January / February 2018

JAN/FEB 2018 VOL. 27 NO. 1

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Corrections Forum

The Art of Reentry

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Publisher & Executive Editor

Thomas S. Kapinos Assistant Publisher

Jennifer A. Kapinos

JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018

Associate Publishers Art Sylvie Peggy Virgadamo (480) 816-3448 asylvie@cox.net

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West

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The Pulse

Northeast Central U.S. Sales Managers Bonnie Dodson (828) 479-7472

Editor-in-Chief

Donna Rogers

ACA & APPA Post-show Wrap-ups

Contributing Editors Michael Grohs, Kelly Mason, Bill Schiffner, G.F. Guercio Art Director

Jamie Stroud

Communication Tools Open New Offender Possibilities

Finding the Inner Inmate

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(ISSN10729275) is published bi-monthly by: Criminal Justice Media, Inc 565 Pier Avenue PO Box 213 Hermosa Beach, CA 90254 (310) 374-2700 Send address changes to:

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Safe Passage Operating Secure Transports

Solitary Confinement The Harmful Effects on Health Ad Index

On the cover: photo by Peter Merts The 2015 book “Paths of Discovery: Art Practice and Its Impact in California Prisons (2nd Edition)” by Larry Brewster and Peter Merts (photographer) is available on Amazon.

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BOP TESTS MICRO-JAMMING TECH IN FEDERAL PRISON TO PREVENT CONTRABAND CELL PHONES The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP), in collaboration with the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and the Federal Communications Commission, has conducted a test of micro-jamming technology at the Federal Correctional Institution at Cumberland, Md. The test was conducted on Jan. 17, 2018, to determine if micro-jamming could prevent wireless communication by an inmate using a contraband device at the individual cell housing

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unit level. Prior to this test, the BOP had conducted a limited cellphone jamming demonstration with NTIA in 2010, at the same field site in Cumberland supporting NTIA's congressionally mandated study of cellphone interdiction technologies. As part of the Jan. 17 test, NTIA conducted an independent evaluation of micro-jamming technology to determine its efficacy and interference potential with Radio Frequency communications. BOP and NTIA will review the data and analysis results from both BOP's and NTIA's testing and develop recommendations for strategic planning and possible acquisition.

The BOP says it will continue to evaluate cell phone detection tech-

nologies and work with its federal partners and Congress to achieve cost-effective options to combat this threat to corrections and public safety. The agency does not endorse any specific vendor or product.

JAILED, SHUNNED, BUT NOW HIRED IN TIGHT MARKET With competition fierce, a criminal record isn’t the major barrier it once was, writes Ben Casselman in a January New York Times article. He says the tightening labor market is forcing companies across the country to consider workers they once would have turned away. That is the case in Dane County, Wis., where the demand for workers has grown so intense that manufacturers are taking their recruiting a step further: hiring inmates at full wages to work in factories even while they serve their sentences.

These companies were not part of traditional work-release programs that are far less generous and rarely lead to jobs after prison, the article stated.

“When the unemployment rate is high, you can afford to not hire anyone who has a criminal record...,” said Lawrence H. Summers, the Harvard economist and former Treasury secretary. “When the unemployment rate is lower, employers will adapt to people rather than asking people to adapt to them.”

Take the case of Jordan Forseth.

Until recently he might have struggled to find work. Forseth, 28, was released from prison in November after serving a 26-month sentence for burglary and firearms possession. Forseth, however, had a job before he even walked out of the Oregon Correction Center a free man. That’s because for nearly every

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day last year he boarded a van at the minimum-security prison outside Madison, Wis., and rode to Stoughton Trailers, where he and more than a dozen other inmates earned $14 an hour wiring taillights and building sidewalls for the company’s semitrailers.

After he was released, Forseth kept working at Stoughton. But instead of riding in the prison van, he drives to work in the 2015 Ford Fusion he bought with the money he saved while incarcerated.

Unlike other work release programs that pay very little, the red hot labor market has given him and others the opportunity to build up some savings and get a job that pays a livable wage.

Now he is even dreaming big-

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ger. He has been talking to another local company, which is interested in training him to become an estimator—a salaried job that would pay more and offer room for advancement.

“They’re saying they’re willing to teach someone who wants to learn,” Forseth relays. “That’d be an actual career.”

INDIANA TO LAUNCH CODING PROGRAM FOR WOMEN'S PRISON In January, Governor Eric Holcomb introduced a new computer coding program for inmates at the Indiana Women’s Prison, according to the Indianapolis Business Journal.

The governor’s office said Indiana will be the second state to adopt, in a pilot format, The Last Mile coding program into one of its prisons. The

first state to offer the program was California, where it is reported to have “zero percent recidivism.”

"As a part of Gov. Holcomb’s Next Level Agenda for 2018, the program will begin training women how to code at the Indiana Women’s Prison with the ultimate goal of aligning them with gainful employment in the tech industry upon release,” according to an email from the governor’s office.

Chris Redlitz, the founder of The Last Mile, an eight-year old company, said the cost of the program is "somewhere in the $200,000 range" for startup and then about $5,000 per inmate per year. The state will begin with one classroom of between 24 to 30 people.

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BY BILL SCHIFFNER, CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

2018 WINTER ACA DRAWS MAJOR CROWDS

T

housands of corrections professionals came from all 50 states, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and 15 different countries to meet in Orlando, Florida, to get a closer look at the latest in emerging technologies and hone their leadership skills at the American Correctional Association’s (ACA) Winter 2018 Congress of Correction held January 4-9 at the Orlando World Center Marriott.

James A. Gondles, Jr., executive director at the American Corrections Association noted that during the conference the ACA honored several individuals for their outstanding contributions to the field.

At the Monday morning General Session, which featured Rod Rosenstein, U.S. Deputy Attorney General, as the keynote speaker, the organization presented the Innovations in Corrections Award to “The GEO Group Continuum of Care” Program housed at the Graceville Correctional Facility (Fla.).

At the Tuesday luncheon, featuring Christopher Kennedy Lawford, author/activist as the 12 CORRECTIONS FORUM • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018

keynote speaker, the following awards were also presented: Cristian Onassis Diaz (S.C.) (Martin Luther King Jr. Scholarship Awardee); Correctional Officer Paul Nielson and Correctional Officer Jesse Shockley (Tenn.) (Medal of Valor Awardees); Sergeant James William Miller (FL) (Award of Merit Awardee); and G. Mark Jones, Ph.D. (Tenn.) (Peter P. Lejins Research Awardee).

Gondles added that this year’s event once again featured the conference app, which allowed all attendees to keep up with the latest show info. This mobile app is available for iPhone and iPad, as well as Android phones and tablets.

Another conference highlight was an exhibit hall chock full of cutting-edge products and services for the corrections market.

Here’s a sampling of those.

impact case. A large 10-inch scan surface ensures quick, thorough scanning to keep your inmates and patrons moving. www.garrett.com, 1.972.494.6151

Casual Uniform Options The Officers Only pant and polo combination are a great uniform option at an extremely rea-

Metal Detector Protect your facility with a highly recognized hand-held metal detector. Garrett’s SuperScanner V offers ultimate sensitivity and oneswitch operation in a rugged, highVISIT US AT WWW.CORRECTIONSFORUM.NET

sonable price. These garments are built-to-last and include many of the same features found in other popular brands. Officers Only polos are designed with breathable, advanced performance fabric which keeps you comfortable and dry throughout the day. The polos are wrinkle, shrink and snag-resistant. Officers Only durable trousers provide a perfect blend of comfort and professionalism with a relaxed fit. These tactical trousers includes a free belt, multiple pockets and a comfort fit waistband. Water-repellent and stain-resistant fabric makes our tactical trousers ideal for any situation, says the company.

Available in a wide range of sizes and colors, these tactical pants and polos are designed to fit an officer’s lifestyle and budget. www.bobbarker.com, 1.888.772.0253

Fruit Gum Juicy Fruit Mixies debuted with four fruity flavors in each bottle containing a mix of original, strawberry, watermelon and grape flavors. They are available in 15-piece and 40-piece bottles. www.mars.com, 1.800.631.7630

able amongst all carts in the product family. This will increase your equipment uptime and simplify and lower the cost of maintenance. Improve your food temperature with heated carts. http://www.joneszylon.com, 1.800.848.8160

Private Label Foods The Union Supply Group showcased four private label Pancho’s Cantina items (two beef crumbles, shredded beef and

Healthcare Programs

Cellular Access Management

NaphCare provides a proactive approach to health care programs for correctional facilities ranging from comprehensive health care,

on-site dialysis, off-site management, in-house pharmacy and TechCare, their electronic health record (EHR) clinical operational tool. www.naphcare.com, 1.800.834.8400

Heated Carts JonesZylon’s newest line of heated meal delivery carts feature a self-contained heat box that can be removed without tools.

