated Press
07/21/10: Nevada: Gov, secretary of state, spar over prison
Gov. Jim Gibbons and Secretary
of State Ross Miller sparred Wednesday over the governor's push to close the aging
Nevada State Prison, with both claiming public safety is on their side. In an opinion
essay published Wednesday, Miller defended the state prison board's rejection earlier
this month to allow the transfer of inmates and staff from the 140-year-old prison
in Carson City. Miller said closing the prison won't compensate for staffing shortages
caused by requiring correctional officers to take a furlough day each month, and
that correctional officers should be exempt from furloughs, as they were before July
1.
By Sandra Cherab, Daily Sparks Tribune
07/21/10: Texas: Novel approach: reading courses as an alternative to prison
With one of the highest incarceration rates in the world, and the death penalty, the US state of Texas seems the last place to embrace a liberal-minded alternative to prison. But when Mitchell Rouse was convicted of two drug offences in Houston, the former x-ray technician who faced a 60-year prison sentence – reduced to 30 years if he pleaded guilty – was instead put on probation and sentenced to read. "I was doing it because it was a condition of my probation and it would reduce my community hours," Rouse recalls.
By Anna Barker, Guardian (UK)
A federal judge has ordered lawyers in a lawsuit over conditions at a maximum security state prison to try and settle parts of the case. Attorneys for the Department of Corrections and the Atlanta-based Southern Center for Human Rights will meet next Tuesday in Tuscaloosa in a settlement conference. But U.S. District Judge Keith Watkins of Montgomery made it clear he expects some parts of the case over the Donaldson Correctional Facility to go forward, possibly as a partial class-action suit.
By Bob Lowry. Huntsville Times
07/20/10: California: Two gang fights break out in Santa Cruz County Jail
One man was stabbed and another beaten when two separate gang-related fights broke out inside County Jail during the morning meal Sunday, jail officials reported. A gang member armed with a piece of sharpened plastic stabbed another inmate in a maximum- security, gang-segregated unit around 7:30 a.m. Sunday, according to Sheriff's Office Lt. Shea Johnson, who works in the jail. The victim was swiped across the face with the makeshift weapon and had to go to Dominican Hospital to get stitches, officials reported.
By Jennifer Squires, Santa Cruz Sentinel
07/20/10: Massachusetts: Prison OKs shades, fans to help inmates keep their cool
Sweltering cons at one Bay State prison are being allowed to break the rules behind bars and string sheets over windows to block the blazing sun during a mid-summer heat wave that has brought the region to its knees. An MCI-Norfolk guard told the Herald a rule against rigging laundry over windows has been lifted and ice is being added to drinks to keep the prison from hitting a boiling point. Inmates statewide can also buy a fan for $26.56 at any canteen to cool their cells.
By Joe Dwinell, Boston Herald
07/20/10: Congress moves to crack down on prison cell phones
Congress moved Tuesday to make it tougher for federal prison inmates to use cell phones and wireless devices to direct criminal activities within or outside prison walls. The House voted by voice to close a loophole in federal law by banning the use or possession of cell phones or wireless devices in federal prisons and classifying those devices as contraband. Currently, cell phones and wireless devices are not specifically defined as contraband, and inmates and guards caught smuggling the devices into prisons are rarely punished.
Associated Press
07/19/10: California: San Luis Obispo County Jail staff halts suicide attempt
San Luis Obispo County Jail personnel responded in time to save the life of an inmate who was trying to hang himself with a towel in his jail cell, the Sheriff's Department said. The incident involving a 44-year-old man took place around 11 a.m. Thursday morning, but the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Department first released information on the attempted suicide today. A correctional officer found the inmate trying to hang himself, and a jail response team was called and removed the man from his cell.
Santa Maria Times
07/19/10: Illinois: Quinn signs law requiring more information on inmates released early from prison
More information about Illinois inmates released from prison early must now be posted on the Corrections Department's website. Gov. Pat Quinn signed legislation Monday creating a "Community Notification of Inmate Early Release" hyperlink on the prison site so that taxpayers can more readily know who's getting out early. The legislation was prompted by The Associated Press report last winter that more than 1,700 inmates — hundreds of them violent — had been secretly released early from prison after spending just days or weeks behind bars.
Associated Press
07/19/10: Kentucky: Prison Restricts Pastoral Visits To Inmates
Gerald Otahal arrived at death row early on a recent Thursday morning, ready for
his regular visit to counsel and pray with condemned inmate Gregory Wilson. What
happened next left Otahal puzzled - guards turned him away at the door with instructions
to go home as the Kentucky Department of Corrections cracks down on pastoral visits
at the Kentucky State Penitentiary. "He has no outlet now. He has no one to pray
with. No one to talk to him about the hereafter," said Otahal, a part-time pastor
from Owensboro who ministers to death row inmates. "Good grief. I'm just astounded
they took this away."
Associated Press
07/19/10: Louisiana: Juvenile Detention Reform Helps Ease Overcrowding
Caddo Juvenile Detention Center's small cell blocks are reserved mostly for teens
charged with armed robbery, sex crimes and other violent felony offenses. Despite
a reported increase in younger, more violent criminals on the streets of Shreveport
- including two teen girls charged with the attempted murder of a 70-year-old youth
center worker - the facility houses fewer juveniles per day than it has in years.
In Caddo Juvenile Detention Center, the daily occupancy dropped to nearly half of
the average 45 to 50 children housed three years ago. Prior to 2007, juvenile officials
struggled with overcrowding and young offenders making repeat visits.
Associated Press
07/18/10: Florida: Slain officer's family sues prison system
The family of slain corrections officer Donna Fitzgerald has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the state Department of Corrections and others. The lawsuit claims lapses in security at Tomoka Correctional Institution were the cause of the officer's death. Fitzgerald, 50, of Port Orange was fatally stabbed 25 times with a prison made knife as she worked an overtime shift at a prison work program. Her killer, Enoch Hall, 41, was later sentenced to die for the June 25, 2008 slaying by lethal injection.
