Legislature(2007 - 2008)Anch LIO Conf Rm
05/27/2008 11:00 AM Senate JUDICIARY
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Department of Corrections - Status Hearing | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
SENATE JUDICIARY STANDING COMMITTEE
ANCHORAGE LIO
May 27, 2008
11:03 a.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Hollis French, Chair
Senator Bill Wielechowski
Senator Gene Therriault
MEMBERS ABSENT
Senator Charlie Huggins, Vice Chair
Senator Lesil McGuire
OTHER LEGISLATORS PRESENT
Senator Bettye Davis
Representative John Coghill
Representative Andrea Doll
Representative Jay Ramras
Representative Bill Stoltze
Representative Mike Chenault
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
Department of Corrections - Status Hearing
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
No previous action to record.
WITNESS REGISTER
BRAD WILSON, Business Manager
Alaska Correctional Officers Association (ACOA)
Anchorage, AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided union perspective at the DOC
status hearing.
TODD GODFREY, Corrections Officer
Anvil Mountain
Nome, AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided corrections officer perspective at
the DOC status hearing.
DENNIS HANSON, Corrections Officer
Spring Creek
Seward, AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided corrections officer perspective at
the DOC status hearing.
DON MACOMBER, laid off Corrections Officer III
Spring Creek
Seward, AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided perspective at the DOC status
hearing.
JOE SCHMIDT, Commissioner
Department of Corrections (DOC)
Juneau, AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified at the DOC status hearing.
BRYAN BRANDENBURG, Deputy Director
Division of Institutions
Department of Corrections,
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified at the DOC status hearing.
DIANNE KIESEL
Deputy Director
Division of Personnel & Labor Relations
Department of Administration
Juneau, AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified at the DOC status hearing.
DWAYNE PEEPLES, Deputy Commissioner
Department of Corrections
Juneau, AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified at the DOC status hearing.
DOCTOR JOE MCLAUGHLIN, Acting Chief
Section of Epidemiology
Division of Public Health, Department of Health and Social
Services
Anchorage, AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided information about MRSA at the DOC
status hearing.
JOHN BODICK, Assistant Attorney General
Criminal Division
Department of Law
Anchorage, AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Explained the Cleary litigation at the DOC
status hearing.
SAM EDWARDS, Deputy Commissioner
Department of Corrections
Anchorage, AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided information at the DOC status
hearing.
ACTION NARRATIVE
CHAIR HOLLIS FRENCH called the Senate Judiciary Standing
Committee meeting to order at 11:03:42 AM. Present at the call
to order were Senators French, Wielechowski, Therriault and
Representatives Holmes and Doll.
^DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS - STATUS HEARING
11:04:15 AM
CHAIR FRENCH announced that the purpose of the hearing is to
look into recent allegations of problems within the prison
system, including overcrowding and the prevalence of
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Unlike
complaints that have been brought in the past by prisoners,
these complaints come from correction officers, which is a
little different and worthy of legislative attention.
CHAIR FRENCH relayed that legislators took a tour of the
Anchorage correctional complex this morning. They spoke with
correction officers and were able to see firsthand the
overcrowding. He noted that MRSA isn't as easy to detect so the
committee will rely on folks who work inside the facility to
tell about that. This hearing is an opportunity to flesh out
these issues rather than relying on a trial by press release.
The people who have complaints will have an opportunity to
present them and the commissioner and his people will be able to
present their side of the story. This afternoon the state
epidemiologist will talk about MRSA, the state attorney will
talk about prisoner litigation and some of the problems that it
can lead to. Also, former Commissioner Mark Antrim will give his
perspective on the prison issue. Commissioner Joe Schmidt will
have an opportunity at the end of the day to wrap-up the
discussion and rebut anything he thinks necessary.
11:05:28 AM
BRAD WILSON, Business Manager, Alaska Correctional Officers
Association (ACOA), thanked the committee for listening and
convening the hearing. He said he would provide an overview and
then several correction officers would discuss their experiences
and concerns.
11:08:13 AM
CHAIR FRENCH noted that 50-60 correction officers were present.
