6.28 The project for youthful misdemeants at the workhouse conducted under the auspices of the United Planning Organization should be expanded under the direction of the Department of Corrections. The Department had originally planned to continue this program in a limited manner with the resources that were expected to be available. However, decline in the misdemeanant population and the restructuring of the Department interrupted the program for a number of months. Before resuming the program, the Department sought information on the outcomes of the original project from the United Planning Organization. Staff members of the research unit at UPO indicated on December 6 that the results of the study had not been fully analyzed. Among the present findings of the research are the following preliminary conclusions: (1) the job development phase of the program didn't seem to work; (2) the educational results of the program were excellent; (3) the work training received in the program was generally not relevant to the later work experience of participants in the program. No information was yet available as to effects on rate of recidivism. Mr. Ed Brooks, Research Director of UPO, has agreed to forward a copy of the final research report on the youthful misdemeanant project when the study has been completed. Target date for completion is now estimated to be spring 1969. 6.29 Security at the Lorton reservation should be improved: motorized patrols should be established. This recommendation has been complied with. The Department established the position of security officer, whose incumbent is responsible for the improvement of security in the Department, in 1967. A motorized patrol of the reservation was put into effect in January 1968. In January 1969 security procedures and staff were augmented, and further support for security has been requested in the 1970 budget. This includes requests for funds for improved lighting, new guard towers, and additional staff. 6.30-To reduce inmate idleness, the District of Columbia jail should develop an educational program and expand its present limited recreation program. An educational staff member (GS-11) was added to the jail staff in August 1967. This staff member has been engaged in planning and implementation of several types of educational activity. Small classes are being conducted in various remedial subjects such as reading and arithmetic. Programed instruction is being utilized in these classes. A class is being held daily for men desiring to obtain a high school equivalency certificate. Project Serve, in which tutors in various subjects come from George Washington University to instruct jail inmates on a voluntary basis, has been organized. The main jail library has been decentralized and each living unit now has its own small library. College level correspondence courses are also now available to jail inmates. A full-time recreational specialist (GS-9) was authorized in the 1969 budget. No person has, as yet, been recruited for the position because of difficulties with the registration list. 6.31-The education program at the Reformatory for Men should be expanded. During the time since this recommendation was made, the Department has worked to broaden the educational program at the correctional complex. This broadening has occurred in academic, vocational, and social education. To meet the diverse academic educational needs of inmates, the curriculum provides work on four levels: literacy training, elementary education, high school, and college correspondence courses. Planning is currently underway to bring college extension courses into the curriculum. A survey has been made of the inmate population to ascertain the number of college eligibles present, and discussions have been held with both Federal City College and Washington Technical Institute about the possibility of college credits for courses completed by qualified inmates. Federal City College has agreed to provide instruction at the prison starting in the spring quarter, March 1969. Two college courses are planned-one at the Youth Center and one at the complex. Vocational instruction is being expanded by use of grant moneys and earnings from the industries of the complex. On January 6, 1969, a program of training in data processing methods was started at the Youth Center; courses in sewing machine repair, woodworking and metalworking will be offered at the complex. These offerings will be in addition to the present vocational courses being offered at the complex and Youth Center. A member of the Planning Division has been detailed to the Director's Office to study the educational programs of the Department and to make recommendations for changes where needed. A draft of the report on this study has been completed and it has gone to the Director for review. 6.32-The program evaluation functions of the Department of Corrections should be strengthened; emphasis should be placed on the research component of the agency. A Research and Planning Service (now called the Planning and Research Service) was formally established in February 1967 with the appointment of an Associate Director for Planning and Research. The staffing of this service was aided by a grant of $74,000 from the Office of Law Enforcement Assistance, which was to be used in funding a program of evaluative research. Despite severe difficulties in recruiting and high rates of staff turnover, the Research and Planning Service has set up a program of evaluative research and inaugurated a system of automatic data processing. The research program is oriented toward operations research, program evaluation, and cost-effectiveness analysis. The data processing system. which is presently focused on accurate and rapid inmate accounting, will ultimately be of major assistance in carrying on evaluative research. The OLEA grant for evaluative research will terminate on June 30, 1969. At that time the Planning and Research Service will lose the six staff members who are presently funded by this grant unless an alternative source of funding can be arranged. To deal with this contingency, a request for eight new positions for evaluative research will be made in the 1971 budget proposal. A request for nine research positions in the 1970 budget proposal was disapproved. 