The heat boxes are interchange14 CORRECTIONS FORUM • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018

e s t demands while offering superior protection. It is available with NIJStandard-0101.06 Level IIIA ballistic system. It offers strong, durable 500 denier Cordura outershell construction. Carrier interior fabric constructed of Rashel nylon mesh. Outer front and back pockets accommodate hard armor plates. Available in black, coyote, multi-cam, ranger green, olive drab green, and wolf grey. www.pointblankenterprises.com, 1.800.413.5155

The CellDefender cellular access management system from roast beef in gravy) that provide high quality beef products at a value. These products are also Halal certified to help meet the needs of religious requests. www.unionsupplygroup.com, 1.310.604.4626

Tactical Vest Streamlined and effective, the Operator Gen II blends the functionality of a tactical vest with a simple carrier construction that’s geared for high performance.

Ideal for tactical officers who need load-carrying capabilities with the versatility to adapt to any operation, the Operator Gen II is said to hold up to the toughVISIT US AT WWW.CORRECTIONSFORUM.NET

Harris alleviates incoming and outgoing calls via contraband cell phones used by inmates within correctional facilities. Unlike cell phone jammers, CellDefender is a managed solution that establishes a real cellular network to mitigate unauthorized communications on all bands and across all protocols, including 2G, 3G, and 4G technologies. Using their breadth of cellular expertise, Harris provides contraband interdiction systems, enabling comprehensive control of contraband phones in prison facilities. https://www.harris.com/solution/ celldefender

TCP Launcher The new PepperBall compact, ultra-lightweight projectile launcher fits comfortably on a standard duty belt. A molded duty holster is included. The unit offers semi-auto action and fires six round projectiles or VXRshaped projectiles. Round projec-

tiles are accurate to 65 ft./20 meters; VXR-shaped projectiles are accurate to 150 ft./50 meters.

It is designed for use with CO2 or nitrogen. www.pepperball.com, 1.877.887.3773

Tracking System GUARD1’s Real Time Inmate Movement from TimeKeeping Systems is a zone-based system for tracking inmate movement and location within a correctional facility. The system utilizes active radio frequency (RF) tags

and wristbands. The RF tags transmit a signal every second to the GUARD1 receiver infrastructure, which computes the location of every individual once per second. www.guard1.com, 1.800.THE.PIPE

grated solutions provider that offers installation, service and maintenance of inmate telephone systems, kiosks, video visitation units, surveillance systems and cellular interdiction solutions including managed access. www.shawntech.com, 1.800.722.9580

Order Eliminator Does your body armor stink?

Does your sports gear reek? Then you need Armorpur, with a gentle, no-bleach formula. Developed by a law enforcement professional to kill that special “ripe” funk, Armorpur also work great on sports and camp gear, Ugg and work boots, helmets, neoprene and modern synthetics, and more.

Armorpur is said to not just mask odor; it eliminates the cause. www.armorpur.com, 1.973.202.5275

Control of Contraband Cell Phones ShawnTech’s Cell Intel assessments are discreetly administered on-site, detecting contraband cellular devices and intelligence data including the phone numbers dialed and text message content attempted to be sent. Cell Intel provides actionable data, enabling correctional facilities to take even greater control over its existing cell phone problems. ShawnTech Communications, Inc. is an inte16 CORRECTIONS FORUM • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018

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BY BILL SCHIFFNER, CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

APPA 2018 ON THE DOCKET FOR HYATT REGENCY HOUSTON APPA’s 2018 Winter Training Institute was held in January at the Hyatt Regency Houston.

HOUSTON, TEXAS, hosted the American Probation and Parole Association’s (APPA) 2018 Winter Training Institute at the Hyatt Regency Houston, January 21-24, as we went to press.

“The exhibit hall is filling quickly and we expect 600 plus attendees. The institute will feature over 60 sessions along with several professional development tours—the Youth Service Center Complex, the Prison Entrepreneurship Program, and the Bambi Program at Santa Maria,” reports Diane Kincaid, deputy director at APPA, a month prior to the show.

She points out a special poster display created by local agencies will be featured in the exhibit hall. “The poster session will highlight agencies with designs that describe the agency, a project it is working on, an innovative practice, a technological approach, or the great work being done to serve clients and the community. Please join us for the institute with its theme, ‘Influencers of Change: Innovation, Technology, and Workforce’ and the dozens of workshops concentrating on the theme's elements,” Kincaid adds.

James Newman, vice president of sales and marketing, cFive 18 CORRECTIONS FORUM • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018

Solutions, Inc., says a significant trend APPA attendees will see more of at this year’s conference is smartphone-enabled technology, which is empowering users and their agencies.

“Smartphones account for over 70% of phones being used in the U.S., so they are quickly emerging as the best vehicle to support streamlined, intelligent processes and better user experiences,” he notes.

Here’s a look at some of the new technologies, products and services that were on display in the exhibit hall.

Case Management Tool The Level of Service/Case Management Inventory (LS/CMI) is a fully functioning case manage-

ment tool and assessment that measures the risk and need factors of late adolescent and adult offenders. The LS/CMI is the most widely used risk/needs assessment in the world, the firm states. www.mhs.com, 1.800.456.3003

Opioid Treatment VIVITROL represents a different approach to treating opioid dependence. VIVITROL is an injectable, once-monthly, extended-release form of naltrexone, an opioid receptor antagonist. It works by blocking opioid receptors in the brain and is the only FDA-approved medication for preventing relapse to opioid dependence, following opioid detoxification. Since its first approval, more than 350,000 patients have been treated with VIVITROL. www.alkermes.com, 1.781.609.6000

Innovative Mobile Technologies cFive Solutions provides technology that connects innovative community supervision agencies with the information they need to reduce recidivism, improve lives, and keep communities safe.

In use in a variety of supervision agencies across the U.S., cFive Catalyst is a rehabilitation and behavioral change platform.

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says they are the foundation agencies need: defensible, clear, objective. www.equivant.com, 1.800.406.4333

Mobile Breath Alcohol Testing Device As a handheld mobile device, SoberTrack allows participants to take breath alcohol tests at any time and in any location, which can help them comply with their term of supervision. SoberTrack is the newest addition to the modern, smartphone-based, GPS monitoring solution for low and mid-risk populations. It gives courts and agencies confidence they’re utilizing the most innovative, efficient and secure monitoring software on the market. Case managers have advanced technology to monitor participants, while assisting them with tools they need for successful re-entry. www.telmate.com, 1.415.300.4305

Catalyst bridges the offendersupervisor relationship with intelligent supervision management services and a client-facing mobile app that enables automated interactions and information gathering, and improves monitoring, offender accountability, and offender behavior. www.cfive.com, 1.949.260.3002

Smartphone Technology

Case Management Tools Equivant understands the risks that agencies face as they make hundreds of decisions every day.

The Northpointe Suite software equips them to successfully manage individuals, their case plans, and ongoing supervision moni-

suite of equipment and services offered by Satellite Tracking of People LLC. Test on a random, scheduled or on-demand basis.

Its GPS capability gives background information on the participant’s location before and during a test. www.stopllc.com, 1.832.553.9500

GPS Monitoring toring. Their scientifically validated COMPAS Risk/Needs assessment can standalone or integrate with automated case plans and our case management system for Supervision, Pretrial, and Treatment Courts. The company 20 CORRECTIONS FORUM • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018

GTL applies technology and innovation to community corrections with a range of probation/parole, education, and payment solutions that increase government efficiency, improve re-entry, and decrease recidivism.

Telmate Guardian is their ultra-

Corrisoft’s Alternative to Incarceration via Rehabilitation (AIR) program unites a customized smartphone with a webbased management platform in order to both deliver proactive communication capabilities and serve as a tool that more efficiently facilitates support resources.

The Air program affords community supervision agencies with the ability to engage in realtime, two-way communications with clients.

In addition, AIR’s use of smartphone technology provides agencies with a more efficient approach to supervising and interacting with clients. www.corrisoft.com, 1.800.247.1551

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BY G.F. GUERCIO, CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

Communications Tools Expand Inmate Possibilities Newer inventions are expanding the reach of inmate communications, connecting them with outside world as never before…and adding education, entertainment and ultimately providing opportunities to lessen recidivism.

T

he way in which inmates communicate and interact with the rest of the population has changed and morphed into many modes and means of communication and offer much more than just connections to the world outside. Now entertainment placates, and educational avenues can help with the reentry process.

All avenues lead to improved capacity to communicate and 22 CORRECTIONS FORUM • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018

most facilities start with the visit.

