Today's Jails

Reduce Your Risk and Liability

Sandy Schilling — Mon, 12 May 2008 18:40:00 GMT

A new publication, Risk Management in Jails, is now available from the National Institute of Corrections. This manual can be used by jails of any size and is intended to help jails identify risks and develop a formal risk management program. The chapters contained in the guide are:

Understanding Risk and Its Implications for Jails
Jail Risk Management Issues and Strategies
Developing a Risk Management Program
Organizational Investments for Managing Risk

Improving Reentry from Jail to the Community - A Toolkit and More

Eileen Conway — Wed, 07 May 2008 18:16:00 GMT

Two important new resources on jail reentry have been released today by the Urban Institute. To help prepare inmates to transition from jail to the community, guidance is provided by The Jail Administrator's Toolkit for Reentry, which the Urban Institute describes as follows:

"Geared toward jail practitioners who are working to improve reentry in their jurisdictions, The Jail Administrator's Toolkit for Reentry provides key elements of the reentry process from jail staff issues and assessment screens to identifying community resources and coordinating stakeholders. The Toolkit also offers examples and materials taken from around the country to assist jail practitioners in developing reentry strategies that can serve a variety of jail populations, whether pretrial or sentenced, and in a variety of jail jurisdictions."

Also new is Life After Lockup: Improving Reentry from Jail to the Community, which "synthesizes key findings from the Jail Reentry Roundtable and examines opportunities on the jail-to-community continuum where reentry-focused interventions can make a difference."

Resources on Recruitment, Hiring, and Retention

Sandy Schilling — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 17:36:00 GMT

The Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) has posted a CD-Rom Recruitment, Hiring, and Retention Resources which "contains descriptions of and links to resources from the COPS Office, other Department of Justice divisions, and law enforcement organizations that will help police chiefs and sheriffs find, train, and retain qualified staff." Although the primary emphasis is intended for law enforcement much of the information is useful in a jail application. The table of contents includes:

Recruitment and Hiring
Retention and Training
Ethics and Integrity
Early Intervention
Managing Stress

Jails - Build Them and They Will Come

Sandy Schilling — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 23:43:00 GMT

A new Justice Policy Institute report, Jailing Communities: The Impact of Jail Expansion and Effective Public Safety Strategies, was recently released. The authors, Amanda Petteruti and Nastassia Walsh, ask many thought provoking questions, such as:

What Are Jails and How Are They Used?
Why Are Jail Populations Growing?
What Are the Consequences of Over-Using Jails?

The Justice Policy Institute is a "Washington, DC-based think-tank committed to reducing society's reliance on incarceration." They conclude this report with recommendations that may help communities lower jail populations.

2008 National Correctional Officers' Week

Sandy Schilling — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 21:07:00 GMT

This year, National Correctional Officers' Week will be celebrated May 4-10, 2008. The additional information I posted last year about this special week is listed below:

... Another way to help you remember is that it is annually celebrated in the first full week of May. This week provides an opportunity to show support for your staff and to increase public awareness about the important role these officers have in our communities. It is an excellent time to recognize their hard work, dedication, and efforts to protect public safety. Many states have proclamations signed by the governor honoring the men and women working in their state and county correctional agencies. In addition, county commissioners often sign proclamations to honor these staff. Let us all remember to thank them for their service!

Evidence-Based Practices and the Jails Role

Sandy Schilling — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 18:22:00 GMT

An examination of the jails function within the correctional system and collaboration among the components to achieve the shared goal of reduced recidivism is the focus of "Our System of Corrections: Do Jails Play a Role in Improving Offender Outcomes?" "This paper was developed as part of a set of papers focused on the role of system stakeholders in reducing offender recidivism through the use of evidence-based practices in corrections" by the Crime and Justice Institute and National Institute of Corrections. The author, Gary E. Christensen, Ph.D., emphasizes that the status quo will not have a long term effect on public safety and that actual outcomes will determine the future path of corrections.

Dr. Christensen was the recognized as the 2007 Jail Administrator of the Year by the American Jail Association. The appendix of this document includes "One Example of a Successful Jail Transition Program: The Dutchess County Jail Transition Program", which is the jail program he designed and developed.

Jail Recruitment: Take this Survey to Share Your Input

Sandy Schilling — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 11:30:00 GMT

As part of their project, The Future is Now: Recruiting, Retaining, and Developing the 21st Century Jail Workforce, the Center for Innovative Public Policies (CIPP), is launching two online surveys on April 1. One is for jail administrators to complete, and the second is targeted to line staff.