MR. WILSON referred to handouts he had provided including: a
pamphlet on MRSA, two PowerPoint presentations on overcrowding
that are available on disc or by email, the final Cleary
decision settlement, and the compliance monitor's report. He
added that Cleary is a lawsuit filed by inmates that was
resolved in 1991 or 1992. Most of the time today will be spent
discussing the legislative hearing document that includes
graphs.
11:11:19 AM
MR. WILSON said the final item that will be discussed is
statewide minimums. He noted that behind each document are memos
from each institution outlining the minimums over the last year
and how they may or may not have changed. Martin Crowley's
institution was used for demonstration purposes, he said. He
emphasized that the documentation is unofficial and is to be
used for the audit and to elicit discussion.
MR. WILSON thanked legislators for announcing the hearings and
initiating the audit. That in itself has resulted in change:
MRSA is being tracked, communication is better, federal
mediation has been offered, and probation officers have already
had three things change for the better in the workplace. Most
importantly, prior to the audit there was discussion about
cutting overtime or not calling it overtime after July 1. This
was a big concern and it's understood that that won't happen on
July 1. We're glad that transparency in government is more than
a campaign slogan, he said.
11:15:36 AM
MR. WILSON said that the discussion would focus on the public
safety issues of MRSA and staffing. He held up a booklet that
was sent to the governor and said it highlights the issues that
factored into the 96 percent [no confidence] vote including
morale. That won't be discussed, but at least you're aware of
it, he said. Referring to section 1 of the legislative hearing
book, he said that was delivered to the governor with a request
for an investigation.
11:17:21 AM
MR. WILSON referred to press reports about MRSA being a massive
epidemic with over 200 cases in the last two years. "We didn't
say that, but the fact that we didn't say that does not mean
that we are taking anything away from officers or anybody else
who did say it," he said. But according to the definition of
"epidemic" and considering recent statements by health
officials, it would qualify, he said. It's reasonable to say
that in the last several years there have been more than 200
cases of MRSA.
11:19:03 AM
CHAIR FRENCH noted that Mr. Spengler issued a research report
that quotes Brad Wilson, business manager of ACOA, as saying
that tracking MRSA incidents among inmates and staff is of
paramount importance and that the incidence of MRSA is rampant
among prisoners and correctional officers across the state.
MR. WILSON recalled speaking with a gentleman who wanted to talk
to people who had information on MRSA. He told him that MRSA was
a very serious concern and there were MRSA cases, but he didn't
use the word rampant. "I set him up with … Corrections USA and …
CCPOA."
CHAIR FRENCH said he was just asking if he recalled talking to
Mr. Spengler.
MR. WILSON acknowledged that he may have spoken to him.
Certainly MRSA is on an extreme increase and should be curtailed
using the best policies from around the country, he said. We
want to do everything possible to keep it from getting to the
inmates and officers. The problem is how to get the information
out without giving out confidential information. He highlighted
that someone spoke to the press and was disciplined for giving
out confidential information. That person was also disciplined
for being dishonest because he said he thinks the problem is
increasing. "If you don't track it, how do you know he's being
dishonest when he says he thinks there's a serious problem?" he
questioned. That put fear into the rest of the correction
officers, he added.
He said we understand that new policies are being put in place
since the hearing and audit were announced.
11:23:40 AM
MR. WILSON referenced an article about MRSA and related lawsuits
contained in the legislative hearing book and commented on the
similarities between those cases and how MRSA got started here.
The infections were classified as spider bites and there were
tracking issues, all of which resulted in lawsuits. We think
MRSA is not only something that is a major concern to our
people, it could be a liability situation, he said. One report
said that the extra cost of doing extra cleaning actually was a
cost saving.
CHAIR FRENCH said he believes the committee will hear that MRSA
can be compared to the common cold. Many people carry the
infection or germs, but most of the time a cold goes away in a
week. Sometimes a cold develops into pneumonia. You and others
may want to describe how it's possible to keep track of
something that's as common as the common cold and how much money
should be spent doing that, he said.
MR. WILSON responded that he thinks that it's important to
culture the boil to determine what it is for sure and then the
person should be isolated to protect others. "I would argue that
MRSA is a serious situation and is something that can be managed
more appropriately than was done in Pennsylvania, which cost
them lots of money." The article also talks about training and
in the last two weeks that has started, he said.