“The GTL visitation management system provides a way for correctional facilities to cut the chaos out of the visitation process, allowing for a more streamlined approach where the visitors schedule all visits online in advance,” says Brian Deuster, product manager, Video Initiatives at GTL. “This results in less wait time and less congestion in the visitation lobbies, and allows family members to plan their visits in advance knowing when they will start and when they will end their visit, eliminat-

ing the old first-come-first-served visitation method which included long lines and lots of waiting around.”

This also makes the visitation process easier on staff and administration when they can see and plan for all upcoming visits, he says. The visitation management system is designed to manage and control all types of visitation including onsite visits, onsite video visitation, and remote video visitation allowing family members to choose to have a visit using their computer, tablet, or smartphone.

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COURTESY OF EDOVO

Edovo allows users from Madera County Jail, Calif., to have increased access to communication, education and reentry resources.

In all instances, the system manages all visitation quotas, policies, rules and any charges that apply if choosing a paid visit option. With these new options available, many facilities now offer the ability to purchase extra visits beyond what the facility is mandated to provide, allowing inmates the chance to have increased visitation with friends and family.

Video Calls for the Deaf Similar to video visitation, GTL also offers the ability for Video Relay Service (VRS) for the deaf and hard of hearing. “This application is deployed on GTL’s Flex® Link kiosk and provides deaf and hard-of-hearing inmates the ability to communicate in sign language rather than using old, outdated TTY machines when placing a telephone call,” says Deuster. VRS is a service that allows the inmate to dial a phone number and the system will automatically determine if the video call can be connected directly to the called party if another registered VRS user, or if the call needs to be routed through a video interpreter.

“Having a system like GTL’s allows facility staff to live monitor multiple visits at the same time, record all personal visits, and quickly and easily stop any

or all video visitation sessions if needed,” Deuster says. “The system also allows for visitation restrictions to be put in place preventing a visitor and/or inmate from visiting if they have violated visitation policies.”

“Also,” says Brian Peters, vice president—Facility Product Management at GTL, “with the recent acquisition of Telmate on August 1st, 2017, we're in the process of reinventing what's possible in corrections. As a combined company, we will reach a broader audience and begin to democratize access to tablets for inmates. This will enable GTL/Telmate to provide improved communications with loved ones, offer education and vocational training access; all aimed at lowering the rate of recidivism.”

Behavior Modification Entertainment options keep inmates peacefully occupied, increasing safety by making them less of a threat to officers, fellow inmates, and themselves, he says, adding that efficiencies gained from inmate self-service functionality decrease officers’ direct engagement with inmates and reduce the time spent on administrative tasks. “GTL recognizes the importance of giving inmates access to tools that can help reduce their chance of re-offend-

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ing. [The firm’s] Inspire tablet program allows inmates to exercise options.” Subscription applications allow inmates to make their own choices—whether they want to stream music, read eBooks, listen to the radio, play games, or do other activities.

“GTL’s solutions for education include not only a vast array of content that can be packaged to meet the needs of any correctional facility, but also a state-of-theart learning management system to deliver the courses and monitor engagement,” Peters points out. The aim, he says, is to provide access to educational programs during a period of incarceration that can, where applicable, extend into the re-entry period so that employment opportunities and personal self-improvement can end the cycle of recidivism.

“We have real world examples, such as inmates who have gotten their sentences reduced by demonstrating to a judge that they’ve completed self-improvement or behavior modification courses on the Inspire tablets.

One facility reported that by closing down their mailroom and replacing it with secure electronic messaging on the tablets, contraband drugs embedded into mail were eliminated and overdoses dropped to zero. Another facility provided statistics that demonstrated reductions in the rates of inmate-on-inmate assaults, inmate-on-officer assaults, and inmate suicide attempts. And, of course, all facilities report that the ability to make phone calls on the tablet—in addition to conducting video sessions (Telmate tablets only) and sending/receiving secure electronic messages— helps inmates stay in touch with loved ones,” states Peters.

In addition to the large number of apps already available on the devices, new capabilities in the pipeline include photo storage and retrieval options, podcasts, and support for those in Alcoholics Anonymous. Peters emphasizes they are secure. “Our CORRECTIONS FORUM • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018 23

An inmate holds an Inspire 2.0 tablet from GTL/Telmate, the combined company providing communications, education and vocational training access.

devices, apps, operating system, and network are locked down to deny unauthorized access and report detected threats for further investigation.”

Tidal Wave Telecom’s SecureVRS provides a corrections grade “VRS front end” that protects the public from unauthorized calls being made by both deaf inmates and unauthorized hearing inmates, says Chris Talbot, CEO. Using a special purpose video relay kiosk, an inmate signs in to the kiosk using their prison-issued user ID and password. The inmates are only allowed to access numbers that are in their personal list of authorized numbers. Each call is then recorded or not recorded based upon the profile that is associated with the number. For example, calls to the inmate's relatives are recorded but calls to their attorney are not recorded.

Biometrics Advance Security Talbot notes that in the future, a great improvement for facilities will be integration with the 24 CORRECTIONS FORUM • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018

inmate voice recorders at jails and prisons. “Obviously, jails and prisons are no ordinary facility and their needs for advanced safety and security will be greatly improved by biometrics.”

Biometrics, in particular in the area of voice recognition, helps with all calls recorded from correctional facilities and allows computers to review recordings and detect anything illegal—such as a use of a trigger word used by inmates in a facility. “This integration will greatly reduce the amount of video calls made by deaf inmates that security personnel will be required to monitor and/or review.”

Black Creek ISC provides hardware and software security control solutions for the corrections industry, and will also incorporate biometrics into its system, notes Andy Shu, national business development for Black Creek. “Our Video Visitation (VV) program makes it easier for families to visit more often with their loved ones while easing the hassle and financial constraints associated with traveling to the

correctional facility.” It schedules, starts and ends, records, and monitors automatically, allowing COs to be utilized better in areas of need, he says. “Our VV system benefits the jail or prison by eliminating the need to constantly move inmates to visitation areas as well as ending the opportunity for contraband to get inside. We are implementing facial recognition into the VV system, which will identify visitors through biometrics and automatically terminate the visit if an unapproved visitor joins the session.

“Another new product we have launched,” continues Shu, “is the Television Distribution System.

This digital system allows the facility to use a computer workstation to schedule all programming to be broadcast to inmate televisions from a variety of different sources at pre-determined times.” This eliminates the need to use a remote control to change television stations and gives the facility complete control over content. In addition to TV channels, the system can also transmit a wide variety of programming

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Tidal Wave Telecom’s SecureVRS provides a corrections grade “VRS front end” that protects the public from unauthorized calls being made by both deaf inmates and unauthorized hearing inmates.

such as PREA videos, educational programming, Internet content and pre-recorded videos.

Offering secure communica-

tion tools for inmates, libraries of educational, vocational and behavioral programming and behavior management tools for

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facilities, Edovo fosters a culture of rehabilitation while providing administration and staff with the tools to streamline facility operations and engage their inmates, according to CEO Brian Hill. The program is currently live in nearly 50 facilities with additional statewide launches scheduled for early 2018.

Jails and prisons report that they can seldom meet the expressed demand for educational programming: a recent study from the U.S. Government Accountability Office shows that for every inmate that qualifies for a class at least one is on a waiting list. “Our program is not restricted to the classroom setting and allows for autonomy while keeping inmates engaged,” says Alexis Keenoy, learning design lead with Edovo. “Students can work at their own level and pace, and can choose what motivates them to achieve their learning goals. Selfdirected learning tools are most

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useful when they're available to everyone who is interested."

Adds Mike Cornstubble, Edovo’s VP of Technology, "Until recently, facilities were unwilling to leverage secure networks widely, which made it almost impossible for e-learning solutions to scale. Most facilities still lack the infrastructure and staff to support this kind of technology.” Jails and prisons are typically only funded to the point of upkeep and building security by the BOP, leaving building and staff unprepared for infrastructure of the future, according to a 2016 Department of Justice Performance Budget Federal Prison System Buildings and Facilities study. “Because of these things, we realized we had to be experts in security and network infrastructure. We install a secure server on-site and set up a private cloud environment so inmates can only access the Edovo platform, and cannot reach the outside Internet."

Hill furthers, "The latest innovations are in technology.

Specifically, tablets are allowing for increased access to communication, education and reentry resources. They benefit everyone in the long run. But most companies haven't started to scratch the surface on their potential for facility and outcome transformation.

This is true for communication, education, and much more." ✪

Access/Access Denied UNAUTHORIZED CELL CALLS FOILED The Harris CellDefender operates as a highly-localized cellular network at correctional facilities, where contraband cell phone use by inmates is a threat.

