Part Six: Stanislaus County Correctional Facilities Inspections - Case 08-25

Recommendations 1

• R3

  Page 11
  That the housing capacity of the Stanislaus County Juvenile Justice facility will have become inadequate by the year 2010. In the Juvenile Commitment Needs Assessment, April 2008, it was previously recommended to add at least 80 beds at this location, to bring the total to 238 beds. This addition would bring the housing capacity in line with the recommendations of that assessment as projected through the year 2010. By the year 2020, the projections showed a potential need for a total of 297 beds, or an additional 139 beds more than currently available. 4] Lack of family involvement in offenders’ treatment can affect recidivism. Recommendations for Juvenile Detention Center The Stanislaus County Civil Grand Jury recommends the following items: 1) Develop longer-term juvenile justice, mental health, and vocational programs for those sentenced wards that serve longer terms (more than 60 days). This could reduce recidivism, boredom, attitude problems, etc. In the juvenile justice scheme with both a juvenile hall and a juvenile commitment facility, the juvenile hall residents would be un-sentenced wards (pre-adjudication); the commitment facility residents would be sentenced wards (post-adjudication). 2) Develop plans and move forward with the youth commitment facility (youth honor farm) project for housing sentenced wards. This project should have about 90 beds. As the County already owns the land, there is no land acquisition problem in proceeding with this project. The need for this facility is described in the Juvenile Commitment Needs Assessment, April 2008, as an “urgent service gap in the Juvenile Criminal Justice System.” (Executive Summary, page EX.2) Potential benefits include: • Keeping sentenced wards local, allowing for more family involvement in the rehabilitation process. • Enhancing family counseling opportunities with local incarceration. • Separating sentenced wards from court-process wards. • Allowing for more comprehensive education programs, including vocational programs. 3] Expand the current facility for un-sentenced wards, per the recommendations of the Juvenile Commitment Needs Assessment, April 2008. 4] Strongly advocate for more family-involvement programs – such as whole-family counseling – for all wards. Possibly, even advocate for the courts to mandate such whole-family programs, where possible. Sheriff’s Honor Farm Report on Sheriff’s Honor Farm Physical Plant and General Safety The facility was built in the late 1960s and the barracks were added in the early 1970s. The barracks are not ADA-compliant; if remodeled or expanded, the facility would have to be brought into compliance. Staff Working Conditions Current staff level is 41, with 2 vacancies. Four more positions are clearly needed, especially on the graveyard shift, the lack of which constitutes a security risk. The facility needs a reliable generator, as there is no alternative reliable power source available during outages. During power outages, which can be frequent during the winter, the sewer system pumps fail, creating a serious wastewater problem. Inmate Housing and Processing The downtown main jail classifies the inmates and then they are sent to the Honor Farm, which houses 360 inmates. The average maximum length of stay is three to seven months. There are three main barracks, with 86 inmates per barracks with a common bathroom that includes toilets, sinks, and showers. There is a security check every hour. An additional barracks is Barracks 4, a medium security unit, mostly housing un- sentenced inmates. This is overflow from the downtown main jail. The capacity of Barracks 4 is 90 inmates, with 6 per cell. Barracks 4 is U-shaped, and the inmates’ recreation area is an open area in the middle. Inmate Programs Inmates work for extra food, a chance to learn a trade, other privileges, and early release credit. All inmates are required to work. Staff is trying to organize a job placement program. The Inmate Welfare Fund is used for a large screen TV, tractors, etc. The inmates participate in a weekly "Clean Barracks Contest" where the winning barracks gets to choose the movie to be shown on the large screen. Outside work crews are dispatched from the Honor Farm; an average of 100 inmates participate per day. Half of these crews are supervised by civilians. The inmate crews work on projects for city parks, Department of Forestry, landfill, public works, and roadside cleanup. Training programs include wood shop, metal shop, greenhouse, and small engine shop. The Honor Farm staff looks for inmates who have skills to match jobs and then offers an apprentice program for other eligible inmates. There is a large recreation field, fenced with anti climb and razor wire. There are several intervention programs available to the inmates: - drug counseling, parenting programs, Men in Recovery, T.A.L.K. (Teaching And Loving Kids) a positive- parenting program, Breaking Barriers, and Friends Outside. A chaplain is available. The Honor Farm has a recycled metal bin, and revenue from sales of metal is returned to the County General Fund. There is an inmate garden where potatoes, corn, onions, and garlic are grown. A safety meeting is held every Monday, where use of tools and general safety matters are covered. Food Preparation and Handling Meals are delivered from the central kitchen at Public Safety Center. The Honor Farm keeps three days of food on hand at all times. Findings for Sheriff’s Honor Farm The Stanislaus County Civil Grand Jury finds: 1] That the Honor Farm is generally short-staffed; particularly the graveyard shift. 