Post by CC on Dec 12, 2009 6:51:05 GMT -5
New dress code, new diet for disorderly inmates part of changes at Adams County Jail
![]()
assets.mediaspanonline.com/prod/3776032/Adams-County-Jail37aa_w400.jpg [/img]
Adams County Sheriff's Dept. Chief Deputy Fred Kientzle displays one of the jail's new uniforms for inmates Wednesday afternoon at the sheriff's dept. The department has implemented several policy and procedure changes for the Adams County Jail that are designed to encourage better inmate behavior and make it safer for jail personnel. (H-W Photo/Philip Carlson)
Click here to view the Whig Gallery
Published: 12/10/2009 | Updated: 12/10/2009
By RODNEY HART
Herald-Whig Staff Writer
The Adams County Sheriff's Department has implemented several policy and procedure changes for the Adams County Jail that are designed to encourage better inmate behavior and make it safer for jail personnel.
Chief Deputy Fred Kientzle and Jail Administrator Chad Downs said changes that went into effect this week include more severe penalties for behavior infractions, new uniforms and dress codes for inmates, and a new diet for inmates who have violated jail rules.
"We are taking back our jail," Downs said. "It will make it safer for our officers, and it will get a lot more respect for them from the inmates."
The jail, on three floors of the Adams County Courthouse, has come under fire in recent years because of safety and security issues.
Inmates Jose Olmeda and Richard Carr escaped from the jail two years ago by overpowering guards. Carr was caught the next day, while it took 10 days to apprehend Olmeda. Several other escape attempts have been thwarted.
Inmate Thomas Freeman hanged himself in October 2008. Authorities said he used a bedsheet. The Illinois Department of Corrections ruled jail staff was not to blame for Freeman's death.
The facility is more than 50 years old and is designed to hold 116 inmates in eight sections. Wednesday's count was at 122 inmates, with nine expected to be transferred to the Illinois Department of Corrections today.
The changes, which Kientzle said have been planned for a year or longer, are:
* Inmates will be given a 16-page handbook listing regulations, rules and possible penalties for violations, steps that Downs said were approved by the Illinois Department of Corrections. Violations could result in criminal charges, loss of privileges, restitution, reduction of good time and being placed in lockdown, or the "disciplinary segregation" section of the jail.
The jail previously had a one-page list of rules, and infractions usually resulted in one day of lockdown.
"They weren't enforced nearly as much as they are now," Kientzle said. "This makes it more uniform, and there's no deviation. We've done these same things, but now we are giving the inmates options -- either you can work with us or against us."
Rule violations could result in between 14 and 60 days in segregation. Inmates can appeal any penalty to a disciplinary hearing board, made up of any three staff members of Downs' choosing except for the officers involved in the incident, within five business days. Downs said it will give the inmates a chance for their side of the story to be heard, but it also will show violations won't be tolerated.
* Inmates in segregation will only receive a breaded substance called Nutraloaf and tea. Nutraloaf is made in the jail and approved by the Illinois Department of Corrections. Three meals of the Nutraloaf, which contains meat, beans and crackers, provide the inmate with nearly 2,000 calories and the daily required nutrition, Downs said.
* Inmates now in the jail will wear either green- or red-striped jumpsuits, instead of orange uniforms. Each inmate will be given two jumpsuits and underwear, but they no longer will be allowed to have their own T-shirts, underwear or socks. The green uniforms are for defendants charged but yet to have cases settled, with the red jumpsuits for inmates either awaiting sentencing or serving county jail time.
"The problem we were seeing was the inmates using their shirts and socks to make things -- clotheslines, blindfolds so they sleep during the day when the lights are on," Downs said.
* Each inmate will be given a mesh bag to store all personal items. The jail also is using rubber cups, plates and trays to keep inmates from breaking them and using them as shanks, Kientzle said.
* Inmates will get a blanket and long blue mat to put on bunks. Each item will be numbered, and inmates are charged if the supplies are damaged.
Kientzle said the new supplies cost about $25,000, with the money raised from the jail's commissary during last several years. The commissary sells items to inmates like candy bars and personal products. Most of the inmates either bring in money or have money brought to them by family or friends while in the jail, Kientzle said.
Downs also is in charge of a 10-officer "Corrections Response Team," which responds to issues in the jail. The officers all received training and certification from the Illinois Department of Corrections.