The system is customized to cover only the authorized commercial cellular bands and mobile devices in use at these facilities—connecting voice and data traffic and allowing emergency calls to proceed unimpeded.

Unauthorized calls from phone numbers not registered in the system are unable to gain access through the managed network and cannot send or receive voice or data traffic except if to or from an emergency source such as 911. CellDefender does not interfere with commercial networks and users outside a facility’s perimeter. It is fully compliant with U.S. Federal Communications Commission regulations for Contraband Interdiction Systems. —Sleighton F. Meyer, Sr. Mgr., Media Relations, Electronic Systems, Harris Corporation

For further information: Tidal Wave Telecom, 916.751.5500, www.tidalwavetelecom.com, sales@tidalwavetelecom.com Edovo, 312.757.5533, 720.301.7893, www.edovo.com, aiden.kent@edovo.com GTL/Telmate visitation or tablet solutions, 844.269.1981, www.gtl.net/contact-us/ Black Creek Integrated Systems Corp., 205.949.9910, www.blackcreekisc.com, sales@blackcreekisc.com Harris Corporation, 321.727.4020, www.harris.com 28 CORRECTIONS FORUM • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018

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BY MICHAEL GROHS, CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

Finding Inner Inmate Can the arts not only improve the environment in prisons but also enhance rehabilitative goals?

30 CORRECTIONS FORUM • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018

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ALL PHOTOS BY PETER MERTS

e h t

not beast; it’s breast.

The line, which is often misattributed to Shakespeare is actually from William Congreve’s play The Mourning Bride, is “Music

It’s

behind bars. Famous images of paintings by John Wayne Gacy, Henry Lee Lucas, and every other serial killer to come down the pike can be found with a simple Google search. There is another component to inmates just pass-

decisions about how to dispense it. In FY 2016/17, formalized programs were expanded to all 35 prisons and funded at $8 million.

AIC is a partnership between CDCR and the California Arts Council to “combat recidivism,

Drumming at Salinas Valley State Prison is led by instructor Wilfred Mark, as part of the Arts in Corrections program to “combat recidivism, enhance rehabilitative goals, and improve the safety and environment of state prisons.”

hath charms to soothe a savage breast.” The next line furthers, “To soften rocks or bend a knotted oak.” It seems an apt line regarding prison. Prison is a place of anger where tacit rules state residents don’t show emotion, and they certainly don’t trust.

Many have no idea how to express themselves in any meaningful way.

The arts, says Krissi Khokhobashvili, public information officer II (Supervisor) at the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR), have always been in prison. One trait among inmates that might not be the first one to jump to mind is that they can be a creative lot, and by definition, when they are doing something creative, they are not doing something destructive. It is easy to see what inmates have created

ing time, though, and unlike the aforementioned examples, most prisoners will be released. That doesn’t mean they will stay that way. In California, three-fifths of inmates will return to prison within three years. Using art as an aspect of rehabilitation and reentry can be an important tool in regards to that.

In the 1970s and 1980s, says Khokhobashvili, CDCR started Arts in Corrections (AIC) in which they paid professional artists to come into facilities to teach inmates. In terms of funding, the program was active until about 2010 when it fell victim to the recession and was left dependent on volunteers (for which there is always a need and appreciation). Fiscal year 2014 brought back pilot programs and was funded at $1 million. The California Arts Council made

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enhance rehabilitative goals, and improve the safety and environment of state prisons.” Programs offer performing, literary, and visual arts disciplines such as theater, music, creative writing, poetry, painting, drawing, and sculpture for eligible CDCR inmates.

Programming is provided by professional artists who have actively participated in their particular arts discipline and who are trained to work in correctional settings. Among the programs is The Prison Project, which was created by the acting group The Actor’s Gang in 1981 to give inmates the tools to help manage their emotional lives. (The Art Director is Tim Robbins, star of Shawshank Redemption and director of Dead Man Walking.) A 2015 study conducted by Impact Justice showed an 89% decrease CORRECTIONS FORUM • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018 31

A May 2017 guitar and band class at Solano State Prison in California.

A 2014 study by Larry Brewster found a statistically significant correlation between training and practice in the arts and emotional control. This correlation is strongest among those who have studied and practiced art for at least two or more years.

32 CORRECTIONS FORUM • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018

in in-prison infractions for those participating in the Actors’ Gang Prison Project.

Art programs are not intended to be job-creating programs.

Creating something form nothing is never easy and certainly not something to presume making a living. For every published novel out there, there are scores of unfinished first drafts, started chapters, or half attempts. That doesn’t mean the effort was in vain. In 1975, Eloise Smith, who was then an artist and director of the California Arts Council and her husband, historian Page Smith, started a three-year pilot program called Prison Arts Program (PAP). The vision was built on one primary tenet: art was about “the secret how to work.” They wanted to know if the discipline and rewards of art would build an inmate’s selfesteem and therefore improve behavior and for PAP to “provide an opportunity where a man can gain the satisfaction of creation rather than destruction, earn the respect of his fellows, and gain recognition and appreciation VISIT US AT WWW.CORRECTIONSFORUM.NET

from family and outsiders…provide the professional artist as a model of creative self-discipline, and show the making of art as work which demands quality, commitment, and patience.” The evidence showed that it did, and funding was granted to develop the AIC. The intention was for AIC to be a fine arts program taught by practicing artists and not to be used as art therapy or an arts and crafts program. Since 2014, it has reached over 2,000 inmates.

On December 17, 2017, inmates in the first-ever Shakespeare program at Deuel Vocational Institution (DVI) performed King Henry IV, Part I. Shakespeare at DVI is a program facilitated by the Marin Shakespeare Company, which began in 2003 because of its proximity to San Quentin State Prison.

They now run programs at seven state prisons with the goal of restorative justice, fostering nonviolent communication, positive self-expression, and instilling a lifelong love of theater arts. The program is part of AIC. Lesley Currier is the Managing Director of the Marin Shakespeare Company. She notes that when the program at San Quentin first started, it was not an instant success. Only a few men showed an interest. Now there are so many members they had to split the groups into two.

The process is that they work on a play for about eight months before performing it. They then write an autobiographical play about how the experience affected them. The autobiography is geared toward reentry and asks the author to consider what homecoming will be like. They are then asked to consider what happens if even one thing changes. The curriculum focuses on emotional intelligence.

Participants say it is the one time a week they can be themselves and feel comfortable and supported by other races. Most participants never thought they

would or ever could be able to perform Shakespeare, which in itself is a complicated endeavor.

The result is a huge sense of accomplishment. The Company receives letters from participants (to which they may not respond).

One was from an inmate who transferred to High Desert State Prison and described how miserable the experience was without the program (which they now have). “The work we do,” says Currier, “is not a fluke. It is well

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received everywhere we go.”

Another letter from an inmate who had been a shot caller in the yard described how he came to a realization when the group was performing as a forest, a scene in which he played a butterfly.

During this exercise, he wrote that he realized love was better than hate. “I may not be a better actor, but I’m a better man.”

In prison life, says Currier, “it is essential to learn anger management and sobriety, but art is a

CORRECTIONS FORUM • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018 33

Dance Class at Central California Women's Facility in 2017; it is sponsored by the William James Association, as part of California's Arts-in-Corrections program.

choice.” Inmates can be offered the realization that they can choose how to live their lives.

She furthers that many female inmates who enter the system have had a lot of trauma in their lives. This has resulted in lot of emotional shut down. Among the exercises they conduct involve showing fear, anger, conflict resolution, etc. “I’ve seen a weight drop,” says Currier of the participants. (They recently got a CDCR grant to start a women’s group at Folsom, but sentences there are often short term, so they now offer Drama for Reentry in which inmates write and perform their personal stories.)

The programs are not only about creating, says Khokhobashvili; inmates are also doing the “deep work behind it.” For example, drama classes include drama theory, art classes include art history, and music classes include music theory.

34 CORRECTIONS FORUM • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018

Musical Relief Sara Lee, artistic director of The Irene Taylor Trust in London notes, “Music provides positive relief and color in what is almost always selves a grey and stressful on the situation. It allows fringes of individuals to keep M e society to d in touch with their i Ac tatio become cele‘self’ as they creto n r a s brated and vals ' ate and perform Te Gan par h ued members of t and it lifts their spirac g a of ha t C th the community.” its. Being involved in pi CI e .

The Irene Taylor Trust music provides a positive works with men, women, and focus in what is invariably a young people.