MR. WILSON described the injury relief account and explained
that if someone has a workplace injury they are covered under
that account. There's $500,000 in that account, but the state
stopped covering people with MRSA, saying it was like the common
cold and it wasn't clear where it came from. That was hurtful to
workers, he said. Also, workers' compensation is dragging its
feet and the reason for that needs to be investigated.
11:27:56 AM
TODD GODFREY, Correctional Officer, Anvil Mountain, said he was
infected with MRSA in December. The doctor said he assumed that
it was MRSA because of where he works, but he couldn't confirm
that without a swab test. He was given antibiotics and pain
medication. By the next day the infection had spread. MRSA was
confirmed on his third trip to the hospital and he was told to
stay home from work and limit contact with others for 4 to 5
days. He followed the instructions and about 12 to 13 days after
his initial trip to the hospital he was okay. It was a painful,
disgusting and embarrassing experience. He believes he got the
infection at the institution because of the environment and
circumstances he works under. Anvil Mountain is the main intake
facility for the Nome/Kotzebue region and many of the folks
coming in don't have routine access to washers, driers, and
showers. When these folks come in, he handles them up close and
personal. That includes pat searches, strip searches, clothing
searches, and sometimes he's more hands-on depending on whether
they're combative, assaultive, intoxicated, or suicidal. Because
of location and weather everyone is confined indoors for 6 to 7
months at a time. Also, the inmate capacity is exceeded much of
the time. Added together he thinks it's reasonable to believe
that he was infected at the institution.
MR. GODFREY said he filed a workers' compensation claim about
six months ago and has yet to get a decision. In the meantime
his insurance company has had to pay and he has paid the 20
percent co-pay out of pocket. He missed 5 days of work so he
applied for injury leave. That was denied so 60 hours was
subtracted from his personal bank of leave.
11:34:12 AM
MR. GODFREY read several memos from the injury leave public
protection group. The first says that Dianne Kiesel and Garland
Armstrong made the decision not to approve his injury leave for
the MRSA staph infection since it can be contracted anywhere and
there was not a clear outbreak in the institution. The second
email from the same group denied the injury leave due to a lack
of evidence that he contracted MRSA at the institution. That's
in spite of the fact that medical staff has said that there has
been MRSA in the facility and he has seen and handed out
medication to inmates with infections that were similar to his.
Also, he's read studies indicating that MRSA can live on
surfaces, bedding, and linens for days, weeks, and perhaps
months depending on the surface and the temperature. When all
the factors are considered, it's reasonable for him to believe
that he was infected at the institution. He would like the
department to support him and he respectfully asks the
commissioner and director to reconsider his case. "There needs
to be better communication, a little understanding, a little
support on the subject," he said.
He said he likes to think that he works at one of the best
facilities in the state. It's known to be well-run and well-
maintained, and the inmates work hard to keep it clean.
CHAIR FRENCH asked how many inmates are at Anvil Mountain.
MR. GODFREY replied when he left late yesterday the count was
116. He continued to say that even though the facility is among
the best, the safety features are not 100 percent fail proof. He
realizes that sometimes things happen and he believes that's
what occurred in his case. When something does happen he'd like
the department to acknowledge it and offer support. "I'd like
some accountability instead of denial," he said.
11:39:03 AM
REPRESENTATIVE DOLL asked how many of the inmates have medical
examinations.
MR. GODFREY explained that it depends on length of stay. Every
person that enters the prison population is cleared by medical,
he said.
REPRESENTATIVE DOLL asked what "cleared by medical" means.
MR. GODFREY replied it means they talk with a nurse.
REPRESENTATIVE DOLL asked if there's an actual examination.
MR. GODFREY said for the most part it's questions, but if the
inmate says there's something wrong then they're examined.
REPRESENTATIVE DOLL said she interprets that to mean there isn't
otherwise an exam.
MR. GODFREY deferred to the department to discuss inmate medical
examinations.
CHAIR FRENCH, in response to a request by Senator Therriault,
said the memos that were referenced would be distributed to the
committee members.
