Riverside County*

R1

The Corrections Division of the Sheriff's Department adhere to California Code of Regulations Title 15, article 1.5, §3268.1(a), which requires (1) "An employee who uses or observes non-deadly force...shall document that fact." And (2) "The employee's immediate supervisor shall review the document to ensure that it is adequately prepared..." Response: The recommendation requires further analysis. The narrative of "Recommendation" for item 1 does not make any suggestion or recommendation. It reiterates Title 15 language about use of force documentation. Our internal data review consisted of dozens of Use of Force reports. Corrections personnel are completing the required reports. A review of the file folders containing these reports did detect errors consistent with Finding 1. For example, there are Use of Force reports that enumerate the Corrections staff involved in an incident, but not all of those personnel have a report in the file. Several of the reports do not indicate the name of the supervisor who reviewed the report and forwarded it for filing. At least one incident had a deputy filing their report on a form more correctly suited for the "primary" reporting officer, rather than on a "witness" form. These discrepancies continue to be addressed in daily training and by more closely monitoring the report routing process by Corrections management. .....................

R2

Inmates receive treatment by medical staff after exposure to Oleoresin Capsicum (pepper spray). In the absence of medical staff, custody/corrections staff provide treatment (G.O. 503.04). Response: The recommendation has been implemented. (It was, and remains, a standard operational policy. Of further note, it is likely that the "G.O." number listed in this recommendation is actually a Corrections Division Policy number, rather than a "General Orders" number - a department wide collection of rules and regulations.) As mentioned in Item 1, on-going training continues to address the need to positively report on post incident OC clean up, rather than allow the reader to assume that it has been done. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

R3

Any time the ERT is deployed to an incident requiring the use of force, the episode be video recorded and maintained according to established procedure (G.O. 510.09). Response: The recommendation has been implemented. (It was, and remains, a standard operational policy. Of further note, it is likely that the "G.O." number listed in this recommendation is actually a Corrections Division Policy number, rather than a "General Orders" number - a department wide collection of rules and regulations.) During our internal review of the report forms, the Corrections Division determined that the video recordings were taking place as required. However, some first line supervisors had engaged in a practice of recording the ERT call-out, but sometimes reused the VHS tapes if nothing occurred during the ERT operation. Training has taken place, and continues to be reiterated, that a video recording of nothing happening is often as important as a video tape showing that some remarkable event occurred. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

R4

Correctional deputies assigned to transferring and transporting of inmates to "...be familiar with transfer requirements and paperwork." (G.O. 510.03) Response: The recommendation has been implemented. (It was, and remains, a standard operational policy. Of further note, it is likely that the "G.O." number listed in this recommendation is actually a Corrections Division Policy number, rather than a "General Orders" number - a department wide collection of rules and regulations.) The Form 533 continues to be used to track the described Division paperwork and inmate property. Roll call training and refresher training with supervisors will continue to be utilized to ensure proper completion of the described paperwork. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

R5

Correctional deputies working overtime in other Riverside County jail facilities demonstrate a working knowledge of that facility's G.O. prior to the authorization of overtime. The recommendation requires further analysis. Facilities do not have individual General Orders. It appears that the Grand Jury is addressing the Corrections Division Policy and Procedures Manual. Certain activities within the Corrections Division are directed by a single policy statement that includes guidelines for implementation of that policy. The policy is the same in each facility. Each of the five facilities has a procedure that implements the policy. The procedures may or may not be the same. For instance, procedures addressing how to move inmates within a facility are likely to differ in small detail due to the physical differences from facility to facility. They do not alter the intent of the policy. It appears that the items addressed in this report from the Grand Jury are comprised of a review of many of the forms and reports completed on a daily basis by personnel from within the Corrections Division. Our review did not reveal any substantial issues or omissions, rather a collection of minor discrepancies in the thoroughness of the forms and a breakdown in the routing of forms without required supervisor's signatures or initials acknowledging review. This comment is meant in no way to denigrate the importance of these Grand Jury findings. Rather, it appears symptomatic of a system that produces large volumes of reports and forms due to a high level of activity. The Corrections Division formerly utilized a full-time Quality Assurance Team (QAT) to review Division operations and audit specific facility procedures and reports. Due to manpower concerns, the QAT has been suspended and is only revived about once a year for a 60 to 90 day period to conduct random inspections and audits. This Grand Jury report emphasizes the usefulness of such an auditing group on a full-time basis. It is the intent of the Sheriff to reinstitute this team when staffing levels allow. If I can provide any further information or address any issues, please do not hesitate to contact me. Sincerely, BOB DOYLE SHERIFF-CORONER Assistant Sheriff Larry Parrish, Chief Executive Officer CC: D:\Word Docs\Corrections\Grand Jury 05-06 Corrections Div, response to Presiding Judge, draft #3.doc