The composition negative situation.” of the group depends on the The Irene Taylor Trust believes prison in which they are working. that creating original music col“Our projects are voluntary; howlaboratively has a powerful, posiever, if a staff member feels a partive impact on people’s lives, ticular individual might benefit bringing new confidence, importhrough being part of a group and tant transferable skills, and raised enjoying a positive experience, aspirations for the future. “Music then we would include them. In can break down barriers and help people who have found themContinues on page 48 VISIT US AT WWW.CORRECTIONSFORUM.NET

BY DONNA ROGERS, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Eye on Safety

While body worn cameras keep an eye on officer safety (and inmate rights), manager

THE DEATH in September 2015 of Santa Clara County Jail inmate Michael Tyree, whose battered body was found in his cell, prompted supervisors to take several unusual steps to increase oversight of the jails. No one saw Tyree’s beating, although several inmates said they heard his screams, according to www.ktvu.com.

The board in the California county voted unanimously to appoint a public “blue ribbon 36 CORRECTIONS FORUM • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018

commission” to examine the jails, and approved recommendations including more fixed surveillance cameras in the jails. In addition, County Supervisor Joe Simitian and two other supervisors—a voting majority—called for equipping the jail guards with body cameras.

Simitian was quoted as saying: “Once we start turning over the rocks, we’re going to find some pretty ugly stuff.”

This interest for cameras in corrections has been

preceded/paralleled on the law enforcement side in recent years.

In light of incidents involving the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, and the Freddie Gray death in Baltimore, Maryland, discrepancies in eyewitness accounts have urged calls for police officers to be outfitted with Body Worn Cameras (BWCs).

The call for BWC deployment has shifted very quickly. As recently as 2013 in a survey funded by the Office of Community

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Oriented Policing Services and conducted by the Police Executive Research Forum, 75 percent of law enforcement surveyed reported that they did not have a BWC program. Just two years later, a December 2015 study by Major Cities Chiefs and Major County Sheriffs found that more than 90% of law enforcement respondents said their agency either had a body-worn camera program, intended to implement or were piloting a program.

There is no doubt this trend will continue and extend to correctional departments. Of course, there are too many in-custody deaths where the cause of death or the perpetrator is undetermined. “As in-jail deaths such as those of Sandra Bland in Texas and Natasha McKenna in Virginia’s Fairfax County attract the same scrutiny as police-involved fatalities, a growing number of agencies nationwide are bringing body cameras behind bars,” wrote the Washington Post on February 23, 2016.

A month earlier, the Atlanta Department of Corrections became the first detention facility to implement BWCs. At a meeting of the Compliance and Accreditation Managers' Association (CAMA), a national organization representing professionals in both correctional and law enforcement areas, hosted

by Atlanta DOC, it was demonstrated how control officers and supervisors can now watch live interactions with inmates and quickly respond to serious incidents, stated www.PowerDMS.com, a company that creates software that manages policy and training for public safety and healthcare agencies.

The Washington Post story detailed a deployment of BWCs clipped to the protective vests of

rs need to keep an eye on their Use Policy.

Baltimore’s Prince George’s County Jail emergency response officers, where all team members are outfitted. Prince George’s began rolling out the body cameras the previous August, purchasing 40 and a warranty for about $105,000. (They recorded 350 incidents in about six months.)

“This not only protects detainees or inmates,” said Lt. J.A. Gordon of the Prince George’s County Department of Corrections. “It also protects our officers.”

Many more rollouts followed in 2016. One instance, in October the Bureau of Justice Assistance awarded the sheriff's department in Tulare County, California, a grant for $100,000 to purchase BWCs for correctional deputies.

Then in May 2017 seven prisons in Nevada got the funding to equip officers with BWCs to wear during high-risk events. According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, a joint money subcommittee approved $1.8 million to equip some correctional officers with body cameras and install stationary VISIT US AT WWW.CORRECTIONSFORUM.NET

CORRECTIONS FORUM • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018 37

cameras at seven prisons. The expenditure approved by the Senate Finance and Assembly Ways and Means public safety subcommittee would fund the purchase of 71 body cameras for a total cost of $172,000; and 312 stationary cameras for $372,000.

Finally, the Review-Journal noted that the biggest expense is the nearly $1.3 million for additional Internet bandwidth required at High Desert State Prison north of Las Vegas; Ely State Prison in northeast Nevada; and Lovelock Correction Center east of Reno.

The Philosophy Behind the Lens What is the thought process behind using BWCs inside jails and detention centers? “Bodyworn cameras are one more technology facilities can use to help resolve complaints, increase accountability, and keep officers and inmates safe,” states PowerDMS. A comprehensive study by NIJ A Primer on Body Worn Camera Technologies furthers that BWCs will help capture a record of policeinvolved incidents and provide increased transparency and legitimacy, while other perceived benefits include improved behavior for both police officers and citizens; expedited resolution of complaints and lawsuits; and improved evidence for arrest and prosecution.

Similar to their police counterparts, corrections departments want body cameras to deter false claims and aggressive behavior on the part of both officers and inmates, observes the Washington Post article. Despite the benefits and perceived benefits (not many studies have been completed thus far), there have been some reservations on the part of corrections officials. “The privacy debate surrounding police body cameras— which may capture embarrassing or intimate moments when officers answer domestic calls or 38 CORRECTIONS FORUM • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018

enter homes—also surfaces in jails despite the lower expectation of privacy,” notes The Post.

“A lot of very private things happen in jails, from people using the showers and using the toilets to people having meetings with their legal counsel or with social workers,” Eileen Hirst, chief of staff for the San Francisco Sheriff’s Department, which is developing a body-camera pilot program. “At what point do body cameras in jails become too intrusive?” she asked.

Hirst furthered in the article that San Francisco is looking for ways to pay for the technology, and lawyers are drawing up policies for its pilot program. The cameras are important tools for transparency and accountability,

The Audiovox ACCU.C 4G livestreaming body worn camera, which clips on an officer’s shirt, is offered through a partnership between VOXX Advanced Solutions and S4W. Voxx recently signed a Letter of Intent with Blue Line Innovations, LLC, to be the exclusive back-end evidence management provider for the device.

she said, but they also present complex legal questions as confidentiality, criminal history and cameras intersect.

“Let’s say you’re in custody today and you’re out of custody tomorrow,” Hirst said. “How long is the image of you at the booking counter available and to whom is it available?”

Developing A Use Policy In January 2017, nearly a year and half after the inmate was beaten to death, television station KTVU reported that all sheriff's deputies and correctional officers in Santa Clara County would soon be outfitted with body-worn cameras. NBC Bay Area had reported several delays to procuring the cameras including a privacy ordinance that required all surveillance equipment be approved by the Board of Supervisors before any program could move forward.

During the 18 month period, the sheriff’s department spent careful time developing the Use Policy governing use of body-worn cameras by the county, KTVU relayed. In the end, the Sheriffs Department stated: The BWC project has been a collaborative effort among many County stakeholders. The Sheriff's Office, Board of Supervisors, County Counsel, local city councils, various community groups, and employee labor unions have all helped shape the final BWC policy.”

One of the issues that may pose a challenge is who is cleared to have access to the footage.

Early in its planning the Santa Clara Police Department had mandated that “Access to the footage will be governed by existing criminal-evidence protections, meaning that short of a subpoena or the chief’s discretion, bodycamera video will not be presumptively available to the public. Such a policy falls in line with what most agencies across the country have adopted, though

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there have been a few outliers like Seattle, which makes much of its footage publicly available,” according to the Mercury News.

“In the case of an officerinvolved shooting or serious useof-force incident, an involved officer will be required to give an initial account of events before being permitted to view the body-camera video and give additional statements,” the newspaper continued. “That is in line with recommendations by the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office that have also been adopted by San Jose police and other Bay Area agencies.

Nationally, police departments are divided on the issue: Los Angeles police, and the Police Executive Research Forum, for instance, favor allowing officers to view video footage before their initial statement is made.”

The Sheriff’s Office then “must navigate what nationally have been thorny issues: when the cameras will be activated, how the footage will be shared with the public, and when officers are permitted to view the video when controversies arise,” the Mercury News article summed up.

In Baltimore, Prince George’s County’s Lt. Gordon, the jail’s tactical operations commander, said he initially resisted the idea of body cameras because he worried that people would criticize officers’ performances without understanding the “split-second decisions” that go into the work.

But after six months, Gordon said, he has noticed differences in the behavior of inmates and officers. Inmates are beginning to show a little more restraint in their interactions with officers, and officers are constantly reviewing footage to learn how they can improve, he said in the Washington Post.

In Prince George’s County Jail, all emergency response officers wear BWCs as noted. The cameras start when officers press a button as they are dispatched to an incident and stop when they

again hit a button. Each recording is downloaded and reviewed daily, and the footage will generally be stored for five years.

