Santa Cruz County Jails Review

Main Jail 2. Rountree Medium 3. Rountree Minimum 4. Juvenile Hall 5. Blaine Street 6. Court Holding 7. Camp 45 The Main Jail, Rountree facilities, Blaine Street and the Court Holding cells are operated by the Santa Cruz County Sheriff. Juvenile Hall is operated by the Probation Department. The budget for each of these facilities is under the control of the county Board of Supervisors. Camp 45 is operated by the California Department of Corrections, and its budget is under the control of the State of California. Scope The Grand Jury is mandated by California Penal Code § 919(b) to inspect and report on the conditions and management of the jail facilities within the county. To satisfy this mandate, the Criminal Justice Committee and other members of the Grand Jury: (1) inspected the Main Jail, Rountree facilities, Blaine Street, and Juvenile Hall; (2) spoke with management, staff, and inmates at each facility; (3) reviewed previous Grand Jury reports, paying particular attention to prior recommendations; and (4) reviewed California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation inspection reports for each facility. Main Jail The Santa Cruz Main Jail is located at 259 Water Street, across the street from the County Courthouse. Three visits were made. The first visit was during the afternoon and early evening on September 29, 2006, the second visit in the afternoon on Sept. 30, 2006, and the third visit in the evening on Feb. 2, 2007. Jails Review - 1 Main Jail Findings 1. In 2006, the average daily number of inmates housed in the Main Jail was 340. On September 29 and 30, 2006, the total inmate population was 317. Approximately 10 percent of these inmates were female. On Feb. 2, 2007, the population was 321. Although there are a maximum of 424 beds available, the Main Jail’s rated capacity is 311. This capacity is set by the California Corrections Standards Authority, which inspects the jail every two years.

The Sheriff’s 2007 report on overcrowding, presented to the County Board of Supervisors in February 2007, reported that, “Although jail bookings decreased by only 1 percent, the average monthly population at the Main Jail is down 10 percent compared to 2005. The average monthly Main Jail population in 2005 was 386 in comparison to 346 in 2006.” Response: The Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office AGREES.

In April 2007, the Governor and California State Legislature approved a prison reform measure aimed at easing overcrowding at state prisons. The measure includes $1.2 billion in funding to increase the number of beds at county jails statewide by 13,000, with a requirement that counties receiving state funds match 25 percent of the state’s contribution. Counties that assist the state in providing re- entry facilities and mental health programs for state prison parolees will receive preference from the state for the local jail funding. Response: The Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office AGREES.

The jail population consists of both male and female inmates who have cases pending, have been sentenced, or who are awaiting sentencing. Approximately 75 percent of inmates housed in the jail are repeat offenders. On Sept. 30, 2006, 80 percent were not yet sentenced.

The jail population is segregated, with members of competing gangs housed in separate units, each with their own recreation room and exercise yard. Inmates with psychological problems, sex offenders and those who are violent are also segregated from the rest of the Main Jail population. Meals are served separately to eliminate contact. Jail inmates come into contact with inmates from other wings only during travel to court appearances.

At least one bilingual officer is on duty during every shift. Corrections officers said the Sheriff’s Office neither actively encourages nor discourages officers to learn Spanish, a prevalent language of inmates at the jail. Response: The Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office PARTIALLY AGREES. Although English is spoken by 90% plus of the inmate population, the Sheriff's Office continues to prioritize hiring of bilingual staff.

The Sheriff’s Office spent $99,000 in 2006 on remodeling and mildew removal in one of the shower facilities at the Main Jail.

Arrestees who are drunk at the time of their arrest are put in the jail’s drunk tank for a minimum of five hours. The Sheriff’s Office collects information on “serial - 2 Jails Review inebriates,” those arrested at least four times within a 30-day period on suspicion of being drunk in public. The Santa Cruz County District Attorney’s office uses the information as part of the implementation of Proposition 36, the statewide measure passed in 2000 that allows first- and second-time nonviolent, simple drug possession offenders the opportunity to receive substance abuse treatment instead of incarceration.

Everyone who is admitted to the jail for 14 days or longer is examined by a doctor. The jail also offers limited dentistry (including pulling teeth, but not fillings or more extensive dental work). Testing of inmates for tuberculosis is now mandatory.

There are two nurses on duty overnight, more during days.

The entire corrections staff was retrained in the use of stun guns in fall 2006 following the death of an inmate in custody who had been subdued by a stun gun. Stun guns were reintroduced back into the jail in October 2006.

Medical records during the September visits were found stored out in the open in a hallway, possibly in violation of Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act privacy requirements. The records were stored properly in a storage room during the February visit.

In November 2006, the Sheriff’s Office initiated regular one-hour Sunday tours of the Main Jail that are open to the public. Approximately 250 people had toured the Main Jail as of May 2007. Response: The Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office AGREES.

Corrections officers work 12-hour shifts with no overlap of shifts. Response from the County: The Sheriff determines the shifts of staff. Twelve hour shifts are provided for the Memorandum of Understanding between the County and the Sheriff’s staff.

As of March 13, 2007, 12 corrections officer positions at the jails were unfilled.

