Why Correctional Turnover is so High

This is from CorrectionsOne:

I wish the Sheriff and every County Board member would read this:

...The public is aware of the fact that criminals are incarcerated after conviction and are also aware of the fact that correctional institutions require funding, often having a detrimental impact on taxes. The public seems to realize that corrections is necessary, but the persona of corrections in the public atmosphere is one of loathing.

Corrections is not viewed in a positive light, nor do taxpayers seem to appreciate the corrections facet of the criminal justice system. Generally speaking, no matter what level of government corrections may fall under, it will undoubtedly be the first to have hiring freezes, budget cuts, and underfunding. Corrections is known, but the ideals behind corrections and all of the funding that is required to successfully operate safe and stable facilities are unknown...

The starting salary for corrections professionals is typically lower than their patrol counterparts, the training received by corrections professionals is collectively less than other agencies receive, and the work corrections professionals do tends to be overlooked by society. All avenues lead to the conclusion that corrections is simply not as good as patrol. ..

Corrections requires adequate funding and training in order to combat the high influx of offenders, the complexity of gangs, and the revolutionary ways that offenders have learned to “beat the system.” Staff allegiance, retention, and respect would most likely be the result of corrections being recognized as an equal to that of the patrol counterparts. As a collective system, patrol and corrections need to be equal so that law and order can prevail and offenders can be more tactfully monitored, disciplined, and rehabilitated.

FULL STORY

Kitten for Sheriff's Response to the Hennepin County Sheriff Challange

As promised the candidates responses will be added un-edited. Thank you Kitten for Sheriff. I await the reply from the other candidates.

I sat Kitten down and got some answers for your detention blog:

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1. Why do you want to be Hennepin County Sheriff?

Humans have ruled over Hennepin County for far too long. It’s time to let the kittens take over and make this county the best place to live, work and play in. Kitten is tired of seeing the criminals in power get away with massive crimes against people and the planet. Kitten will start arresting the real criminals such as war criminals, bailout criminals, CEOs, politicians, and others who continue to cause harm without any consequences.

2. What are your qualifications?

This is Kitten’s second attempt to run for Sheriff of Hennepin County. In 2010, Kitten was the only candidate who ran against the current incumbent as a write-in and had supporters from all walks of life. Kitten is sometimes called the “cutest candidate ever”. Along with Kitten’s youthful appearance, Kitten is full of fresh ideas such as Operation Litter Sweep – where Kitten asked those in power to turn themselves in.  

As with all licensed felines in the City of Minneapolis, Kitten has received all the necessary shots. In fact, Kitten is the only candidate for this office who will tell you upfront that they got the rabies shots!  Wouldn’t you prefer having a Sheriff who you can trust not to suddenly turn rabid?

3. Jail staffing currently has decreased professional Detention Officer ranks and greatly increased more expensive Licensed Deputy staff in the jail, one thousand dollars a month more per Licensed Deputy. Would you continue that trend?

Kitten doesn’t like wasted taxpayer money – or spilled milk!   If Kitten is elected, licensed deputies will be placed back into the streets to chase away DHS drones as DC may be a bit mad at us when we arrest a good chuck of their leaders. 

Thus, Kitten will make sure staffing at jails should be limited to those who are trained to do that job in a cost-effective manner.  If more support is required, a new crew of feline deputies may be trained and added to patrol and keep levels of vermin down.

4. The jail schedule was changed from a 6/3 schedule in 2009 (after 32 years), to a 28/8 schedule which has led to low morale. It can take up to 5 years to get a weekend off. If elected are you open to a different schedule? A return to 6/3?

Yes, Kitten will create a brand new schedule. Why are jails open on the weekends in the first place? Kitten will give everyone the weekend off and close the jails. We’ll just leave some self-serving kibble and water dishes for any war criminals who continued to misbehave and don’t earn their weekend pass.

5. The Hennepin County Jail is the largest jail in Minnesota and the only ACA accredited jail in Minnesota, yet the Detention Deputies are the lowest paid in the seven county metro area. What would you do to correct that?

This situation will need to change immediately if Kitten is elected and the jails are filled with actual criminals.  Unfortunately, criminals in power are notorious for bribes and may try to bribe deputies for favors. Thus, we’ll have to make sure that the benefits and pay are the best in the country for anyone who has to watch over criminals in power.  

6. The Hennepin County Dispatchers are understaffed and underpaid. The result is massive turnover at time when the new $33 million Dispatch Center is set to open. What will you do to turn that around?

That’s easy. Buy up nearby farming land and self-fund the Dispatch Center with the sale of “catnip”. People will want to move here and work in our county then.

7. Would your administration continue gathering of citizens’ cell phone metadata using the Kingfish tracker without warrants?