The cameras, about the size of a deck of cards, clip onto officers’ vests at their shoulder or chest.

(Cameras can also be fitted to a helmet.) In the case of Prince George’s it was pointed out that a flaw in the system can occur during an altercation, when the devices sometimes tilt up, capturing ceiling tiles or a stray helmet

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strap instead of an incident.

However, they refute that it would be a serious issue, as the entire team is outfitted. If one view fails, there should be five others available as backup, they said.

Another issue that is the subject of policy discussion is precisely when the cameras will start rolling and stop. On this matter, the NIJ Primer states: “In order to demonstrate clear Continues on page 49

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BY DONNA ROGERS, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

SAFE PASSAGE Overcoming handcuff picking, van disturbances and more with these “tricked out” trucks and fortified locks.

The VanCell Elite from Bob Barker Company features high visibility from rear and side doors as well as a standard four camera officer monitoring system.

hirty-six year old Mobile Police Officer Steven Green was fatally stabbed on February 3, 2012, by a small 3inch knife that authorities believe was hidden on the robbery suspect Lawrence Wallace Jr. hours after his arrest while he was being transported from police headquarters to the Mobile County Metro Jail.

Wallace had been charged earlier that morning with attempted robbery and arson. Somewhere between the police station and the jail he managed to open his handcuffs and escape. When they

T

40 CORRECTIONS FORUM • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018

arrived in the Jail’s sallyport, he attacked the officer as he opened the back door of the cruiser.

After overtaking and killing Green with the knife, he stole the officer’s gun and cruiser and drove through the sallyport/ garage door. In an ensuing gunfight, the suspect eventually injured another officer and was killed. A handcuff key was found in his shoe.

What was interesting was a diamond-shaped medallion on a long chain that Wallace was wearing and that he was shown touching on news videotape even though his hands were cuffed

behind his back. While the police chief noted at the time: “We believe the handcuff key was concealed somewhere on his body. We don’t know where. We may never know where.” —there was speculation that the necklace could have held the key.

The necklace was so interesting to Michael Hendricks, a 17-year law enforcement and 33-year EMS veteran and instructor, that it sparked an idea to create a PowerPoint training presentation for a meeting of the International Conference of Police Chaplains, of which he remains an active

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A standard key to a handcuff is contrasted with this specialty cylinder lock key system retrofitted by BOA Handcuff Co.

member. (At one point in his career, Hendricks had also worked as a self-employed locksmith.) The presentation was eventually nominated by the National Law Enforcement Memorial as a Top Safety Briefing.

In his research, Hendricks says he found a total of nearly 60 commercially-produced (note: not self-fabricated) handcuff keys of various design. He points out that suspects deploy necklaces, rings and other jewelry to conceal handcuff keys. Non metallic keys are hidden and sewn into underwear and other clothing. They are molded onto shoelace tips and used as extensions on zipper pulls. One of the latest crazes, he relays, is the TIHK (for tiny inconspicuous handcuff key) found on the Internet from the TIHK Co., advertised for $12 (under an anti-government marketing ploy cautioning readers not to permit their rights be taken away).

Hendricks tells this writer that the Mil-spec Plastics HydaKey Covert Handcuff Key appears to be an extra button on top of clothing, but a key is securely attached underneath. Further, Shomer-Tec, purportedly a military and law enforcement site, sells boot lace covert handcuff keys for $15 and a handcuff shim pick for $3.

Many are James Bond-like, Hendricks comments, and can be hidden in plain sight. This includes ink pen caps where the tail is remanufactured into a key, or a pen that’s spring loaded to reveal a key.

The $29.95 LockWrite Pen has a 303 stainless steel machined integrated handcuff key on the end. The company’s tag line is: Lock ‘em up and write ‘em up!

There’s no end to these clandestine picking tools.

They include foldable knives such as the Gerber or Leathermen multi-tool, which can be taken apart easily to be fitted with a key; a realistic-looking coin that hides a key; a survivalist belt that contains a handcuff lock opener; and even a zipper on a highheel shoe that, you guessed it, has a key on the pull.

The Anti-Kidnapping Band from Gearward.com, a watch band that can be had for $25, conceals a ceramic blade, handcuff key and rope. It is touted to VISIT US AT WWW.CORRECTIONSFORUM.NET

permit the wearer to escape from rope, duct tape, zip ties and handcuffs.

The culmination, Hendricks points out, is a metal card from Sparrows Lock Picks in the shape and form of a credit card that tucks into the wallet.

Called the CHAOS card, it comes with eight tiny tools that punch-out, including a lock pick, a flat handcuff key and “a stabby thing.” (The web site notes in an ominous way: ”If you are questioning if this really is a "stabby thing" ask a Prison Guard for their opinion.”

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Peerless Handcuff Company Model 7002CHS handcuff and waist chain can be retrofitted by BOA with either MEDECO or ASSA Desmo cylinder; both are recognized leaders in pick-resistance lock systems.

Handcuff Solutions One way to overcome these issues is of course with proper training regarding safety procedures. In addition, proper tools can help, even something as simple as well constructed and properly fitting handcuffs, including those that are fitted with higher security locks.

The BOA Handcuff Co. in Huntington, N.Y., offers high security upgraded handcuffs, leg irons and waist chains. A recent visit to the headquarters revealed handcuffs, waist chains and other sundry hardware piled on workbenches, on shelves and in boxes on the floor waiting for the restraints to be retrofitted for various departments around the country including the New York City DOC. Owner and president Alan Lurie, who started in the locksmithing business and founded this niche business 20 years ago, retrofits the handcuffs from others such as Peerless and Smith & Wesson with custom-made cylinders from companies like Medeco or ASSA. These individual keys are obviously much higher securi42 CORRECTIONS FORUM • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018

ty than the simpler standard metal keys that come with the cuffs. These retrofitted restraints have pick and bump resistant cylinders, restricted keyways and controlled key duplication. The anti-shim model contains a deadbolt. He relates that “a couple hundred agencies” have examples of his retrofits in use.

In addition to commercially made keys, inmates have been known to make keys with common instruments they can dig up such as with pens or built into the aglet (the plastic reinforced end) of their shoelace. Of course, it is not unheard of to swipe the handcuff key of their custodians.

“Maintaining key control is really important,” says Lurie. Lost and duplicate keys are dangerous to corrections officers, which goes without saying in the case of a high level felon. But even with low level offenders, he points out, you don’t know when and in what instance they may cross the line. With BOA equipment, he stresses, all COs have a registered key to keep careful inventory, and BOA alone keeps control of the blanks. Duplicates are only

made with proper permission.

Typically departments have only one key code for all their handcuffs, but it is possible to have up to 1,000 codes, Lurie says. Rikers, for example, has traditionally had two separate key codes, he explains, and they have recently required a number of additional codes for the Seg Unit.

Not only does a poorly constructed handcuff impact security but it can also cause manpower and facility backups. For example, Lurie furthers, with some 1,500 transports to courts, hospitals and upstate facilities on a given day in New York City, weakly constructed hardware that is difficult to operate can “jam up the court system” if prisoners can’t quickly be released from their hardware.

Peerless Handcuff Company, which was founded a 100 years ago and remains a family business, carries a lifetime guarantee that covers manufacturer defects.

Peter Gill, vice president, whose great grandfather created the West Springfield, Massachusetts business, explains that they take back cuffs that get “worn and beat on” by high-use customers and repair them free of charge.

He describes that cuffs come back that have been picked or shimmed, the lock areas are returned bent and “have bits of metal, paper clips and who knows what jammed in there.”

Peerless offers a full line of restraints including chain link handcuffs, hinged handcuffs, oversize handcuffs, leg irons, waist chains and color plated restraints.

All of our products are designed to meet and exceed the tough U.S. National Institute of Justice standards for strength and quality, the maker states. And all Peerless products are backed by a lifetime warranty for manufacturer defects.

For prisoner transport operations, Gill recommends Peerless’ High Security line for transport including the Chain Link handcuff with optional waist chain and optional MEDECO or ASSA

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The Stun-Cuff deters unwanted activity during transports and court appearances. It comes in various configurations for single use and up to nine prisoners at a time.

Desmo high security lock system and aluminum housing, and the High Security Leg Iron.

As noted, a small percentage of Peerless handcuffs are specified by agencies to be retrofitted by BOA with the special heavy-duty cylinder locks. The range of departments specifying the extra layer of security varies widely, he says, “from very small to very large departments.” For instance, small rural ones may have to transport longer distances or may not have the “tricked out vans,” he says.

Larger departments may require them due to a higher volume of violent prisoners. Some departments are just moving inmates with cruisers, he notes. Cuff retrofitting provides a “relatively inexpensive way of providing safety.”