On busy nights, particularly Fridays and Saturdays, the jail cannot accept and process persons arrested as fast as they are brought to the jail. As a result, police cars from all the county’s law enforcement jurisdictions often queue up outside the jail, with police personnel forced to wait, sometimes more than an hour, for their turn. During this time, the officers are off the streets rather than patrolling. Response: The Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office PARTIALLY AGREES. At times, especially during large events, a transportation officer will be designated by some police agencies to take other officer's arrestees to jail, allowing them to continue handling calls.

The Main Jail is scheduled to install a new fingerprinting system that will enable officers to scan a prisoner’s thumb print as soon as they drive into the intake port. This system will begin the process of identifying the prisoner, saving the officer time later into the intake process. The same fingerprinting system will also be used to scan prisoners before they are released from jail, providing positive identification and reducing the chance that an inmate will be released erroneously. Jails Review - 3 Response: The Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office AGREES.

The county’s only booking facility is in the Main Jail. Police working in the south part of the county must transport persons who are arrested to the Main Jail in Santa Cruz for booking. Response: The Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office AGREES.

Creation of a new “prisoner classification system,” recommended by the National Institute of Corrections, is due to be completed this spring or summer. One of the expected benefits of the new system will be a more comprehensive analysis of new prisoners, possibly resulting in an increase in the number of inmates qualifying for rehabilitation programs rather than incarceration in the Main Jail. Also, as recommended by the National Institute of Corrections, a “Jail Population Control Officer” has been appointed temporarily to monitor jail overcrowding until the new classification system is completed, at which time a “classification team” of corrections officers will take over the task. Response: The Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office PARTIALLY AGREES. The new classification system has been completed and implemented.

Medical services at the Main Jail, as well as at the other corrections facilities in the county, are provided by the Santa Cruz County Health Services Agency.

In the majority of counties in California, medical services are contracted out by the county’s Sheriff’s Department to private companies. In most of the remaining counties, the Sheriff’s Department is responsible for providing medical care for inmates. The model used in Santa Cruz County with the county’s Health Services Agency responsible for providing medical care for inmates is unusual, though not unique.

The California Code of Regulations establishes requirements for medical care in county jails. Title 15, Minimum Standards for Local Detention Facilities, Article 11, Medical/Mental Health Services, Sec. 1200, establishes that the Sheriff’s Office is ultimately responsible for the provision of health care within the jails. It states, “Responsibility for Health Care Services: (a) In Type I, II, III, and IV facilities, the facility administrator shall have the responsibility to ensure provision of emergency and basic health care services to all inmates.” Response: The County AGREES with this finding. Response: The Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office AGREES.

Detention Medical Services is a small portion of the Santa Cruz County Health Services Agency’s responsibilities and budget. The overall budget for the Health Services Agency is $135 million; the total budget for Detention Medical Services is $3 million. Of the 20 Health Services Agency’s Detention Medical Services positions, two-thirds are nurses. Four and a half positions in Detention Medical Services were vacant as of March 2007. - 4 Jails Review 24. The Health Services Agency is working toward computerization of all reports and paperwork, but computerization of jail reports for the handling of medications and tracking medical reports has been delayed.

Nursing staff turnover at the jail has been high, partly attributable to the higher salaries nurses can earn both locally at private health institutions in the county, including the hospital, and in jails in other counties. There have been suggestions that the Detention Medical Services department, because it comprises only a fraction of the entire Health Services Agency’s mission, is not being given the attention or resources necessary to operate efficiently, and that Detention Medical Services is losing trained, experienced personnel, resulting in lost productivity and expertise and higher training costs. Salaries for detention medical services personnel are currently under review to determine their competitiveness with other similar positions. County administrators and labor representatives for nurses initiated negotiations for a new contract in spring, 2007. Response from the County: The County AGREES with findings related to nursing staff turnover and anticipated salary review. The County DISAGREES with the portion of the finding that indicates that Detention Medical Services has not been given the attention or resources necessary to operate efficiently. Response: The Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office PARTIALLY AGREES. Many of the County jail medical staff are leaving for state prison jobs because of a court order dramatically increasing state medical salaries.

The Interim Director of Detention Medical Services is conducting an assessment of costs, staffing, issues involving who has authority over detention medical services staff, and state statutory guidelines for providing medical care to inmates. The goal of the assessment is to determine, 1) whether inmate care is best managed through the county’s Health Services Agency; 2) if the county would be better served by having the Sheriff’s Office manage Detention Medical Services itself; or 3) if the Sheriff’s Office should contract out to a private health provider. The report is projected to be completed sometime in 2008. Response: The County PARTIALLY AGREES. The review is being conducted by the Health Services Agency, the Sheriff’s Office, and the County Administrative Office. Response: The Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office PARTIALLY AGREES. This assessment is ongoing with the involvement of the Sheriff's Office, HSA, and the CAO's Office. Jails Review - 5 Main Jail Conclusions 1. The facility is well-managed. Officers and staff conducted themselves in a professional manner during inspections, answered questions asked of them in a thorough and knowledgeable manner, promptly provided backup information when requested and exhibited a sense of pride in their work.