11:40:24 AM
DENNIS HANSON, Corrections Officer, Spring Creek, stated that he
is the officer who was suspended for talking to the press. A
copy of his suspension letter is in the legislative hearing
book. He relayed that he contracted MRSA in July 2006 while he
was working at Spring Creek and the Department of Corrections
accepted responsibility. He noted that the particulars of his
case are located under tab 12 in the binder. He understands the
department now is saying he was suspended for being dishonest or
lying, but the case file provided says he was suspended for
talking to the press without permission. It also says that he
provided incorrect information, but what he relayed to the
reporter from Channel 11 was his personal experience with MRSA
and his own opinions about what should be done to inmates who
are contagious. He clearly stated that the opinions were his
own. What is important to him is that it says he was suspended
for talking to the press and he would challenge the
administration to hold itself to the standards it sets. He noted
that the third paragraph of the report says that his actions
indicate disrespect for the department and for management. But
he would say that he has high respect for the more than 700
officers who work in the DOC. He's worked for the DOC for more
than 25 years and believes that respect is earned, and in his
opinion, the current management team has not earned any respect.
"When you lack integrity and you lack honesty in dealing with
problems, that doesn't earn you kudos and respect from your
staff," he said.
MR. HANSON explained that a simple nose swab identifies carriers
of MRSA, and most hospitals do that test on intake. He relayed
that he is a carrier of MRSA because he's allergic to the drugs
that kill MRSA.
CHAIR FRENCH asked how he keeps it from again becoming a
problem.
MR. HANSON described his experience with MRSA and his reaction
to the sulfa drug he was given to treat the infection. He added
that his wife, who works at Spring Creek, also contracted MRSA.
11:44:38 AM
CHAIR FRENCH said the hearing is also about overcrowding and
staffing levels. He noted that legislators today saw examples of
three prisoners in a cell and a single corrections officer
handling 90 inmates for meals, and asked what the situation is
at Spring Creek.
MR. HANSON said he would prefer not to speak to that, but he
would say that it is over the maximum inmate capacity and is
habitually understaffed. He's been at Spring Creek for 6 years.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked if he's seen other cases of inmates
with MRSA.
MR. HANSON answered yes. In fact, when he was suspended for
supposedly giving wrong information to the press on MRSA, the
bulletin board inside the Spring Creek entrance had a poster
about MRSA. He explained that until recently if an infection was
treated at the institution clinic and it went away, it wasn't
diagnosed as MRSA. It was only if the person had to go to an
outside clinic or hospital for treatment that the infection was
diagnosed as MRSA. Just lately a tracking system within the
institution has been started.
11:46:45 AM
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked for an estimate of the number of MRSA
cases at Spring Creek in the last year.
MR. HANSON replied more than 10 and some inmates have been
infected twice. "When I got spanked for talking to the press, I
actually had inmates thank me when I came back to work," he
added.
SENATOR THERRIAULT referred to the memo of reprimands and noted
Mr. Hanson's statement that he didn't follow the chain of
command before going to the press.
MR. HANSON responded that the department maintains that for a
corrections officer to exercise his or her First Amendment
right, he must first ask permission through the chain of
command. But case law in the Lower-48 indicates that public
employees can take matters of public concern to the press
without asking permission. I simply brought forward my personal
experience with MRSA and my opinion about how MRSA should be
handled, based on research and the federal bureau of prisons
handbook.
SENATOR THERRIAULT asked if he attempted to use the chain of
command.
MR. HANSON explained that when he returned to work after his
MRSA infection was clear, he gave a Spring Creek administrator a
copy of the federal bureau of prisons guide for handling MRSA
outbreaks. In that general timeframe he was asked if he would be
willing to talk about MRSA and he said yes.
REPRESENTATIVE DOLL asked if an inmate must be clear of MRSA
before being released into the community.
11:50:12 AM
MR. HANSON replied he knows of no legal basis for holding an
inmate because of illness once they have served their sentence.
MRSA is much more prevalent inside institutions than outside and
containment is the issue. An inmate or officer should be
isolated when they are contagious. "That's the easiest way of
dealing with it," he said.
11:51:29 AM
DON MACOMBER, laid off Corrections officer III, Spring Creek,
Department of Corrections, read a statement into the record. He
said that being laid off apparently makes him an anomaly as the
first corrections officer to be laid off in the last decade or
so. He explained that in January 2005 he contracted a bacterial
infection with cellulites and a red swollen rash on his face a
few days after processing a prisoner who had a staph infection.