Gill furthers, we also offer custom product to use in instances where departments have a van or bus in which they move a group of prisoners at one time—it includes a transport chain for a line of 2, 4, 6, 8 people. We do this quite regularly in various configurations, he says.

For the first time ever, Gill adds, the company is conducting a voluntary program to repair certain of its 700 and 801 series restraints. Peerless is replacing the spring to ensure that the restraints meet their rigorous standards. A while back, he tells us, a whole batch of parts had not been manufactured well and Peerless offered all handcuffs pur-

chased to be upgraded with a better spring design.

If a little more zip in your wrist and ankle restraints is needed, the Stun-Cuff may be a good choice.

This wireless stun device from Myers Enterprises, Inc. is a less than lethal technology designed to keep violent prisoners under control. Used in both court and in transport, its use as “a deterrent is its single best effect,” emphasizes

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company owner Brad Myers.

Desperate criminals resort to extreme measures, notes the StunCuff user manual. “There is always danger when dealing with a prisoner,” says Myers. The electronic device is used when a prisoner has been shown to be violent, and there’s a possibility they will harm others or cause injury to themselves, he says. Which of course can be the case in many transport instances. (Unfortunately it is difficult to know which of those will need or not need it.)

Of course it comes with a price tag steeper than a handcuff (an institutional single cuff unit costs $1,650) but it provides virtually unrivalled prisoner compliance and officer safety. It is available in several versions which can be used for single prisoner and for up to nine prisoners with a single officer in charge. Myers points out that it has been safe to use.

There has been no litigation in 11 Continues on page 49

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BY MICHAEL GROHS, CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

What is the current thinking about the effects of being thrown “in the hole” for 23 hours a day?

Solitary Nation

44 CORRECTIONS FORUM • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018

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Solitary confinement has been trending as a topic of debate in recent years. In 2013, Tom Clements, executive director of the Colorado Department of Corrections was shot and killed at his house near Colorado Springs.

Clements was well known as a reformer set to improve mental health services to inmates and to reduce the use of solitary confinement in prison. According to the Denver Post, since Clements’ arrival in 2011, the number of inmates in solitary confinement had been cut in half. In a tragic irony, Evan Spencer Ebel, the parolee who killed Clements, spent much of his eight-year stint in prison in solitary confinement.

One important consideration, says Bill Sessa, information officer at the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR), is how the term solitary confinement is used. The term “implies much more than any practice we previously had in place.” There is a connotation to the term that people, especially pundits, use loosely referring to what is generally known as “the hole,” a practice CDCR does not use. Says Sessa, “It implies that a person is put in a cell by themselves and ignored as punishment.” It’s a term that can be misleading. “In most cases, when critics contend we practice solitary confinement, they refer to the former practice of segregating gang leaders from the rest of the inmate population. For many years, we had a segregated housing unit in Pelican Bay for that purpose. It was created to protect the safety of the prisons and the general inmate population and staff. All of the inmates housed there were confirmed as gang members, many of them leaders of gang activity. Even though they were housed separately from the general inmate population, they had regular contact with prison staff, although they were confined to their cells in that unit and did not have the same freedom to move about the

prison as other inmates.”

The unit at Pelican Bay is currently being converted into general population housing. CDCR does segregate inmates in Administrative Segregation, which is essentially a jail within the prison. Inmates are housed in single-cell units but have continuous access to officers and other staff. Neither of these practices is the equivalent of being placed in “the hole.” The Administrative Segregation unit provides that same access and regular contact with staff and the amount of time an inmate spends in that unit is determined by the outcome of hearings internally at the prison or by the amount of time it takes a county D.A. to file more serious charges that would put the inmate in front of a judge for trial. For purposes of uniformity here, solitary confinement refers to the World Health Organization’s definition: “The physical and social isolation of an individual in a single cell for 22.5 to 24 hours a day, with the remaining time typically spent exercising in a barren yard or cage.”

The Effects of Solitary

Joel Andrade, Ph.D., LICSW, CCHP-MH, director of Clinical Operations, Mental Health, MHM Services, Inc. and John Wilson, PhD, CCHP-MH, vice president of Clinical Development at MHM Services note, “The effects of solitary confinement on an inmate are significant and wide ranging.

Effects range from medical problems to mental health problems including suicide.” They point out that it’s not a matter that can easily be studied, though.

Research in this area is limited because randomized controlled studies are restricted by the ethical issues surrounding it.

Clinicians, correctional mental health experts, and researchers have reached a range of conclusions about the impact of solitary confinement, though, which

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range from an innocuous "it’s not helpful" to the UN's Mandela Rules, which concluded that solitary confinement constitutes torture. “The conditions of confinement vary greatly from one solitary confinement unit to another. These conditions can make a stay in solitary confinement more onerous. For example, deprivation of reading materials can increase the intensity of the inmates' isolation.”

Medical Issues

From a medical standpoint, according to WHO, corrections personnel should take into consideration the effects of solitary confinement can be wide ranging. There are three main factors inherent in all solitary confinement: social isolation, reduced activity, and loss of autonomy and control over almost all aspects of daily life. Lack of the ability to exercise can lead to some medical complications such as gastrointestinal problems, genitourinary problems, back and joint pain, weight loss, diarrhea, diaphoresis, insomnia, deterioration of eyesight, profound fatigue, heart palpitations, migraines, and aggravation of pre-existing medical problems.

Ronald Smith, Psy.D., CCHPMH, corporate director, Behavioral Health Services at Wexford Health also notes that for inmates placed in solitary, there must be “continual and routine medical assessment, along with routine mental health assessment and appropriate follow up.”

As noted by WHO, it has been well-established that solitary confinement constitutes an important stressor and risk of suicide.

Says Smith, “Doctors must pay particular attention to such prisoners and visit them regularly of their own initiative, as soon as possible after an isolation order has taken effect and daily thereafter to assess their physical and mental state and determine any deterioration in their well-being.”

CORRECTIONS FORUM • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018 45

Potential Mental Health Issues

A question that often arises is if solitary confinement can initiate mental health issues. According to the National Commission on Correctional Health Care (NCCHC), mental health effects in solitary confinement are equally wide ranging and can include deterioration of mental health including anxiety, depression, anger, diminished impulse control, paranoia, obsessive thoughts, decimation of life skills, social alienation, cognitive disturbances, visual hallucination, auditory hallucinations, hypersensitivity to stimuli, PTSD, psychosis, selfinjury and suicide. (They recommend that “Juveniles, mentally ill individuals and pregnant women should be excluded from solitary confinement of any duration.”)

Smith notes that virtually all reviews of the practice of solitary confinement conclude that maintaining an individual under these conditions, particularly for more than 10 days, results in harmful emotional, cognitive, social and physical effects. Individuals without mental health issues may experience a number of symptoms when placed in solitary confinement or segregated housing units.

It is because these conditions cause extreme mental and emotional distress which, in some cases, can lead to a diagnosable mental illness.

Inmates Who Have A Serious Mental Illness

Over the past few decades, the role Corrections has had on addressing mental health has changed dramatically.

Correctional facilities have become the de facto mental health care providers, a phenomenon that has required a significant amount of adjustment for personnel who had not anticipated playing a role in health care.

Andrade and Wilson explain, “No

46 CORRECTIONS FORUM • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018

inmate with a Serious Mental Illness (SMI) should be placed in segregation for any significant period of time (i.e, days).” They further that these individuals should be placed in units designed as alternatives to segregation. “In general, the number of inmates in solitary confinement (including those without pre-existing mental health issues or SMI) should be significantly reduced.

On any given day, approximately 4%-5% of the total state and federal prison system is in solitary confinement, and over 12 months approximately 18% are placed in segregation at some time. This significant deprivation should be reserved by correctional departments for only the most significant of issues and for very short periods of time.” They further that facilities and departments that have alternative units for SMI individuals and find alternative sanctions for all inmates (SMI and not SMI) will find their facilities are generally safer and their employees experience greater job satisfaction.

According to Smith, individuals with mental illness are more likely to be confined to segregation because they have greater difficulty in controlling their emotions and as a result often miss social and verbal cues. Segregation can increase symptoms of an inmate’s mental health disorder when placed in solitary.

“It is essential that when an offender has been placed in segregation, a qualified health care professional reviews the offender’s health record to determine if his or her needs contraindicate the placement or require accommodation.”

He furthers that this is particularly important in the case of mentally ill offenders because they are likely to stay in segregation for a longer period of time than those without mental health issues. As a result of their increased stress levels and limited ability to follow instructions, mentally ill offenders have difficulty acting in ways that

would otherwise keep them free from committing infractions.