By Jay Stapelton, News Journal
07/18/10: Indiana: Prison facility installs stun fence, doesn’t reduce tower staff
The medium-security prison in Pendleton made a leap forward in security earlier this month, joining a national trend of installing stun fences to help keep inmates in. But the move doesn’t mean the elimination of tower guards, according to facility personnel. “It’s another piece of security, more of a deterrent,” said Lt. Eric Niccum, a perimeter supervisor at the Correctional Industrial Facility.
By Christina M. Wright The Herald Bulletin
07/18/10: Michigan: Near escape at prison raises security questions
The attempted prison break of three men responsible for killing nine people shows Michigan has dangerously downgraded inmates' security classifications, prosecutors said. The three inmates stole a tractor-trailer and crashed it through a fence at the Kinross Correctional Facility near Sault Ste. Marie on Thursday. Seth Privacky, 30, who had been serving a life sentence for killing five people near Muskegon in 1998, was shot dead by a corrections officer.
Associated Press
In Kentucky, authorities started a controversial program to release inmates early to alleviate prison overcrowding. In California, federal judges ordered prisons to shed 46,000 inmates in a case heading to the U.S. Supreme Court. But in New Jersey, the prison population fell 14.8 percent from 2000 to 2009 without any need for such drastic actions, according to new federal statistics. New Jersey is one of only six states to reduce the number of prisoners over the decade.
By Chris Megerian, Star-Ledger
07/17/10: California: 100 Adelanto prison employees laid off for several months
Some 100 city prison employees will be out of a job for at least the next several months, since the private operator that bought the city-owned prison for $28 million has yet to land a government contract. The employees of the Adelanto Community Correctional Facility were officially laid off June 4, but city officials agreed to pay them through Aug. 4, in hopes that private prison operator GEO Group, Inc. would land a state or federal contract and quickly rehire them. In mid-May the inmates at the 650-bed correctional facility were transferred out, with GEO Group planning to close it and complete renovations over the summer.
By Natasha Lindstrom, Daily Press
07/17/10: New Jersey: Prison officials trying to put end to cell phone use in cells
New Jersey prisons seized an average of 42 cellular telephones a month from inmates through May of this year. That pace is slightly behind 2009, when a total of 575 were confiscated at an average of 48 per month, but it's still enough to be a major concern for the new head of the state Department of Corrections. "It's an industry-wide problem, and actually it's one of my pet concerns right now," Commissioner Gary M. Lanigan said during a recent stop at South Woods State Prison in Bridgeton.
By Joseph P Smith, Park Press
07/16/10: Florida: Geo Group sets vote date for Cornell acquisition
Private prison operator Geo Group Inc. said Friday that shareholders will vote next month on its $385 million purchase of Cornell Cos. The vote is scheduled for 10 a.m. on Aug. 12 in a resort in Boca Raton, Fla. Cornell's shareholders are also scheduled to vote at the same time at Cornell's headquarters in Houston. Shareholders of record at the close of business on July 2 are entitled to vote.
Associated Press
07/16/10: New York: Commission faults youth prison for party
The New York State Commission of Correction said Friday that top officials and staff were irresponsible when they authorized and failed to supervise a party at a youth prison where some violent offenders had sex with their dates. The commission faulted the Office of Children and Family Services for authorizing the Goshen Secure Center in the Hudson Valley to hold the December party for four offenders as a reward for good behavior. They ranged in age from 17 to 20, three doing time for murder and one for armed robbery. Sex caught on video cameras appeared to include a lap dance between one couple and oral sex between another.
By Michael Vertanin, Associated Press
07/16/10: Ohio: Federal lawsuit: Jail guards using Tasers way too often
Guards at the Franklin County jail are using Tasers "in a callous and sadistic manner," posing substantial risk to the health and safety of inmates, a state agency that advocates for the disabled charged in a federal lawsuit filed today. The Ohio Legal Rights Service charged that correction officers use Tasers in a "gratuitous and torturous" way against inmates, many with disabilities. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Columbus, said the actions are in violation of a Franklin County Sheriff's office policy and the inmates' constitutional rights.
By Bill Blush, Dispatch
The Council of Prison Locals (CPL) of the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) today denounced a decision by the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) to eliminate Federal Prison Industries (FPI) services at nine BOP facilities. The plan also calls for downsizing operations at three additional facilities and personnel reductions at eight more locations. In the end, 140 staff positions will be eliminated, in addition to the 105 eliminated in 2009, from a work force that has seen its staffing levels decrease for years.
PR Newswire
07/15/10: Colorado: Stripped of dignity
Being strip-searched has long been a part of incarceration. But inmates at Denver Women’s Correctional Facility (DWCF) say a change in their strip-search procedure subjects them to undue humiliation and leaves some of them traumatized, particularly those with a history of sexual assault. Boulder Weekly has received 10 hand-written letters from inmates at DWCF describing their experiences with the new strip-search procedure, which requires women to part and lift their labia and to pull back their clitoral hoods to prove that they aren’t hiding contraband in their vagina or vulva. Some of the inmates complained that the new procedure is causing them great distress due to past trauma.
By Pamela White Boulder Weekly
07/15/10: Iowa: Ludwick: Staffing did not contribute to assault at Iowa State Penitentiary
Iowa State Penitentiary Warden Nick Ludwick has only been at his post for about a
month, but he is looking forward to working with the community. On Wednesday he commented
on the recent assault of a correctional officer, saying staffing was not the issue
with the assault. Ludwick said the officer was escorting inmates back from the food
service area to the clinical care unit. Dennis Manchester, 30, who is serving a 10-year
sentence for second-degree robbery, attacked the officer.