6.34 The number of parole officers of the District of Columbia Board of Parole should be increased so that caseloads can be limited to 50 per officer. The parole function was transferred from the Board of Parole to the Department of Corrections in late 1967. Congressional approval was received for two adult parole officers, nine youth parole officers, and three clerical positions in the fiscal year 1969 budget. The average parole caseload as of January 31 was 65 for adult cases and 45 for youth cases. At that time. there were two vacancies in each of the two parole staffs. With fully staffed units, the caseloads would have been as follows: adult, 58 cases; youth, 34 cases. 6.35-To attract and retain qualified and experienced personnel, parole officer salary structures should be upgraded to allow the attainment of a GS-12 rating by supervisory officers. In early 1967 the Department initiated action to reclassify parole positions from the GS-10 to the GS-11 level. In the summer of 1968, a study was made of the feasibility of establishing a senior parole officer position classified at the GS-12 level. The Civil Service Commission ruled that parole officers could not be raised to the GS-12 level without significant change in function. 6.37-The District of Columbia Board of Parole should establish a formal inservice training program for its officers and utilize the facilities of neighboring universities. The Training Academy plans, reported in 6.22, include training programs for parole and probation officers. These programs will be of several kinds, ranging from inservice training for specific job skills to degree-oriented work for advanced degrees in neighboring colleges and universities. Preliminary discussions have already been conducted with Washington Technical Institute and Federal City College. There will be additional discussions with these institutions and also with the University of Maryland about the terms and conditions of these various kinds of training. 6.39 The District of Columbia Board of Parole should discontinue its practice of conducting disciplinary interviews; parole officers should assume exclusive responsibility in this field. This recommendation was complied with in January, 1968, after the transfer of the parole function to the Department of Corrections. 6.40 The quality of the inmate summaries prepared for the Board's use at parole eligibility hearings should be improved; interpretative data should be included. This recommendation has been complied with. Actions have been taken to upgrade and standardize the procedures for the preparation of the summaries. The procedures have been explicitly outlined in the new "Social Services Manual," which will be published in final form in February. 1969. 6.42-To improve administration and the quality of written reports and records, an operating manual should be prepared for the use of District of Columbia Board of Parole Officers. The "operating manual," now entitled the "Social Services Manual," has gone through a number of revisions since it was first drafted at the recommendation of the Commission. The next-to-final draft was completed in November 1968. During recent weeks a number of last-minute revisions have been incorporated at the suggestion of the various services that will make use of the manual. It is anticipated that copies of the final draft will be available for distribution in late February, 1969. 6.48 The U.S. Employment Service for the District of Columbia should establish a unit to coordinate efforts to provide employment for former offenders. Among other things, it should arrange for application of convicted offenders to be accompanied by endorsement letters from correctional or parole officers. In recent weeks, closer coordination has been developing between the offender placement unit of the U.S. Employment Service and the Job Placement Unit of the Community Services Division of the Department of Corrections. Mr. Vernon Hawkins, Job Placement Supervisor for the Department, has conferred with USES officials on arrangements whereby three placement staff members from USES will move from their present offices and occupy offices in Mr. Hawkins' placement unit. This will greatly strengthen the placement unit and at the same time increase the availability of various services and resources of the USES to the Department of Corrections. To follow up on these preliminary talks, a letter from Mr. Hardy requesting the transfer of these positions to Job Placement has been sent to the head of the Distict USES. 6.50-The Department of Corrections should stimulate the creation of Citizens' Advisory Committees to assist in the readjustment of offenders to society. This recommendation has been complied with. The first committee formed under this recommendation is a committee of 12 members under the leadership of Mr. William K. Norwood. The committee has held a number of meetings and carried out a number of assignments since its creation early in 1968. These assignments have ranged from investigations of charges made by individual inmates to the study of major incidents or disorders in an institution. The latest task completed by the committee was the study of the incident of Saturday, September 21, in the District of Columbia Jail, when disorders resulted in the destruction of property and some minor fires. The committee made a verbal report in early December and submitted a written report on December 11. This report analyzes information from both staff and inmates and makes several major recommendations regarding the present administration and the future status of the Jail. The committee report is one of the documents under study by the Mayor's Task Force on Corrections which was appointed on February 3, 1969. 7.15 Under the guidance of the Department of Public Health, the Department of Corrections should establish a treatment program for prisoners with drinking problems. The Chief, Office of Alcoholism and Drug Addiction, Program Development, District of Columbia Department of Public Health, and two representatives of Planning and Research, District of Columbia Department of Corrections, conferred on January 24 regarding the development of a treatment program for inmates with drinking problems. This discussion led to a decision to plan for an "alcoholic and narcotics program coordinator" in the Department of Corrections. The Planning and Research Office, Department of Corrections, is making final revisions in a report on the incidence of alcoholic problems in the institutional population. The report also examines the extent and nature of available treatment services for prisoners and parolees with drinking problems. It is anticipated that this report will be useful in the