He was treated with antibiotics at the Seward Providence
emergency room. In contrast, prisoners with infections and other
diseases are currently treated by medical personnel and housed
in the general prison population. Corrections officers receive
no information from the prison administration about which
prisoners have infectious diseases. "The administration's
solution to prison infections is to wash the prisoners' showers
and general population areas three times a day with
disinfectants," he said.
MR. MACOMBER said that officer morale is low at this time
because of the issue with infectious diseases, staffing issues,
lack of communication, and no viable solutions with this
administration. "I am here before you in the hope of being a
voice and an instrument in changing these deficiencies," he
said.
REPRESENTATIVE DOLL asked what it means to be in lay off status.
MR. MACOMBER explained that he is currently in lay off status as
a corrections officer III for up to 2 year.
REPRESENTATIVE DOLL asked if he requested that status.
MR. MACOMBER replied he was given a choice of taking a demotion
and pay decrease or being laid off.
CHAIR FRENCH asked what prompted that.
MR. MACOMBER explained that two sergeants were terminated 12 or
18 months before he promoted and they went through arbitration
to get their jobs back.
CHAIR FRENCH recapped that he was promoted into a job that was
later filled by someone returning to service and he was given
the opportunity to take a demotion and he didn't want that.
MR. MACOMBER reiterated that his choices were demotion with a
decrease in pay status or lay off.
11:56:24 AM
MR. WILSON guaranteed that although MRSA is taking center stage,
95 percent of the officers present are here because of staffing
issues. The DOC says that staffing is good and correction
officers aren't being as truthful as they ought to be. "We
obviously argue that staffing is down," he said. We'd like to
discuss position control numbers (PCNs), ratios, officers, and
shift minimums. The use of PCNs doesn't give an accurate idea of
number of officers relative to the number of inmates. PCNs are
what the Legislature funds. Some 797 PCNs were funded over the
last 2 to 3 years, but the commissioner said that in 2006 there
was an average of 707 officers. Although there's talk that
correction officers are interfering with programs to help
inmates reenter society, that's false. We don't know where
that's coming from, but it might stem from the fact that
correction officers asked the Legislature not to allow
corrections positions to be used to fund programs. "That is the
only thing that we can think of that we could have done that
interferes with programs," he said.
The second issue is officer numbers. Using data provided by DOC,
he showed two staffing graphs. As previously stated, the number
of officers increased by 34 in 2007. In January 2007 there were
733 officers - Marc Antrim brought the numbers up and that was
appreciated - but that is not the number of people on the floor.
During the year the inmate population increased from 3,385 to
3,718. When the additional 34 officers are spread over all the
institutions and each institution has four shifts, that amounts
to an increase of 1.6 officers per shift. What you should look
at is shift minimums - the number of people on the floor to take
care of inmates. For example, in November 2006 the roster for
the night shift for the Anchorage Jail shows 20 officers. The
minimum is 19; one officer was in training. The new
administration "lopped the minimums." On 5/22/08 the minimum at
the same location for the same shift was 16 officers. That's 3
fewer officers to handle many more inmates. It's the minimums
that matter so when you talk to the department, always ask if
the minimums are the same, he said.
12:05:33 PM
Senator Huggins joined the hearing.
MR. WILSON said even when you bring in the 43 new officers that
is only 1.4 officers per shift per facility statewide, which
leaves you with 3 fewer officers for a lot more inmates. He
clarified he is only using data from the 13 institutions.
MR. WILSON turned to a graph of inmate to officer ratios at the
Anchorage Jail East and the Anchorage Jail West. He said that
they like to use ratios, but they figure all the officers that
work for the department in the calculation. The problem with
that is that only one fourth of the officers are working at any
one time. A fair ratio would divide the number of inmates in the
institution by the number of officers that are working a
particular shift. For example, 472 inmates divided by 19
officers yields a ratio of 24.8 inmates per officer.
CHAIR FRENCH clarified that he is dividing the number of inmates
by the number of officers. Mr. Wilson agreed.
12:08:03 PM
MR. WILSON showed a chart of the history of inmate populations
in Alaska. According to Cleary, there were 3,099 inmates in
Alaska institutions at one particular time. Comparing
populations in August 1997 and December 2006, there has been an
increase of 286 inmates. That's an average increase of 31.77
inmates for each of the 9 years.