By Joe Benedict, Daily Gate
07/15/10: Iowa: Mitchellville’s $68 million prison project called big step forward
Ground was broken today on a $68 million project to expand and modernize the Mitchellville state women’s prison, which has been seriously overcrowded and short of resources for decades, state officials said. “We have been long overlooked. Women have long taken the leftovers from the state,” said Patti Wachtendorf, warden of the Mitchellville prison, which is officially known as the Iowa Correctional Institution for Women. She vowed the new prison will be the best in the nation for female inmates.
By William Petroski, Des-Moines Register
07/15/10: Michigan: 1 dead, 2 captured after attempted prison break
Authorities say one inmate is dead and two others have been captured after an attempted prison break in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Michigan Corrections spokesman John Cordell says three inmates overpowered a semi-truck driver about 9:10 a.m. today at the Kinross Correctional Facility in Chippewa County. He said the inmates drove the truck less than 1,000 feet after crashing it through a nearby double chain-link fence.
Associated Press
07/15/10: Nevada: Court settlement would upgrade prison's medical care
A Nevada prison's medical care — once described as displaying a "shocking and callous disregard for human life" — would be upgraded and monitored under a proposed court settlement filed Thursday. An independent monitor would ensure that the remote maximum-security prison, which houses Nevada's death row inmates, was dispensing medication and treatment in a timely manner, creating treatment plans for chronically ill inmates and had qualified medical staff available at all times, according to the proposal. The monitor would inspect the 1,100-inmate Ely State Prison at least four times over two years. Should medical care fall short, the duration of his oversight could be extended, the proposal said.
By Ashley Powers, LA Times
07/15/10: New Hampshire: Stifling prison unit prompts hunger strike
A dozen inmates housed at the state prison's most secure unit have refused to eat their last nine meals, launching a hunger strike to protest temperatures inside their concrete and steel cells, prison officials said yesterday. Department of Corrections spokesman Jeff Lyons said the inmates have told prison guards they will not eat until fans are installed in their rooms or nearby hallways. Inmates were allowed to have fans before the recent string of hot weather but lost the privilege amid safety concerns, Lyons said.
By Trent Spiner, Concord Monitor
07/15/10: New York: Feds to oversee Tryon, others
Four juvenile detention centers in New York state, including the two facilities on the Tryon Residential Center campus, will be placed under federal oversight with strict limits on the use of restraint under a settlement reached with the U.S. Department of Justice, Gov. David Paterson announced Wednesday. Conditions at the Tryon campus, which is run by the state Office of Children & Family Services, have been in the spotlight the last several years with employees complaining about unsafe work conditions in light of changes the state made with how and when residents can be restrained. OCFS also has downsized Tryon and plans to shut down the boys component of Tryon by early 2011.
By Michael Anich, Leader Herald
07/15/10: Texas: Settlement reached over strip searches
The GEO Group, a Florida firm that contracts with local governments to run jails, has agreed to pay $2.9 million to settle a class-action lawsuit alleging indiscriminate strip searches of inmates at six facilities, including three in Texas. The Frio County Detention Center in Pearsall, the Dickens County Detention Center in Dickens and the Newton County Correctional Center in Newton and jails in New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Illinois were named in the suit, which was litigated in federal court in Pennsylvania. The suit alleged GEO employed a uniform practice or policy of strip-searching all pre-trial detainees who entered certain GEO-operated jails, regardless of the crime or violation for which they were detained, and without making the legally required determination of whether reasonable suspicion existed to justify a strip search.
By Guillermo Contreras, Express-News
07/14/10: Nevada: Prison chief seeks furlough exemption
The director of the state Department of Corrections is taking steps to hire more officers in the aftermath of a decision by the state Prison Board on Tuesday to delay closure of the aging Nevada State Prison in Carson City. Director Howard Skolnik said he will ask the state Board of Examiners next month to exempt correctional officers at prisons from an unpaid one-day-a-month furlough. On Wednesday, he set in motion efforts to hire 50 more officers at the Carson City prison and the prison in Lovelock.
By Cy Ryan, Sun
07/13/10: Iowa: Prison population on the upswing
The occupancy rate at Iowa’s nine prisons ended the fiscal year higher on June 30, following declining inmate populations dating back to fiscal 2007, state officials said Tuesday. The Iowa Department of Corrections ended the fiscal year on June 30 with 8,608 inmates incarcerated at institutions in Anamosa, Clarinda, Fort Dodge, Mitchellville, Oakdale, Fort Madison, Mount Pleasant, Newton and Rockwell City, according to agency director John Baldwin. That compared to an institutionalized population of 8,453 offenders one year earlier. The uptick of 155 offenders came in a year that saw the lowest number of prison admissions (5,130) in 10 years and the smallest number of releases (4,975) since fiscal 2002. A major factor in last year’s increase was a 203 jump in total new court commitments – mostly in during the six-month period from January through June, which offset declines in parole revocations and other areas.
By Rod Boshart, Gazette
07/13/10: Missouri: Corrections Officer Found Dead In McDonald's Parking Lot
Kansas City police are investigating a Jackson County corrections officer who was found dead inside a vehicle at a McDonald's in the 6400 block of Troost Avenue on Tuesday morning. McDonald's employees showed up to work this morning and thought there was a man simply sleeping in his car, police said. Officials said the man had been a corrections officers since March of 2008. They said his last shift was Monday.
KCTV News 5
07/13/10: Nevada: State to pay ACLU $325,000 over prison medical care
The state Board of Examiners has agreed to pay $325,000 to attorneys for the American Civil Liberties Union, which had sued on grounds the medical care at the prison in Ely was below standard. State Budget Director Andrew Clinger told the board Tuesday the medical care has been brought up to national standards. Deputy Attorney General Will Geddes said that under the agreement with the ACLU, there will be a two-year monitoring of medical conditions. The suit by the ACLU will be dismissed with prejudice.