2] That serious sewer problems develop during power-outage situations. This happens frequently during the winter. When electrical power is out for more than a half hour, the sewage system ceases to operate, creating a health hazard. Portable toilet units (Porta-Potties) can be placed in the barracks, but the main sewer problems must still be dealt with separately. 3] The vocational skill programs available are limited in scope and depend, to a great extent, on outside donations. 4] Some of the Honor Farm buildings are in poor condition. 5] Many of the Honor Farm projects result in significant cost savings to the County. Recommendations for Sheriff’s Honor Farm The Stanislaus County Civil Grand Jury recommends that the County: 1] Evaluate operations and expand staffing to fill appropriate vacancies. The Jail Needs Assessment, June 2007, recommends a number of staffing increases as shown in Section G, pages G.1-G.2. Correctional staff for Barracks 2 and 3 on the night shift Transportation staff (all three shifts). 2] Immediately obtain and install a new emergency generator system. This would alleviate winter sewer problems caused by power outages. 3] Expand vocational skill programs as much as possible. Fund these programs to provide a permanent base of skills opportunities. Provide a vocational job-placement and tracking program. 4] Replace or rebuild buildings and upgrade others as needed. Replacement of this entire facility was recommended in the 1988 Jail Needs Assessment and Master Plan. 5] Continue and expand these programs. Seek appropriate partnerships with the business community. General/All Facilities General Findings 1] Jail management and staff are doing extremely well with the current environment and within existing constraints. The Public Safety Center and Juvenile Detention Center are excellent facilities. However, there are many structural shortcomings in the Main Jail and the Honor Farm. The Main Jail’s outdated design and cramped location will not allow for expansion. The Honor Farm facility lacks adequate security and its remote location creates a response time problem in case of a need for backup personnel. From County of Stanislaus Sheriff’s Department – Jail Needs Assessment, June 2007, Executive Summary, p EX.2). 2] The Juvenile Detention Center houses sentenced and un-sentenced wards in the same facility. 3] Review of a sample of the safety inspection reports and related documents provided by the Sheriff’s Department and the Probation Department found that items identified as deficient were handled in a reasonable and timely manner. The staff and management personnel of each facility were operating their plant in a responsible manner. The staff members knew their jobs and performed their duties well. The management was comfortable responding to questions posed by the visiting members of the grand jury. 4] The total bed count in the three adult detention facilities is currently 1492. The executive summary of the County of Stanislaus Sheriff’s Department – Jail Needs Assessment, June 2007 show a projection of 1913 total beds needed – an increase of 421 beds. The bed count of 1492 includes 100 double-bunk beds. Should the county need to eliminate this condition, then an additional 521 beds must be produced to meet the projection that is only two years in the future. The report describes this bed shortage as an “urgent service gap in the adult criminal justice system” (Executive Summary, p EX.1). Should this recommended expansion not take place, additional, critical pressure on early release programs is certain. 5] All of the facilities provided many of the necessary programs for the inmates. 6] There are critical staffing shortages that put the safety of staff as well as inmates and wards in jeopardy. The Jail Needs Assessment, June 2007, details staffing recommendations in Section G, pages G.1-G.2. 7] Staffing shortages impede professional development programs, which, in turn, negatively affect staff promotion and retention. 8] All four facilities appeared reasonably clean and trash-free. General Recommendations 1] Demolish the Main Jail and Honor Farm and add the needed beds at the Public Safety Center property, as the County owns additional property at that location. These changes were already recommended in the 1988 Jail Needs Assessment and Master Plan. Conversion of the Main Jail to a short-term court holding facility has also been proposed. 2] Build the juvenile commitment facility immediately. This commitment facility would enable the separation of sentenced and un-sentenced wards. In the current Juvenile Commitment Facility Needs Assessment, it has been recommended that the county build this commitment facility on the existing property on Blue Gum Avenue. 3] Continue to train all staff thoroughly. 4] Expand bed capacity by building new facilities on existing County-owned property. 5] Expand inmate programs as needed – especially the educational and counseling programs at the Juvenile Detention Center. 6] Carefully evaluate staffing needs at all adult facilities. Recruit, hire, and train new staff members. The Jail Needs Assessment, June 2007, recommends a number of staffing increases as shown in Section G, pages G.1-G.2. Main Jail Facility escort staff Correctional officers in Central Control Public Safety Center Internal facility escort correctional officer External transportation staff “B” Control staff (jail command post and inmate supervision) Minimum Housing Unit staff Medical security position CSO positions. Honor Farm Correctional staff for Barracks 2 and 3 on the night shift Transportation staff (all three shifts) 7] Improve professional development programs as needed. 8] Continue the good housekeeping. 18