CHAIR FRENCH asked if more beds were added during that 9 year
period.
MR. WILSON said the Sixth Avenue Jail was closed and Anchorage
Jail East was opened in 2002. In December 2006, when this
administration came in, there were 3,385 inmates and by December
2007 the inmate population increased by 333. "It has increased
more in one year, than in the previous 9 years combined," he
said. During that same time the officer minimums were dropping.
MR. WILSON acknowledged that the administration will take issue
with the minimums.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked if the correction officers had tried
to talk to the administration about MRSA and staffing issues.
MR. WILSON replied, "We had a very close working relationship …
and then about August last year communication ended." After some
period they were told to communicate with the commissioner
through Ms. Kiesel. When communication with the commissioner
ended, they continued to send letters.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked him to clarify the meaning of
"communication ended."
MR. WILSON explained that ACOA sent a letter talking about
issues from the board. It was straightforward and that soured
the relationship. After some time he was told that union calls
were no longer being taken. As the problems got worse, we did
everything we could to continue to communicate, he said. We met
with Randy Ruaro, sent a letter to the Governor, and asked to
meet with Deputy Chief of Staff Nizich. We asked for an
independent person to look at and evaluate the situation. But
they've been adamant that there is nothing wrong, he said.
12:13:44 PM
REPRESENTATIVE DOLL asked for confirmation that he's saying that
in the last 10 years the number of officers has increased by 2
while the number of prisoners has increased by 333 in just the
last year.
MR. WILSON responded that those are the figures ACOA has. He
then said that his last talking point relates to money. There's
been a lot of discussion that bringing prisoners back from
Arizona would save $50 per inmate per day as long as there is no
additional construction or additional officers. For 300
prisoners that would amount to a savings of $15,000 per day or
$5.4 million a year. "There is money in the budget to do what we
have to do and the very least we have to do is bring those
minimums back up to what they were in December 2006," he said.
That doesn't solve all the problems, but it's a good start.
That's in addition to the 30 PCNs that were moved for use as
overtime. "So you still have that overtime budget in the budget
plus you have this additional savings of $5.4 million."
12:15:49 PM
CHAIR FRENCH announced a lunch break. The commissioner's
presentation would begin at 1:15 pm.
1:18:56 PM
CHAIR FRENCH reconvened the meeting and asked the commissioner
to put himself on the record.
1:19:27 PM
JOE SCHMIDT, Commissioner, Department of Corrections (DOC),
stated that he would first talk about MRSA. "We've heard
publicly hundreds of cases rampant through the department. A
dozen officers bringing it home to their families. This is
worthy of … all of your attention. I was encouraged to hear Mr.
Wilson earlier say he didn't really say that, but that's what we
all came to react to."
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT said that he would discuss when DOC first
became aware of the MRSA issue and what was done; he would
answer questions from a management perspective. With respect to
communication issues, he said that Ms. Kiesel has been with him
all along to deal with communication with ACOA. She would
clarify the communication Mr. Wilson referred to with the
governor's office. Mr. Brandenburg would talk about staffing
ratios.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT relayed that it was 2006 when the first
officer at Spring Creek came down with a MRSA infection. In
November 2007 ACOA first expressed concern about staph
infections and MRSA. In Dec 2007 the director's office conducted
a survey of the facilities and recorded 2 cases of MRSA. One
case was from 2006 and one was from December 2007. On January 4
the director's office sent out four documents with MRSA
information: infection control, an information poster, manager's
information, and protocols on recognizing MRSA and what action
to take. In February 2008 DOC released a new policy on medical
co-pay that dropped the standard $4 co-pay if a prisoner thought
he or she might have a MRSA infection. "We didn't want to have
people trying to save the 4 bucks and not go to medical," he
said.
CHAIR FRENCH asked if the fee is waived for other conditions.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT replied he hasn't waived the co-pay for
anything else, but if the inmate is indigent he or she obviously
wouldn't pay and medical care wouldn't be denied. Continuing, he
said that a new policy on institutional sanitation was
established on April 21. It covers what to do to combat MRSA if
domestic hot water is lower than 160 degrees Fahrenheit. He
relayed that earlier in the month 14 prisoners and 2
correctional staff had MRSA infections.