By Cy Ryan, Sun
07/13/10: Nevada: State Prisons Board votes not to close Nevada State Prison
The
State Prisons Board voted 2-1 Tuesday not to close the historic Nevada State Prison
in Carson City to save money in tight economic times. The proposal to close the prison
was favored by Gov. Jim Gibbons, a member of the board. The other two board members
are Secretary of State Ross Miller and Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto.
By Ed Vogel, Review-Journal
07/13/10: Pennsylvania: Prison employees required to have driver's license
There's a new requirement to get a job at the Luzerne County Correctional Facility: a valid driver's license. Warden Joseph Piazza said he recently was made aware of a newly hired employee without a driver's license, so he decided to research the prison's policy on the subject. He found none.
By Bob Kalinowski, Citizens voice
07/13/10: Tennessee: Correctional Officer Stabbed By Inmate At Riverbend
A correctional officer was stabbed by an inmate at Riverbend Maximum Security prison Tuesday night. It happened around 8 p.m. at the prison on Cockrill Bend Boulevard in West Nashville. TDOC spokeswoman Dorinda Carter said it was unclear what kind of weapon was used but it was most likely a "shank".
News 5
Dallas County and Sheriff's Department officials said Monday they plan to enact new policies requiring annual or periodic checks of the legal status of non-U.S. citizens working as jail guards or deputies. The policy change is in response to the arrest Friday of a sheriff's jail guard on charges of being in the country illegally. Employers are responsible for making sure employees are legally eligible to work in the United States.
By Kevin Krause, Dallis Morning News
07/13/10: Wisconsin: Jail policy rocks Latino community
Call her Maria. Her story — told in the bright living room of a low-rent Madison apartment decorated with a shrine to the Virgin of Guadalupe — comes out in fragments, punctuated by bitter laughter and tears. The tale is confused by Maria’s shaky grasp of the U.S. legal system, and complicated by the need for an interpreter to bridge the gap between Spanish and English. But the gist of it is this: A month earlier, Diego, Maria’s husband of 20 years, was turned over to immigration authorities by the Dane County Jail and deported, or “removed,” in government parlance, back to Mexico.
By Pat Schneider, Cap Times
07/12/10: Louisiana: Probation and Parole officers’ commitment helps public safety
Probation, Parole and Community Supervision Week starts today, and the Louisiana Department of Corrections wants the public to know why those employees deserve recognition. The Covington District Probation and Parole office supervises both St. Tammany and Washington parishes. It is comprised of a district manager, six supervisors, 40 agents and an administrative staff to supervise over 5,000 felony offenders whose charges range from felony DWIs and drug charges to sex offenses and violent offenses. The agents attend a 12-week academy and continue training throughout the year in order to supervise their targeted population.
By Marcelle Hanemann, Daily News
07/11/10: California: Probation officers urged prison for 'Grim Sleeper' suspect
The man charged with 10 murders in the Los Angeles "Grim Sleeper" case was arrested at least 15 times over four decades but never sent to state prison despite recommendations of probation officers. One probation officer urged that Lonnie Franklin Jr. receive a maximum sentence because it was a bad sign that a man in his 50s still committed crimes, court and jail records show. Franklin, 57, was arrested for burglary, car theft, firearms possession and assaults.
Associated Press
As he listened to pension reform talks, David Sanchez' thoughts wandered off to 2005, when a fellow correctional officer Manuel Gonzalez was stabbed to death by an inmate at the California Institution for Men in Chino. "Manny will never get his pension," Sanchez said. "Benefits should commensurate the danger we face. It's not a desk job." Lately it appears that few have raised a question of what to do with state's custody staff that has been working without a contract since 2006.
By Mediha Fejzagic DiMartino, Daily Bulletin
07/09/10: Illinois: Illinois will hire more prison guards to try to reduce costs
Officials are finally starting to offer up some details about how they plan to tackle Gov. Pat Quinn's decision to cut nearly $42 million from the state prison budget. Illinois Department of Corrections spokeswoman Sharyn Elman said last week the agency is hiring about 838 new prison guards this fiscal year in order to reduce skyrocketing overtime costs at the agency. That's more information than Elman offered days before, when she said the agency was still "formulating" its management plan with the governor's budget office.
By Kurt Erickson, Lee
07/09/10: Illinois: Cook Co. Jail locked down on 'credible information' of gun
“Credible information” indicating a gun may have been smuggled in by a visitor or employee to a maximum security facility housing violent criminals Thursday has prompted a lockdown at all ten divisions of Cook County Jail on the Southwest Side. About 6:30 p.m. Thursday, the Cook County Sheriff’s office received “credible information” that indicated a gun may be inside Division 10 of the jail, 3015 S. California Ave., which is the maximum security facility housing 736 male inmates charged with violent crimes, spokesman Steve Patterson said. Patterson would not disclose where the information came from, but it has been noted as a “credible source.”
Sun Times
07/09/10: Rhode Island: Emptier prisons: Inmate population drops for first time in 40 years
Three years ago, Rhode Island's prisons were straining to house the state's booming inmate population. With cells overflowing and bed space maxed out, dozens of inmates were being housed in holding cells, Spartan quarters designed to hold prisoners for a few days. Some inmates lived in these holding cells for days on end, sleeping on mattresses on the floor, awaiting trips to other modules for showering and using the toilet. This, even after the state launched a massive and expensive construction campaign designed to solve prior overcrowding problems.