"We want to discourage them from coming back to the Adams County Jail," Kientzle said. "We will take care of them, make sure they get their medicine and proper medical care, but this isn't a hotel."
Adams County Sheriff's Dept. Chief Deputy Fred Kientzle displays one of the jail's new uniforms for inmates Wednesday afternoon at the sheriff's dept. The department has implemented several policy and procedure changes for the Adams County Jail that are designed to encourage better inmate behavior and make it safer for jail personnel. (H-W Photo/Philip Carlson)
Click here to view the Whig Gallery
Published: 12/10/2009 | Updated: 12/10/2009
By RODNEY HART
Herald-Whig Staff Writer
The Adams County Sheriff's Department has implemented several policy and procedure changes for the Adams County Jail that are designed to encourage better inmate behavior and make it safer for jail personnel.
Chief Deputy Fred Kientzle and Jail Administrator Chad Downs said changes that went into effect this week include more severe penalties for behavior infractions, new uniforms and dress codes for inmates, and a new diet for inmates who have violated jail rules.
"We are taking back our jail," Downs said. "It will make it safer for our officers, and it will get a lot more respect for them from the inmates."
The jail, on three floors of the Adams County Courthouse, has come under fire in recent years because of safety and security issues.
Inmates Jose Olmeda and Richard Carr escaped from the jail two years ago by overpowering guards. Carr was caught the next day, while it took 10 days to apprehend Olmeda. Several other escape attempts have been thwarted.
Inmate Thomas Freeman hanged himself in October 2008. Authorities said he used a bedsheet. The Illinois Department of Corrections ruled jail staff was not to blame for Freeman's death.
The facility is more than 50 years old and is designed to hold 116 inmates in eight sections. Wednesday's count was at 122 inmates, with nine expected to be transferred to the Illinois Department of Corrections today.
The changes, which Kientzle said have been planned for a year or longer, are:
* Inmates will be given a 16-page handbook listing regulations, rules and possible penalties for violations, steps that Downs said were approved by the Illinois Department of Corrections. Violations could result in criminal charges, loss of privileges, restitution, reduction of good time and being placed in lockdown, or the "disciplinary segregation" section of the jail.
The jail previously had a one-page list of rules, and infractions usually resulted in one day of lockdown.
"They weren't enforced nearly as much as they are now," Kientzle said. "This makes it more uniform, and there's no deviation. We've done these same things, but now we are giving the inmates options -- either you can work with us or against us."
Rule violations could result in between 14 and 60 days in segregation. Inmates can appeal any penalty to a disciplinary hearing board, made up of any three staff members of Downs' choosing except for the officers involved in the incident, within five business days. Downs said it will give the inmates a chance for their side of the story to be heard, but it also will show violations won't be tolerated.
* Inmates in segregation will only receive a breaded substance called Nutraloaf and tea. Nutraloaf is made in the jail and approved by the Illinois Department of Corrections. Three meals of the Nutraloaf, which contains meat, beans and crackers, provide the inmate with nearly 2,000 calories and the daily required nutrition, Downs said.
* Inmates now in the jail will wear either green- or red-striped jumpsuits, instead of orange uniforms. Each inmate will be given two jumpsuits and underwear, but they no longer will be allowed to have their own T-shirts, underwear or socks. The green uniforms are for defendants charged but yet to have cases settled, with the red jumpsuits for inmates either awaiting sentencing or serving county jail time.
"The problem we were seeing was the inmates using their shirts and socks to make things -- clotheslines, blindfolds so they sleep during the day when the lights are on," Downs said.
* Each inmate will be given a mesh bag to store all personal items. The jail also is using rubber cups, plates and trays to keep inmates from breaking them and using them as shanks, Kientzle said.
* Inmates will get a blanket and long blue mat to put on bunks. Each item will be numbered, and inmates are charged if the supplies are damaged.
Kientzle said the new supplies cost about $25,000, with the money raised from the jail's commissary during last several years. The commissary sells items to inmates like candy bars and personal products. Most of the inmates either bring in money or have money brought to them by family or friends while in the jail, Kientzle said.
Downs also is in charge of a 10-officer "Corrections Response Team," which responds to issues in the jail. The officers all received training and certification from the Illinois Department of Corrections.
"We want to discourage them from coming back to the Adams County Jail," Kientzle said. "We will take care of them, make sure they get their medicine and proper medical care, but this isn't a hotel."