1:22:58 PM
CHAIR FRENCH recognized that Representative Bill Stoltz had
joined the hearing.
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL referred to the survey that was first
conducted on staff members with MRSA and asked if there is a
corollary for inmates.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT replied we know there were 14 earlier this
month and the Spring Creek facility has been tracking MRSA for 4
years. "It looks like there were 51 separate individuals over a
4 year period that had MRSA," he added.
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL asked him to address the maintenance
issue since testimony indicates that it's difficult to get water
heated to 160 degrees.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT replied he did speak with a facilities
manager about hot water and although he can't quote an exact
temperature, 160 degree water would severely scald someone. "I
think 115 [degrees] is the standard for taps and I believe it's
a little higher for washing machines," he said.
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL said the assertion is that tap water
isn't hot enough. Acknowledging that there would be other
problems if tap water was too hot, he said the expectation is
that washing and cleaning is done with hotter water.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT answered yes, but he'd have to get back
with the exact temperature.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked the population at Spring Creek.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT replied the average population is 525.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked if that's the only facility where
MRSA had been tracked.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT said yes. Responding to a second question
he said confirmed that 14 cases were found statewide.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked how MRSA is treated.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT deferred to medical personnel and added
that he's heard that antibiotics are used, but he doesn't know
what kind. When there's resistance other antibiotics are used.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked if he knows how many people have been
treated with that kind of antibiotic.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT said he didn't know.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked if 51 [cases] at one facility is
considered a lot or par for the course.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT replied, "It's the only snapshot we have so
it's hard to answer that." Because we're now tracking it, we
will know in 6 to 12 months, he added.
1:26:52 PM
CHAIR FRENCH recognized that Senator Huggins and Senator McGuire
joined the hearing.
CHAIR FRENCH asked if MRSA is now tracked in DOC facilities.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT answered yes.
CHAIR FRENCH asked if tracking at Spring Creek was a pilot.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT said yes and he doesn't know why it was
started in 2004. "There must have been something come up in
Seward, at least, and that one worksite started to track." In
response to a question, he asked the committee to rely on the
epidemiologist to talk about tracking efforts. He then asked Mr.
Brandenburg to join him to talk about staffing.
1:27:32 PM
BRYAN BRANDENBURG, Deputy Director, Division of Institutions,
Department of Corrections, introduced himself. He relayed that
he's been studying staff and inmate ratios for 6 months. In 2004
a staffing study was done for all DOC facilities. "When we came
onboard we reviewed that staffing study …." In 2007 a revised
staffing study was done. The review found that during the prior
administration several unfunded overtime posts were added. That
created a problem because we didn't have funds to pay for those
posts. They were eliminated. He pointed out that in 2006 the
average number of correction officers ("COs") on the floor was
703. In 2007 the average number was 736 and so far in 2008 the
average is 736. This year we asked the Legislature for
additional PCNs [position control numbers] to get more staff.
One of the things that was evident from the prior
method of looking at our staffing and our PCN count
was that there were - we had 30 … vacancy-and-turnover
positions and 30 premium-pay positions. And so what I
discovered and what I've learned since I've been doing
this job is that those positions were budgeted, but
they weren't funded. So it would appear that we had
more PCNs than what we really, actually, had and were
available to fill. …When we went to the Legislature
this year we said, 'Please give us these extra PCNs.'
… Do away with this VNT, do away with the premium pay
and we'll make the facilities work with this number.
And so, you guys did that and we have 786 PCNs as of
July 1 to man our facilities.
Starting July 1 there will be 83 more COs in the facilities than
there were in 2006, he said.
MR. BRANDENBURG said that when he researched inmate to staff
ratios he looked at statistics from the Bureau of Justice for
2002 as well as the American Correctional Association. In 2006
we had 703 staff and 3,514 inmates, which gives a ratio 1 to
4.9. In 2007 there were 736 staff and 3,601 inmates for a staff
to inmate ratio of 1 to 4.8. Thus far in 2008 there are 3,701
inmates to 736 staff for a ratio of 1 to 5. The Bureau of
Justice statistics indicate the national average is 1 to 6.7 and
the Federal Bureau of Prisons shows a ratio of 1 to 9.1. "So
we're well below the national average when it comes to inmate to
staff ratios," he said.