By Husna Haq, Christian Science Monitor
07/09/10: South Dakota: Federal Prison Camp Honors Employees
Warden Jordan R. Hollingsworth announced the following awards on June 10, 2010, at the Federal Prison Camp in Yankton, South Dakota. Roger Hejl, Automotive Foreman, was recognized as an Employee of the Year. Roger manages the Automotive and Welding shops, the Rainwater Reclamation Program, the Recycling Program and serves as the Hazardous Waste Storage Site Coordinator. His management of the inmate work detail and initiative in assisting other departments is an asset to the institution.
Press Dakotan
07/09/10: Wisconsin: State sentencing reforms result in 158 early prison releases
Since Wisconsin's prison sentencing reforms went into effect last year, 158 inmates have been released early, state records obtained by the Journal Sentinel show. That number is just a fraction of the 500 to 1,000 inmates Gov. Jim Doyle estimated would be released through June 2011. The Wisconsin Department of Corrections last year estimated $30 million in projected saving through next year for the early-release program and other sentencing reforms, such as allowing inmates to serve reduced sentences for good behavior and early discharge from probation.
By Ben Poston, Journal Sentinel
07/08/10: California: GEO Group signs California prison contract
Private prison operator GEO Group Inc. said Thursday it has received a contract award from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to house female inmates at GEO's 200-bed McFarland Community Correctional Facility. The contract will have a term of about five years with one additional five-year renewal option period. GEO expects to begin the intake of female inmates in the third quarter following minor renovations at the facility. GEO said the prison is expected to generate about $4.75 million in annual revenue at full occupancy.
Associated Press
07/08/10: Idaho: Private prison company denies lawsuit over beating
A major private prison company has acknowledged that its guards watched as an Idaho inmate was beaten, but company attorneys say Corrections Corporation of America isn't to blame for any injuries the man suffered. The statements came in a response to a lawsuit filed by former inmate Hanni Elabed, who contends he was severely beaten by another inmate while guards at the CCA-run Idaho Correctional Center watched and failed to intervene. Elabed's attorneys say the assault left him with brain damage.
By Rebecca Boone, Associated Press
07/08/10: Nevada: Appeals court says Nev. prison policy was illegal
A federal appeals
court Thursday struck down a Nevada prison policy imposed to crack down on sex between
inmates and correctional officers at a women's prison that was described as an "uninhibited
sexual environment." The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco said
requiring supervisory positions be held only by female correctional officers discriminates
against male employees. "Precluding men from serving in supervisory positions in
women's prisons is not a substitute for effective leadership and enforcement of workplace
rules," Circuit Judge Marsha S. Berzon wrote for the three-judge panel.
By Sandra Chereb, Associated Press
07/07/10: Arizona: New Globe prison will require state hearing
Last Thursday, the Arizona Silver Belt was told, in the event that the Emerald Company was determined to be the successful bidder for the proposed private prison project in Globe, the Arizona Department of Corrections still could not immediately award a 20-year contract to the company to build the medium security complex here. That is because the statutes require as a next step for DOC to come to the city of Globe and conduct its own public hearing to allow any citizen or group to express their views for and against the proposed 1,000-bed prison and its site. In short, Arizona Revised Statute 41-1609:02 says the Arizona Department of Corrections shall hold its own public hearing in the city or town the new prison is to be located.
By Ted Lake, Silver Belt
07/07/10: Kansas: Prison officials release name of injured officer
A longtime corrections officer is in fair condition at a Wichita hospital after being battered by an inmate at about 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Hutchinson Correctional Facility’s Central Unit. Bill Kendall, 56, who has been a corrections officer at the local prison since 1993, suffered a head injury in the incident. An EMS crew responded at 6:45 p.m. Tuesday to the prison's Central Unit, where prison employees informed the crew the officer had been "struck in the back of the head by an inmate" and was "unresponsive upon their arrival," according to a Hutchinson Fire Department report.
Hutch News
07/07/10: Ohio: Report: Use Of Force Rate Highest At Ohio River Valley
The Ohio River Valley Juvenile Center at Franklin Furnace has the highest rate of violent run-ins and the need for restraint by guards of any Youth Services facility in the state, according to a recent report from the agency’s federal monitor, filed by Fred Cohen. “We did have our own internal look into Ohio River Valley and some of the incidents that were occurring there,” Andrea Cruse of the Ohio Department of Youth Services said. “We basically did a case study review on some of the incidents of use of force that happened over a six-month period at the Ohio River Valley facility.”
By Frank Lewis, Daily Times
07/07/10: Washington: Gang fights prompt lockdown at Connell prison
Four fights among rival gang members have prompted a lockdown of the medium security units at a Washington state prison in Connell. A statement from Coyote Ridge Corrections Center says guards had to break up one fight Tuesday night and three more broke out Wednesday. No serious injuries were reported. The medium-security living units have been locked down and the high-minimum custody units are on modified lockdown.
Associated Press
07/07/10: Mortality in Local Jails, 2000-2007
Describes the specific medical conditions causing deaths in jails nationwide during an eight-year period. For the leading medical causes of mortality, comparative estimates and mortality rates are presented by gender, age, race and Hispanic origin, and the length of time served in jail. The report includes detailed statistics on causes of death as well as more acute events such as suicides, homicides and accidents. Mortality as related to the size of the jail will also be discussed. Jail inmate death rates are compared with rates in the general U.S. resident population using a direct standardization. Estimates and mortality rates for the top 50 jail jurisdictions in the United States are also presented.
By Margaret Noonan, BJS
07/06/10: Florida: Ill ex-prison employees blame US gov. program
When former prison worker Freda Cobb developed sores on her arms, legs and back in 1997, she didn't connect them to an inmate work program that recycles computers and other electronic goods at the penal institution in the Florida Panhandle. Nor when her hair fell out, when she had abdominal pains, when her weight shot up or when she developed other symptoms. Now, however, the 49-year-old medically retired guard and cook supervisor at Marianna Federal Correctional Institution is certain that byproducts of the electronic recycling program are to blame for those ills, as well as her memory loss, temporary blindness, ear pain and migraine headaches.