discussion of new treatment programs. ACTION-NOT MORE STUDIES: A PROGRAM AND ORGANIZATIONAL PLAN FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS PRELIMINARY REPORT OF MAYOR'S TASK FORCE ON CORRECTIONS, Hon. WALTER E. WASHINGTON, FEBRUARY 10, 1969. Mayor-Commissioner, District of Columbia, DEAR MAYOR WASHINGTON: The task force on corrections, which was established by you on February 3, 1969, to review investigative reports and recommend specific, immediate actions toward alleviation of problems in the Department of Corrections, the District of Columbia, herewith submits its first major report. The task force began its work on the afternoon of February 3, with a consideration of the three excellent reports by your ad hoc committee on the Lorton incident, by the Bureau of Prisons study group, and by the Correctional Advisory Committee. We found these reports to be of great value in defining for us the nature of the problem at hand and in presenting recommendations for us to consider. Our statement builds on these reports to develop quick solutions to the immediate crisis in the Department of Corrections. What we have proposed here is only the beginning. It remains for future sessions of the task force and of other working groups named in this report to analyze more fully and to propose more deliberately the long-term solutions of the problems with which we are confronted. Respectfully submitted. M. Robert Montilla, Consultant, Chairman; Stuart Adams, corrections, I. INTRODUCTION The "Lorton incident" of November 18, 1968, used the language of violence and near tragedy to tell us that we are failing in our attempts to cope with the twin problems of crime and the rehabilitation of the criminal. The incident pointed up the terrible complexity of the task of restoring the offender to a state of useful functioning in the community at large. It informed us that the Department of Corrections is torn between conflicting philosophies of harsh treatment and rehabilitation; between crowded, inadequate facilities, and the requirements of physical and mental health; between the militant attitudes of young black men from the troubled ghetto and the conservative philosophies of white staff members from rural and suburban communities. The vivid message from Lorton is a call to immediate action; namely, the reconstruction of corrections in the District of Columbia and the shoring up of the entire system of criminal justice in the larger society. It is a mandate to commit resources, to develop constructive plans, and to follow through with concerned attitudes and unremitting action. It is a warning that unless we deal effectively and immediately with the present crises in our streets and in our prisons, we will face even more grave crises in the future. The present report addresses itself to two tasks. First, it outlines a number of immediate actions that must be taken if troubles of even greater dimensions are to be averted in our jails and prisons. Second, it develops a plan for constructive long-range actions in our correctional agency and our criminal justice system. These tasks will be difficult, and they will entail heavy initial expenditures. The task force concludes that additional outlays of about $9 million will be required in fiscal 1969 and 1970 to meet the urgent needs of effective operation and administration of corrections. One striking implication of this finding is that the Department of Corrections has been attempting to carry out its difficult mission with only about one-half the funds required to do the job. The proposal for immediate augmentation of expenditures may be unpalatable, but it is not unreasonable. This action will ultimately bring down the overall costs of crime and corrections, and it will definitely enhance public safety and order. The following sections of this report begin with a summary of program recommendations by the task force, and a detailed examination of new program elements and their costs. These are followed by a listing of basic problems and their solutions. The report concludes with a look at some long-range aspects of the correctional problem, together with recommendations for a number of additional task forces to work on systematic and concerted solutions to the problem. II. SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDATIONS The task force sees the most urgent needs in the District of Columbia Department of Corrections as falling into five areas: (1) Expansion, development, and better utilization of correctional personnel resources: Improve and accelerate recruitment, provide effective training, and modify social and racial composition of staff: Fiscal year 1969__ Fiscal year 1970_ (2) Upgrading of institutions and structures for effective security, for health and safety, and for improved correctional climate and programs: Tighten security, improve housing and lighting, and decrease overcrowding: Fiscal year 1969. Fiscal year 1970_. (3) Development of effective programs for correctional rehabilitation: Add 173 officer, 19 counselor, and 9 MTA positions; develop new vocational and academic training programs; and redesign the prison industries program: Fiscal year 1969_. Fiscal year 1970__. (4) Utilization of community resources, extension of correctional programs into the community: Expand the work release program, develop additional communitybased programs, and foster self-help and citizen-sponsored activities: Fiscal year 1969_. Fiscal year 1970_. (5) Creation and development of an effective, responsive management organization: Create needed executive positions, revise organizational structure, and clarify lines of communication and responsibility: Fiscal year 1969- Fiscal year 1970_. Total: Fiscal year 1969. Fiscal year 1970___ Overall total____ III. RESTATEMENT OF SUMMARY RECOMMENDATIONS Program cost $102, 000 408, 000 673, 000 4, 499, 567 30,000 1,677, 241 142, 000 1, 563, 132 10,000 102, 060 957, 000 8,250,000 9, 207, 000 (1) Expansion, development, and better utilization of correctional personnel resources (a) Continue to improve and accelerate recruitment: 1. Continue use of GS-5 correctional officer trainee: No new costs involved. 2. Continue efforts toward salary increases (legislative action): Immediate action. 3. Accelerate moves for civil service examination revision: No new costs involved. 4. Push for establishment of District of Columbia Lorton transportation service: Service for District of Columbia Public Health and Corrections with metropolitan transportation. |