Smith furthers that the primary concerns with solitary confinement are the length of time spent in confinement, the number of hours spent out of cell during the confinement period, and most importantly, “The offender needs a means by which they can work toward release.” Indefinite or long term confinement will have the most detrimental effects on an individual. It is important to allow the offender to have opportunities to participate in clinical programming aimed at reducing the effects of social isolation, increasing behavioral control, and that allows them to shorten their confinement period.

Since mentally ill offenders are placed in solitary at about three times the rate of those without mental illness, Wexford Health developed a comprehensive evidence-based in-cell program providing offenders with the structure and methods to systematically work their way out of segregation.

“Planned and regular programming is a fundamental underpinning of this program. The offender learns to take control over planning their day and learning activities. An important objective is to reduce the likelihood of decompensation or suicidality,” says Smith.

Social interaction is a basic human necessity and is vital for the stability and “mental hygiene” of an individual, he adds.

“Offenders are no different and require social contact on a routine and predictable basis. Typically, offenders who are isolated from social contacts will experience symptoms of depression and/or anxiety and agitation. The experience of symptoms of mental illness is correlated not just to the isolation itself. It is also in relation to the length of time one is isolated as well as the individual’s ability to be reintegrated back to a less restrictive housing unit. In other words, does the inmate retain hope?” ✪

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Continued from page 34 prisons we work with substance misuse teams, mental health teams, prisoners who are unemployed, those who are deemed ‘difficult to manage’ and all those in between. Our projects are open to everyone, whoever they are and whatever their relationship to music is.”

When it comes to reentry and rehabilitation, says Lee, “Research into our projects has shown that working with us inside prison and then being part of our former prisoner program Sounding Out, supports a reduction in recidivism; however, we know we are only a very small part of a very large and complex jigsaw. The first cohort of Sounding Out showed an 86% success rate (far in excess of the national average) five years after the program ended.”

Sounding Out is a program designed to support people the Trust worked with while they were in prison and when they are released, providing continuity and positive additional support during a time that is notoriously hard to manage. A 2008 g playin e t study conducted by a a m ng An in s duri k e a t e a the Institute of p t eth s nia S ht g alifor Macb u C a t t Criminology at the a was taged class e e h t h play s T University of no. from s , Sola ctors a n a , l o y s a i n Cambridge called r n P o pa ofessi e Com a’s Arts Beats and Bars: Music by pr spear e rni k o a f i h S Cal f o e Marin t in Prisons, An ram. sta f the s prog n o i t Evaluation found a c part o Corre in

48 CORRECTIONS FORUM • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018

“reduction in adjudications both during and after the project, an increase in confidence to participate in other educational programs as well as confirmation that Music in Prisons projects can play a role in fulfilling the [U.K’s National Offender Management Service] NOMS ‘Seven Pathways to Reducing Reoffending.’” Another evaluation of the first phase of the Sounding Out ex-prisoner program that tracked participants over a nine-month period noted a Social Return on Investment calculation of £4.85 for every £1 invested in the program.

Other studies have been conducted on the effect these sorts of programs have on inmate behavior.

Many spoke of a sense of accomplishment, selfesteem, and belonging that they had never had before. Additional findings were building positive relationships, encouraging healthy behaviors, improving inmate relations, reducing inmate-staff conflict, improving family relationships, increasing critical thinking, and building real-world job skills.

One such study, Larry Brewster’s 2014 The Impact of Prison Arts Programs on Inmate Attitudes and Behavior: A Quantitative Evaluation, asked participants in California prisons why they chose to take classes. Relatively few said because it was a good way to pass time. The majority of those participating five or more years wanted to learn new skills. Eighty three percent wanted to be creative. The Brewster study found “a statistically significant correlation between training and practice in the arts and emotional control. This correlation is strongest among those who have studied and practiced art for at least two or more years. Similarly, we found a strong, positive relationship between arts education and improved social competence—the ability to work collaboratively, and to communicate well with others.”

Participants also underwent behavioral changes, particularly the longer they have participated in AIC (more than five years). Overall, nearly two-thirds (64%) got along better with inmates, and nearly 60% said they liked themselves more. Another variance: Inmates who participated in the program for five or more years had 61% fewer disciplinary records, while for inmates participating for two to four years it was 36%. The figure for those who have participated for less than a year was only 12.5%.

More than half of participants in the two- to fiveyear participation range got along with staff. That figure was 25% for one-year participants.

There have been famous examples of works created while incarcerated, both good and bad. After all, Hitler wrote Mein Kampf in prison. John Wayne Gacy and Henry Lee Lucas’s dark paintings may reveal personalities unable to undergo any sort of self-realization or epiphany. Finally as Shakespeare wrote in Richard III, “No beast so fierce but knows some touch of pity, but I know none, and therefore am no beast.” But then again, for most it’s not beast.

It’s breast. ✪ VISIT US AT WWW.CORRECTIONSFORUM.NET

EYE Continued from page 39

SAFE Continued from page 43

ly the public safety purpose for BWCs and to develop a concept of operations (CONOPS) for their use, a written policy statement outlining public safety purposes and goals of BWC use is important.

Such policies and CONOPS may be important factors in selecting BWC products with specific features.”

While the study’s scope does not go further on delineating policy issues, it observes: Commercially available BWCs have flooded the market so that there are now over 60 different body worn cameras produced specifically for law enforcement use.

A wide array of brands and models are available to choose from. Among these are: Utility Associates, Inc.’s BodyWorn; the ACCU.C LTE Body Camera from VOXX Advanced Solutions and S4W; the Taser Axom; and the LE3, from Vievu, a Safariland Company.

The NIJ study, published in November 2016, offers a technological overview to consider in purchase of the cameras and the accompanying software. Some of these are: the camera mount, camera resolution, data storage and low-light recording. In addition, issues that law enforcement/corrections need to consider are: if recording is voice/movement/gunshot activated or manual start, redaction features on the software, and how the video is uploaded to the server. Also worth checking out, the Department of Homeland Security’s System Assessment and Validation for Emergency Responders (SAVER) conducted a body-worn camera market survey for law enforcement, gathering information from September 2014 to March 2015 from vendors, Internet research, industry publications, an emergency responder focus group, and a government issued Request for Information (RFI) that was posted on the Federal Business Opportunities.

Twenty cameras were reviewed in SAVER’s 2015 market survey. ✪

years of sales.

“Inmate transport is one of the most dangerous parts of the officer’s job,” contends Tim Donovan, associate product manager, Bob Barker Company.

“Transporting inmates puts the officer in a vulnerable position especially when loading and unloading inmates.” This is so because, even though inmates are cuffed and shackled, officers are severely outnumbered. In fact, he says, two officers (and sometimes only one) are transporting numerous inmates, leaving the officers in a disadvantageous position.

A fully-equipped van specifically created for the purpose has the advantage of adding a layer of safety to a transport. The VanCell Elite from Bob Barker, contains up to four segregation compartments (it is PREA compliant), and provides improved visibility for greater officer security. Available in either 9 or 13 seats, it comes standard with a four-camera monitoring system (with optional DVR) as well as officer controlled visibility through both rear and side doors. Rear vent holes provide sight lines for viewing as well as for application of pepper spray. For added safety it also includes lockable storage/gun locker space. The VanCell insert fits both low- and mid-roof Ford and Chevy cargo vans. Donovan explains that Bob Barker provides training to the agency after purchase to ensure they’re comfortable with all of the features of the unit, in order to uphold the safety of their officers.

All in all, we would probably all agree, it’s a dangerous world out there when it comes to inmate transport. Hendricks says he carries the Tool Logic SL Pro 4 Series Folding Knife Multi-tool plus Handcuff Key not so much because he worries about having to escape from handcuffs. “I wear it in case of an instance that provides a teaching moment,” he says, “to show officers this is very real.” ✪

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AD INDEX Page No.

Alkermes ..............................8 Black Creek Integrated Systems Corp. ................35 Bob Barker .........................51 California Coast University .........................6 Corizon Health ....................7 Endur ID Incorporated ......39 Garrett Metal Detectors....37 GTL Telmate ......................29 Institutional Eye Care ........50 Keefe Group ......................52 Medi-Dose Company......4,21 MHM Correctional Services, Inc. ....................2 NaphCare...........................33 NTOA .................................25 Peerless Handcuff Company........................43 Point Blank Industries .........5 Renco .................................16 StunCuff Enterprises, Inc. .............41 STV Architects, Inc...............6 Swintec Corporation .........26 Time Keeping Systems, Inc. ..................47 TrinityServices Group, Inc. .....................19 Union Supply Group..........17 Western Union...................15 Wexford Health Sources....13 This advertisers index is provided as a service to our readers only. The publisher does not assume liability for errors or omissions.

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