By Bill Kaczor, Associated Press
07/06/10: Missouri: Prisons combining security
Prison officials are combining security at two neighboring central Missouri prisons because of state budget troubles. The Jefferson City News Tribune reported that the perimeter patrols at the Algoa Correctional Center and the Jefferson City Correctional Center will be combined and some corrections officers will be given new duties. The prisons are just east of Jefferson City and are separated by a road.
The Associated Press
07/06/10: Ohio: Juveniles, staff blamed for Scioto Co. prison problems
Combative youths, how guards restrain them and the guards' failure to coordinate their responses to violent run-ins are all to blame for injuries to juveniles at an Ohio youth prison with the highest rate of such incidents, a study found. The Department of Youth Services' six-month review of the Ohio River Valley juvenile center in southern Scioto County also said wet and slippery floors sometimes created hazardous situations for falls. The report said most of the cases where guards had to restrain young people involved juveniles with violent backgrounds, histories of hurting themselves, gang involvement and mental health problems.
By Andrew Welsh-Huggins, Associated Press
07/06/10: Pennsylvania: Prison's lone female supervisor discusses its challenges, rewards
Of the top 12 supervisors at the Luzerne County Correctional Facility, Lt. Sherry Souchick is the only woman. The prison board promoted her to lieutenant two years ago. Prior to her promotion, she worked 12 years as a correctional officer. "As lieutenant, you have a lot more decisions to make, and you make the final decisions, opposed to a CO," said Souchick, 42. "A CO can speculate on things, but they have to go through a higher authority to have something done.
By Michael P Buffer, Standard-Speaker
07/06/10: Virginia: ACLU asks for investigation of Richmond jail after 2 inmate deaths
The American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia is asking the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate conditions at the Richmond city jail following the deaths of two inmates. Kerry Wayne Bennett, 49, was found unresponsive in his bunk about 4 a.m. June 30 when someone tried to wake him for breakfast, according to Richmond Sheriff C.T. Woody Jr. His death in the overcrowded jail that lacks air conditioning came days after Grant R. Sleeper, 54, died of environmental heat exposure. Sleeper was taken from the jail June 18 to VCU Medical Center, where he died eight days later.
Richmond Times Dispatch
07/06/10: Washington: King County Correction Officers Keep Tabs on Gang Members
Eric Looney says he is done running with the Hoover Crips. Community Corrections Officer Mark Deabler is skeptical but hopeful he's telling the truth about leaving the gang life. Looney, 33, was first sent to prison in 2000 for an attempted robbery. A couple of years ago, he was back in prison for assaulting a King County sheriff's deputy. Released in late 2009, Looney most recently spent four months in the King County Jail on a domestic-violence charge. He got out June 11.
By Sara Jean Green, Seattle Times
07/06/10: Wisconsin: Mapping website shows sex offenders cross all demographics
The state Department of Corrections sex offender mapping website can be a useful tool, but it’s not for the faint of heart. “There is a little bit of a wow factor,” said Lance Wiersma, director of the Sex Offender Programs for the department. “It can be a little overwhelming. You look at, ‘Where’s my house compared to all these dots on this map?’”
By Jesicca Stephen, Kenosha News
07/05/10: Kentucky: Behind the Bars | Kentucky had gaps in monitoring troubled Otter Creek prison
Kentucky's oversight of a privately run prison in Floyd County was so lax and uncoordinated during the time it housed female inmates that state monitors often failed to promptly recognize and report serious problems, including more than a dozen cases of inmates who complained they were sexually abused by male staff members. And when the monitors did identify deficiencies at the Otter Creek Correctional Center, including substandard health care, state corrections officials never imposed financial penalties. These and other problems regarding the management of Otter Creek emerged from hundreds of pages of documents, including copies of monitors' monthly reports and e-mail correspondence, that The Courier-Journal obtained under the Kentucky Open Records Act from the state Department of Corrections and the Nashville-based Corrections Corp. of America, the prison's operator.
By R. G. Dunlop, Courier-Journal
07/05/10: Terrorist De-Radicalization Shows Promise, Comprehensive Study Finds
Prison-based programs to de-radicalize terrorists show promise, if well-run, says a new joint report from U.S. and British researchers. Their initial findings -- the most comprehensive to date, based on programs in 15 nations -- were presented at a conference this week. Prisons and Terrorism: Radicalization and De-radicalization in Countries is a joint report of the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START), based at the University of Maryland, and the International Center for the Study of Radicalization (ICSR), based at Kings College in London. The report concludes that individual de-radicalization and disengagement programs, such as those in Saudi-Arabia, Singapore, Indonesia and other nations, "can make a difference."
Science Daily
07/04/10: Nevada: Officials investigating prison fundraiser
State prison officials are investigating reports that a fundraiser at the Nevada State Prison featured scantily clad female band members and a motorcycle that was brought into the yard for inmate pictures. Nevada Department of Corrections spokeswoman Suzanne Pardee says the agency's inspector general's office is interviewing staff to find out what happened during the June 26 barbecue and fundraiser hosted by the Vietnam Veterans of America. It was unclear what the event was raising money for, and a message left Sunday at the Vietnam Veterans of America state headquarters wasn't immediately returned.
Associated Press
07/04/10: The Case for Treating Drug Addicts in Prison
For the last 16 years, Dr. Josiah Rich has gone weekly to prisons in or near Providence, R.I., to treat people being held there for drug-related offenses. Each time, he has wrestled with an ethical conundrum: not the issue of whether the offenders have done something wrong, but whether the American prison system is doing something worse. “What I see is not bad people,” he says. “Predominantly, I see people with a disease.”