No, way!!! Kitten has been on the record since 2010 as being against these creepy Kingfish surveillance devices. Cats are natural enemies of Kingfishs.  If elected, Kitten will round up all the kingfishs (and stringrays!) and hold a massive “fish fry” party!  All residents of Hennepin County will be invited to watch the devices “fry” while enjoying a selection of hot foods and cool beverages.

8. The current Sheriff spends considerable time in Washington D.C. away from Hennepin County, 4 to 6 times a month. Would your administration continue that practice?

If elected as your new sheriff, Kitten will only need to visit D.C. twice during the whole term.  The first visit will be to serve warrants to all the criminals in power and the second time to arrest any politicians who don’t turn themselves in.  Kitten may need to visit a few other locations across the country if criminals or politicians are hiding there such as Wall Street but out-of-state visits will be limited to official duties only.

9. What is your position on conceal and carry?

Oh humans, why did you lose in the game of evolution?  Kittens already have their own “carry and conceal” claws and are a bit confused by human weaponry. Regardless, humans can come into the Sheriff’s office and ask for a permit if they wish.  Kitten will need to limit the permits for drone hunting to 2 drones per person per year!

Contract Negotiation update

Today we met again with Hennepin County for "negotiations."
The Sheriff's Office sent no one.
We explained to the County why their offer was voted down.
They left the room.
The mediator tried to nail down the main dispute. We replied money and the parameters for the 28 day schedule not being in writing.

The County pulled their offer and we began trying to nail down items for arbitration.

The mediator was still wanting to work out a settlement if possible.

We gave it one last shot (or so I thought). We told the mediator that if they offered the market adjustment (1% in 2014 and 1% in 2015) across the steps for all job classes in addition to the 2.5% Cost of Living the members would probably vote it in.

The county rejected the offer. They do not want to give a market adjustment to those of you not at top pay, unless you are a dispatcher.

Much discussion took place among the stewards. The majority of stewards felt the members didn't understand the "risk" of going to arbitration and felt the County's last  offer should be re-voted.

I was among those who thought that we should  just go to arbitration, as the membership already voted the offer down and get it done, but democracy prevails.

You will again receive a ballot for the last offer that you voted down.

My opinion has not changed since February.

No sense retyping identical words. Read my post from last time, my position is the same:

Mediation "Employers Best and Final Proposal"

And I will add the disclaimer this is not an official MNPEA blog or representative of the other stewards. It is just my opinion and clearly a minority one, at least among the stewards.

Hennepin County Board-Lucrative (Star Tribune)

As the fucks keep our wages the lowest in the metro-area, look what the Star Tribune is saying about them in their article:

Minnesota legislators swap Capitol careers for lucrative county paychecks

Rank-and-file Minnesota legislators earn $31,141 a year, plus an expense per diem, for a job that’s officially considered part time. But for up to half the year, the legislative calendar demands long hours, late nights, weekend meetings and frequent round trips between St. Paul and home. Political tensions can run high, media scrutiny can be intense and the fundraising for the next election endless.

Meanwhile, commissioners in 15 of Minnesota’s 87 counties earn more than their legislative counterparts — a few up to double and in Hennepin County near triple. With the higher pay comes regularly scheduled meetings, smaller budgets, more clear-cut issues and less partisan rhetoric....

Hennepin County has the highest-paid commissioners in the state, with a base salary of about $100,000. Tellingly, four of its seven commissioners are former legislators; political insiders jokingly refer to the Hennepin County Board as the Legislature’s retirement plan.

Linda Higgins

“That part of it is very agreeable to me,” said Hennepin County Commissioner Linda Higgins, a former DFL senator from Minneapolis. Higgins said her Senate pay was so low she had to take a part-time job to make ends meet.

and let's not forget Julianne Ortman...who both "serves" in the legislature and works for Hennepin County Sheriff Rich Stanek.

Hennepin County Sheriff Challenge

There are 3 candidates for the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office.

Eddie Frizell                           Rich Stanek

Kitten for Sheriff

The following questionnaire was sent to all three campaigns. The responses will be published unedited on this blog.

Hennepin Sheriff Challenge

This questionnaire is being sent to all of the candidates running for Hennepin County Sheriff in 2014.

Answers will be posted on the Detention Home blog http://detentionhome.blogspot.com.

Answers can be written or in video format and will be posted unedited.

1.       Why do you want to be Hennepin County Sheriff?

2.       What are your qualifications?

3.       Jail staffing currently has decreased professional Detention Officer ranks and greatly increased more expensive Licensed Deputy staff in the jail, one thousand dollars a month more per Licensed Deputy. Would you continue that trend?

4.       The jail schedule was changed from a 6/3 schedule in 2009 (after 32 years), to a 28/8 schedule which has led to low morale. It can take up to 5 years to get a weekend off. If elected are you open to a different schedule? A return to 6/3?