The project is funded by the U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance. Other partners in the initiative are the American Jail Association, the American Correctional Association, and the National Sheriffs' Association. The survey will run from April 1st - 25th, 2008.

These surveys are "the first of their kind to be administered nationally." All line staff and jail administrators are encouraged to participate in this groundbreaking project. Answers are fully confidential and will be used to develop recommendations for the recruitment and hiring of jail staff in agencies nationwide.

Click here to take the line-level survey or the jail administrator survey.

Service for Staff and Family Support

Sandy Schilling — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 20:39:00 GMT

A resource you might want to investigate for your staff is Desert Waters Correctional Outreach, a "non-profit organization for the well-being of correctional staff and their families." Their "Ventline" is a free service that is provided for corrections and detention staff, and their family members, providing support, referrals, and crisis intervention.

Jail Diversion - Activities You May Want to Consider

Sandy Schilling — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 17:42:00 GMT

The GAINS Center has published a new document, “Practical Advice on Jail Diversion: Ten Years of Learnings on Jail Diversion from the CMHS National GAINS Center,” addressing diversion of offenders with mental and substance abuse disorders. The seven sections contained in this guide are:

Why develop a jail diversion program?
What is a jail diversion program?
Making jail diversion happen in your community.
Getting started.
Putting the "action" in your action plan.
Planning for sustainability.
Data 101

Appendix B also has some very interesting program examples that you might want to review. It doesn't matter which stage of jail diversion your agency is involved with for this guide to be useful.

Discover Gold at the Sacramento American Jail Association Conference

Sandy Schilling — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 20:23:00 GMT

It's that time of year to begin making your plans to attend the AJA's 27th Annual Training Conference and Jail Expo. This year's conference will be in Sacramento, California's State Capital, May 4-8, 2008. The Conference Overview and Workshop Overview highlight the training programs that are scheduled. The National Institute of Corrections is cosponsoring workshops on Inmate Behavior Management, Staffing Analysis for Jails, and Legal Issues. Please stop by the NIC booth in the exhibit hall to learn about all the programs, services, and information available.

Looking for jail administration training?

National Institute of Corrections — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 16:36:00 GMT

There are still a few openings available for the National Instititute of Corrections' Jail Administrator program, March 2-6 in Longmont, Colorado.

This program focuses on such topics as risk management, jail standards, policies and procedures, inmate behavior management, jail staffing, budget management, and operational assessments. During the program, participants also examine strategies for effectively delegating responsibility and their role external to the jail-with local government officials, other parts of the criminal justice system, and the community.

Read more and veiw application instructions for this program.

Time to Prepare for the DTV Transition

Sandy Schilling — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 17:41:00 GMT

If your jail televisions are analog (most TVs purchased prior to May 27,2007) and you get your programming over-the-air it's time to prepare for digital television. According to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) "Congress mandated the conversion to all-digital television broadcasting, also known as the digital television (DTV) transition, because all-digital broadcasting will free up frequencies for public safety communications (such as police, fire, and emergency rescue)..." On February 17, 2009 analog broadcast television will end. More information is available from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and the Digital Television Transition Coalition.

Are You Looking for a Way to Coordinate Jail and Community Health Services?

CC Pro — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 15:42:00 GMT

Chronic illnesses are an unfortunate reality of jail populations. Often the medical regime that begins in correctional facilities isn't continued in the community upon release. This can subject the released and the community-at-large to increased risk and heighten the overall cost of health care. Community Oriented Correctional Health Services (COCHS) is designed to bridge that gap and provide a continuum of care that benefits both individuals and the community. For information on this organization, its mission, sites that currently employ this health-care model, and how your correctional facility can benefit from such an alliance, click here.

Free "Wear Your Body Armor" Poster

Sandy Schilling — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 14:57:00 GMT

The National Law Enforcement Corrections Technology Center (NLECTC) has produced a poster to encourage your staff to wear their body armor at all times. You can order the full size (19" x 26") poster by calling 800.248.2742 or asknlectc@nlectc.org. "NLECTC-National administers the voluntary body armor compliance testing program on behalf of NIJ and officers are encouraged to contact the Center with questions relating to armor selection, wear, and maintenance."

Can You Solve the D.B. Cooper Mystery?

Sandy Schilling — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 18:25:00 GMT

Have you ever had this man in your jail? Okay, I'm pushing it trying to make this a jails issue, but how fun would it be to solve the D.B. Cooper Mystery! The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has reopened the case. You can read more and help the FBI solve this case.