Newsweek
07/03/10: Alabama: Alabama plans to fund prison repairs by saving energy
After other fund-raising plans fell short, state prison officials say they will be able to finance $98 million in prison repairs and renovations mostly through an innovative energy savings program. Corrections Commissioner Richard Allen said $77 million will come from energy savings projects guaranteed by two companies and $21 million from a federal stimulus grant. He said the energy savings plan, which goes before the Legislature's Contract Review Committee on Thursday, is with Johnson Controls, based in Milwaukee, Wisc., and NORESCO of Westborough, Mass.
Montgomery Advertiser
07/03/10: Kentucky: Inmates adjust to new Ky. prison after sex scandal
Life was just fine for Tina Quarels at the Otter Creek women's prison in eastern Kentucky — rules were relaxed, she didn't have to work and the staff was familiar. "It was more like a family setting," said Quarels, who is serving 20 years for murder and arson in Jefferson County. That setting came to an end at the Otter Creek Correctional Complex after a sex scandal involving prisoners and guards at the Corrections Corporation of America-owned prison, which pushed the state to relocate hundreds of female inmates 377 miles away to the state-run Western Kentucky Correctional Complex in Fredonia.
Associated Press
07/02/10: Indiana: ISP ribbon cutting helps dedicate energy-efficient boiler system
Energy improvements at seven Indiana correctional institutions, including Indiana State Prison, will save taxpayers more than $52 million over 10 years, officials said. “Many of our energy systems across the state needed to be updated because they were aging and inefficient,” Indiana Department of Correction Commissioner Edwin Buss said. “It’s like ‘The Shawshank Redemption’ goes green.”
By Alicia Ebaugh, News Dispatch
07/01/10: Florida: Jail correctional officers vote to unionize
Corrections officers at the Alachua County jail voted to unionize Wednesday, approximately three months after Sheriff Sadie Darnell cut their overtime and holiday benefits to reduce the department budget. When the vote is certified in approximately two weeks, Gator Lodge 67, Fraternal Order of Police will represent 231 correctional officers through the rank of sergeant. "These guys are hungry for a voice, very hungry," FOP President Jeff McAdams said.
By Christopher Curry, Gainesville Sun
07/01/10: Pennsylvania: Changes implemented at juvenile center
The privately owned Pittston Township juvenile jail at the center of a multi-million-dollar kickback scheme is no longer providing detention services, forcing probation officers to truck young defendants an hour or more for court hearings in Luzerne County, officials said Wednesday. PA Child Care LLC, spurred by a drastic falloff in placements following the scheme and corruption charges against two judges and a former co-owner, moved the 12 beds it used for detention into a secure treatment unit, a state Department of Public Welfare spokesman said. The change, which went into effect June 6, has created "logistical" and "transportation" issues for Luzerne County probation officials, who are now housing juveniles at facilities in Lehigh County, about an hour from Wilkes-Barre, and in Tioga County, two-and-a-half hours away.
By Dave Janoski and Michael R. Sisak, Citizens Voice
07/01/10: Washington DC: Fifth Amendment Doesn’t Apply to Feces Flinging Inmate
The D.C. Court of Appeals on Thursday ruled that inmates disciplined by the Department of Corrections aren't protected from further criminal prosecution for the same offenses under the federal double jeopardy clause. The court's decision stems from the rebellious behavior of one Travis Haney. According to court papers: While being held at the District of Columbia Jail pending trial in another matter, appellant Travis Haney threw a lotion bottle at a correction officer's head, later threw a bottle of liquid that smelled like urine at another officer, and then later threw feces at another officer.
By Chris Schott, City Paper
06/29/10: Arkansas: Deputy William Owens recovering, moved to rehab center
For the first time since nearly being beaten to death two months ago, a Pulaski County jail guard is sharing his story. "The first thing I do remember is waking up in here", says William Owens. Owens calls being able to take a simple walk with his wife a miracle. For 10 weeks, he's barely stepped outside. He's been recovering in the hospital from a stroke and severe skull fracture.
BY Lindsey Clark, KHTV News 11
06/29/10: California: Grand Jury recommends more jail staff, but cuts are coming
The Grand Jury report released Tuesday recommends the county's jail facilities hire more correctional officers to function more efficiently and increase safety, but budget cuts this summer mean correctional officers actually are being laid off. The report stated five correctional officer positions were unfilled when Grand Jury members toured the county's main jail facility on Water Street within the past year and the shortage "hinders the individual care and progress of inmates and overburdens the workload of current correctional officers." Sheriff Phil Wowak said he "wholeheartedly" agrees with the Grand Jury report, but funding reductions have his hands tied.
By Jennifer Squires, Sentinel
06/29/10: California: Federal jury acquits prison guard in beating
A Fresno federal court jury has acquitted a former Atwater prison guard in the alleged flashlight beating of an inmate who threw feces at a fellow guard. Jurors deliberated less than four hours before acquitting McEachern on Monday. Federal prosecutors claimed 35-year-old Eric McEachern hit shackled inmate Maximilian Monclova-Chavez at the San Joaquin Valley federal prison in April 2007.
Associated Press
06/29/10: Colorado: Local jobs lost as Brush prison closes
Most of the employees at High Plains Correctional Facility will lose their jobs after the state removes the last remaining inmates from the Brush women’s prison today. “We have already notified our staffs that most of them unfortunately have to be laid off for now,” said Charles Seigel, spokesman for Houston, Texas-based Cornell Companies, Inc., which owns the Brush prison. The local facility normally employs 83 people, Seigel said, but management has left about half of the positions vacant in anticipation of the closure.