5.       The Hennepin County Jail is the largest jail in Minnesota and the only ACA accredited jail in Minnesota, yet the Detention Deputies are the lowest paid in the seven county metro area. What would you do to correct that?

6.       The Hennepin County Dispatchers are understaffed and underpaid. The result is massive turnover at time when the new $33 million Dispatch Center is set to open. What will you do to turn that around?

7.       Would your administration continue gathering of citizens’ cell phone metadata using the Kingfish tracker without warrants?

8.       The current Sheriff spends considerable time in Washington D.C. away from Hennepin County, 4 to 6 times a month. Would your administration continue that practice?

9.       What is your position on conceal and carry?

As stated above answers will be posted unedited.

Finally a challenger for Sheriff?

Eddie Frizell, Deputy Chief MPD and Lieutenant Colonel with the Red Bulls has filed to run for Hennepin County Sheriff. 

We need to talk to him.

Imagine a return to the 6/3 schedule?

We've had years of a bad schedule and poor morale.

Remember the Vote of No Confidence?  Maybe it will count for something now.

While it is early, the word from the rank and file MPD cops I've talked to is that Frizell is a good guy.

Locker Search grievance moving to step 2

Jail administration did remove counselling sessions from the files of employees as a result of the locker search, however they will not give assurances to allow employees to be present during future locker searches. 

In light of that I have instructed our attorney and business agent to move the grievance to step 2.

Is it worth what they are paying?

Here's how the Hennepin County Jail stacks up:

241 use of force incidents in the jail division in 2013

18 assaults on staff in 2013

Lowest paid jail in the seven county metro area

Grievance Filed-Locker Searches

On Friday May 16th a search was conducted on all of our lockers. No employees were present during the search of their lockers.

A class action grievance was filed May 21st.

The reason for the search may have been legitimate but, the execution violated their own policy P & P 8-2100 and probably the 4th Amendment.

Considering how quick staff is written up for violating policy, one would think they would consult their own policies before doing that.

Anyone who receiving discipline as a result of that search, find a steward and file a grievance.

Here's a related article I found in Police Chief Magazine entitled,

When Does an Employer’s Search of Employee Work Areas Violate Privacy Rights?

By Lieutenant Kim Wilson, J.D., Portsmouth, Virginia, Police Department    (Click on title for full story) overnment employers are sometimes faced with conducting searches of their employee’s work areas. When doing so, they must understand the level of privacy public employees legitimately expect in those areas. Can employers search an employee’s office, desk, locker, or assigned vehicle? When is it reasonable, if ever, to search an employee’s purse or briefcase? In answering these questions, courts have established that an employer must first determine if the employee has a reasonable expectation of privacy in the property searched and then determine if the search’s purpose outweighs any of the employee’s Fourth Amendment privacy interests. and Practical Considerations It is recommended that employers establish and post policies informing their employees that their work areas are subject to search. They should state clearly that employers have the right to search, for legitimate business purposes, county-, city-, or state-owned vehicles, equipment, desks, file cabinets, and so on; they should also encourage employees not to store personal items in these areas. Such policies will lessen employees’ expectations of privacy. Chiefs should remember that even if an employee can assert a reasonable expectation of privacy, a public employer can meet the burden of showing the search’s reasonableness through a combination of factors. These include reasonable suspicion of misconduct, a lowered expectation of privacy because of accessibility, or a reliable coworker tip of misconduct. The final lesson of these cases is that before conducting a workplace search of employee lockers, offices, files, or other areas where employees might have a legitimate expectation of privacy, employers should ask whether the need for such a search outweighs employees’ privacy interests and if the search is related to an investigation into suspected employee misconduct and limited to those areas where they may find evidence. ■

Locker Searches and Other Updates

LOCKER SEARCH

On Friday May 16th management searched all of our lockers. I brought this up at our Saturday roll call. This seems to violate their policy, Employee and Contract Worker Searches 8-2100

"An employee or contract worker shall be allowed to observe the search of of his or her property." Policy 8-2100 (g)

I also forwarded this to our attorney to see what case law says about this.

CONTRACT NEGOTIATION UPDATE

Our next Contract Mediation date is June 16 at the Bureau of Mediation Services. Hopefully our pickets and talk to the Hennepin County Board will have made a difference. 

MNPEA address to Hennepin County Board May 13, 2014

 On May 13, 2014 we again showed up at the County Board meeting with signs. Our goal was to address the County Board during open forum. Because we didn't get off of work until 2 and 2:30 we missed the open forum. I was able to explain this and the board graciously allowed us to speak. I only hope they are as gracious in considering our message.

Fla. CO sexually assaulted in Florida Pre-Trial Facility

What happened to the PREA?