By Jesse Chaney, Brush News-Tribune
06/29/10: Indiana: Study aims to cut costs of prison
Indiana officials hope a new comprehensive review of the state's criminal code and sentencing policies will help save taxpayer money and keep former inmates from returning to prison. The state is working with the Pew Center on the States and the Council of State Governments' Justice Center to find ways to better manage Indiana's prison population. Gov. Mitch Daniels, Indiana Chief Justice Randall Shepard, and Republican and Democratic legislators gathered Monday to announce the project — the first such study since 1976.
By Deanna Martin, Associated Press
06/29/10: Iowa: Jail issues tough for counties
Cerro Gordo County Sheriff Kevin Pals said if given the choice he would not have a jail. Potential violence, prisoners with medical conditions and handling state-mandated classification of prisoners based on gender and offense level can be costly and labor-intensive, he said. The large size of the Cerro Gordo Jail inmate population made a new jail “an economical choice for the supervisors,” said Pals, who oversees a 140-bed jail as part of a new $12 million law enforcement complex.
By Deb Nicklay, Globe Gazette
06/29/10: How The Recession Hurts Private Prisons
Baldwin, Mich., (population 1,107), will soon have more prison beds than full-time residents. On the outskirts of town, one of the country’s largest private prison companies recently spent $60 million to expand a former juvenile prison into a 1,755-bed facility meant to house illegal immigrants before deportation. This is the same town where every summer locals gather for a carnival nicknamed Troutarama at which teenage girls vie for the crown of Ms. Lake County.
Newsweek
06/28/10: New Hampshire: Women's prison among capital projects requests
Corrections Commissioner William asked the state for $37 million Monday to build a new women's prison and halfway house that advocates say is long overdue. Wrenn made his appeal on the opening day of the governor's hearings on requests for capital projects for the 2012-2013 budget. The next governor will present his recommendations to the Legislature in February.
By Norma Love, Associated Press
06/28/10: Tennessee: Larger Dickson Jail Poses Staffing Problems
A new jail is causing a problem in Dickson County, where officials are trying to work out how to staff it. The sheriff said he couldn't be more pleased or perplexed. "Well, we needed it pretty bad for a long time," said Dickson County Sheriff Tom Wall. "We look to have plenty of people shortly after it's open."
By Josh Devine, WSMV News 4
06/28/10: Tennessee: Corrections Corporation of America may use grant to spiff up detention centers
Eight Corrections Corporation of America detention centers that house asylum-seekers and immigrants awaiting deportation may be in line for makeovers to create a less prisonlike feel. The move by Nashville-based CCA to spruce up eight facilities - half of them in California and Texas - drew sharp reactions from both sides of the debate over U.S. immigration policies. "We're coddling lawbreakers," said Theresa Harmon, co-founder of the advocacy group Tennesseans for Responsible Immigration Policies.
By Getahn Ward, The Tennessean
06/27/10: Illinois: Inmate died in agony while pleading for help
For days before he died in a federal prison, Adam Montoya pleaded with guards to be taken to a doctor, pressing a panic button in his cell over and over to summon help that never came. An autopsy concluded that the 36-year-old inmate suffered from no fewer than three serious illnesses — cancer, hepatitis and HIV. The cancer ultimately killed him, causing his spleen to burst. Montoya bled to death internally.
By David Mercer, Associated Press
06/27/10: Indiana: Scanner cuts drugs brought to prison
Pendleton An old airport scanner is cutting down on efforts to smuggle drugs into the Pendleton Correctional Facility, and corrections officials hope the devices will do the same at other prisons in the state. Only one incident of intended drug smuggling has occurred since the prison became Indiana's first to use the scanner, said Mike Rains, chief internal affairs director at the Pendleton facility. Visitors enter the machine, which takes three pictures and shoots 32 quick jets of air at the person standing inside, sucking back particles that are analyzed for illegal substances.
Indy Star
06/27/10: Indiana: New pact would give Lake Jail officers 12-hour shifts
Lake County Jail corrections officers soon will vote on a two-year contract with the cash-strapped county, union officials said. Lake County Correctional Association Local 11 members will vote to ratify the deal sometime in July, President Lloyd Fravel said. The deal, which includes no raise for the 179 officers covered by the agreement, and moves them from a schedule of three, eight-hour shifts to two, 12-hour shifts, is the best union leaders could do with the county facing budget cuts, Fravel said.
By Andy Grimm, Post Tribune
06/27/10: Massachusetts: Two area correction workers honored
Two area residents who are Massachusetts Department of Correction employees have been recognized for going above and beyond their duties. They were among 12 state and county employees recently singled out for their "bravery, dedication and public service" at the 2010 Correctional Employees of the Year ceremony. Correction Officer Mario Marroquin, who works at MCI Cedar Junction and is a Norton resident, received meritorious recognition for his efforts during a house fire in Norton in February 2009.
By Stephen Peterson, Sun News
06/26/10: Hawaii: Governor vetoes bill to audit prison pact
Gov. Linda Lingle vetoed a bill that calls for a financial and management audit of the state's contract to house Hawaii prisoners at a private Corrections Corporation of America prison on the mainland. Lingle said yesterday that the bill would force the state auditor to go beyond her duties and make a policy judgment about whether Hawaii should continue to send prisoners to the mainland. The bill also asks the auditor to address the Lingle administration's closure of Kulani Correctional Facility on the Big Island last year and the housing of prisoners at the federal detention center in Honolulu.
By Derrick DePledge, Star Advertiser
06/26/10: Ohio: City workers honored for work at prison
Two Department of Rehabilitation and Correction employees who reside in Chillicothe and work at the Correctional Reception Center in Orient recently were honored by their peers as CRC's Employee and Officer of the Year. Patricia Hertenstein was selected as Employee of the Year, and Cameron Spradlin was selected as Correctional Officer of the Year. They were honored during an employee recognition ceremony.
Chillicothe Gazette