Next Picket

NEXT PICKET

TUESDAY MAY 13^TH

1 PM TO 3:30 PM

24^TH FLOOR HENNEPIN COUNTY GOVERNMENT CENTER

MEET AT 1 PM IN THE GOVERNMENT CENTER by the 2nd floor fountain.

MIDS IF YOU ARE WORKING STAY AS LONG AS YOU CAN.

 DAYSHIFT, COME TO THE 24^TH FLOOR WHEN YOUR SHIFT ENDS.

May 6th Picket, Hennepin County Board and Sheriff''s Office

T

Thanks to all who showed up, Detention Deputies, Dispatchers, Techs and Clerks.

We will be back at the Hennepin County Board meeting on May 13th to address the Board.

Please come out in force.

Picket Hennepin County, May 6th

Union Meeting

UNION MEETING

MONDAY APRIL 28TH

7 PM

2233 N Hamline Ave 
Roseville, MN 55113
BASEMENT MEETING ROOM

WE WILL BE MAKING SIGNS FOR THE MAY 6TH PICKET

Texas says NO to the PREA

Perry: Anti-Prison Rape Standards "Impossible"

More than a decade after the Prison Rape Elimination Act unanimously passed Congress, federal standards for implementation of the law have been finalized. Now, Gov. Rick Perry and some prison reform advocates are at odds over what those standards mean for Texas lockups and the taxpayers who pay for them.

In a March 28 letter to Attorney General Eric Holder, Perry wrote that while he believed the law was well-intended, he would not certify that the 297 state prisons and local jails that are subject to PREA comply with its regulations come May 15, the certification deadline set by Department of Justice.

The new standards, he wrote, are "impossible," out of touch with the daily realities of state prisons and would require heavy financial burdens.

"Absent standards that acknowledge the operational realities in our prisons and jails, I will not sign your form and I will encourage my fellow governors to follow suit," Perry wrote.

FULL STORY THE TEXAS TRIBUNE

INFORMATIONAL PICKET

ATTENTION ALL MNPEA MEMBERS 

INFORMATIONAL PICKET

TUESDAY MAY 6^TH

1 PM TO 3:30 PM

24^TH FLOOR HENNEPIN COUNTY GOVERNMENT CENTER

ALL MNPEA BARGAINING UNIT EMPLOYEES SHOULD COME. BRING FAMILY AND FRIENDS IF YOU CAN.

MEET AT 1 PM IN THE GOVERNMENT CENTER by the 2nd floor fountain. MIDS IF YOU ARE WORKING STAY AS LONG AS YOU CAN, DAYSHIFT, COME TO THE 24^TH FLOOR WHEN YOUR SHIFT ENDS.

THIS IS AN INFORMATIONAL PICKET TO BRING TO THE ATTENTION OF THE HENNEPIN COUNTY BOARD OUR NEED OF A DECENT RAISE.

Your rights in a PREA investigation

We all know that the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA), is in full force. Close to home, an inmate at the Sherburne County jail recently filed a complaint under the PREA.

We've all been told what the inmates rights are, but what are your rights? 

I'll try to answer that in this post.

If you are the subject of a PREA investigation:

You have the right to Union/Legal representation BEFORE making a written or verbal statement. 

Article 34, Section 3 of our contract states: 

Employees will not be questioned concerning an administrative investigation of disciplinary action unless the employee has been given an opportunity to have a union representative present at such questioning. An employee desiring such opportunity shall promptly notify the EMPLOYER and arrange for such representation in a timely manner. The employee shall cooperate fully in such questioning providing full disclosure of all pertinent facts. 

 also,

MSS 241.026 states:

Subd. 4.Place of formal statement.

 

The formal statement must be taken at a facility of the employing or investigating agency or at a place agreed to by the investigating individual and the investigated officer.

Subd. 5.Admissions.

 

Before an officer's formal statement is taken, the officer shall be advised in writing or on the record that admissions made in the course of the formal statement may be used as evidence of misconduct or as a basis for discipline.

What this means is the statement must be taken in a formal setting with your representation present.

If a supervisor or detective comes to you and asks you to write a report or talk about an incident, politely tell them no, until you have your Union/Legal representation with you. Don't let them pressure you to get it done because they don't want to wait for your lawyer. They are there to protect the employer, our lawyer is there to protect you.

If you are asked to write a report or give a statement regarding a PREA investigation call our

MNPEA lawyer at: 651 287-8883.

The PREA contains very severe disciplinary, criminal and civil consequences. Do not take a PREA investigation lightly.

Don't fear being disciplined for exercising your rights. MSS 241.026 states:

Subd. 9.Retaliatory action prohibited.

No officer may be discharged, disciplined, or threatened with discharge or discipline as retaliation for or solely by reason of the officer's exercise of the rights provided by this section.

So stay calm, be smart, exercise your rights.

The end result of short staffing