CHAIR FRENCH asked if legislators and COs could have a copy of
his written report.
MR. BRANDENBURG agreed to supply copies.
1:32:53 PM
CHAIR FRENCH recognized that Senator Therriault joined the
hearing.
CHAIR FRENCH asked if he agrees with the assertion that the
minimums have been reduced. The example from the Anchorage
correctional facility was that the minimum had been 19 and now
it's 16.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT pointed out that those are nightshift
numbers and thus are lower because all the prisoners are locked
in their rooms. When he was superintendent at the Anchorage
complex the day shift minimum was 36. "That means that if we
ever fell below 36 we went out hunting for overtime." Today the
dayshift minimum is 39.
CHAIR FRENCH asked if he agrees that the minimums have been
reduced. APOC says it's down to 16 and you say it's down to 17.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT said when he left in 2005 it was 36 and
today it's 39. He continued:
It did spike. It went up as high as 42 on days … for
minimums. But those were unfunded positions. Those
were overtime positions. So when everyone came to work
that still wasn't enough people. With a minimum of 42,
every single person could come to work that day, which
is rare because there's always somebody off on
training or sick leave or something, and every single
person could come to work and you're still looking for
overtime. It was a huge overtime deficit. So rather
than just chop it out our first year, we knew that had
to be addressed because going to the Legislature, we
don't want to go and say we need this much resource
and then spend 10 or 15 or 20 percent more than that
just because we have posts that aren't funded. They're
not on any kind of a report and they're not counted on
any official legislative type of transaction. So we
took a year and the supplemental our first year in was
projected to be $17 million. Much of that was overtime
budget. Dwayne can talk later about the budget. That's
reduced substantially and we want to continue to
reduce it. We don't think overtime should be scheduled
just because you don't have enough. Your should have
posting to cover your job and then overtime is for
things that you don't see coming - sick leave,
training, academies, things like that. … We shouldn't
have everybody come to work and still be short. So
while the unfunded overtime posts have been
eliminated, we have added staff and added posts as
they've come up. And it should be noted that the first
year we didn't ask for more CO positions, we just
filled all that we had. We had 737 and the year end
average for '06 was 736, which was a bit of a tactic.
We go to the Legislature this year and said, look we
can in fact fill all of our positions - train and
retain these folks. We need to stop the business of
not funding 30 or 40 of our positions. We need funding
for them because we can fill them. The Legislature
agreed with us and gave us that funding. So while no
PCNs were created, funding was added to the PCNs that
we already had. And that's the way we're going about
it.
1:36:06 PM
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI referred to the statistics that were
provided and acknowledged that 1 to 4 or 5 is lower than the
national average. But, he said, it seems that a better statistic
is the number of officers on the floor with the prisoners. At
the Anchorage Correctional Complex West there was one model that
had 94 prisoners to 1 corrections officer. "Isn't that a more
appropriate way of looking at the numbers?" he asked.
MR. BRANDENBURG responded there are also units with 36 prisoners
and 1 officer. The numbers he provided are based on national
organizations that do this for a living. "They went out and
polled all the facilities across the United States and
determined, using that ratio or that method, to determine their
ratios of staff to inmates."
1:37:43 PM
SENATOR McGUIRE asked if the department spends time thinking
about the appropriate staff to prisoner ratio and what makes a
good work environment and safe place to house prisoners.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT replied he could used his work experience
as a corrections officer for 14 years but it's more appropriate
to use national averages to come up with the plan. With respect
to whether the system is safe, he said they've been keeping
special incident reports since January 2007. System wide there
have been 19 special incident reports on staff assaults. Getting
hit is never okay, but he can't say that more staff would stop
it. I think we would all agree that it would help, he said, and
if you were to conclude that we need more staff we would
probably agree and move forward to justify the increase. "Right
now we have national averages and we have the safety rating as
it is.
MR. BRANDENBURG relayed that to add a 24 post, which is 4.8
officers, it would cost an additional $500,000.
CHAIR FRENCH referred to the tabbed binder and said it's
important to keep in mind the information from the Washington
State Institute for Public Policy that discusses evidence-based
adult corrections programs - what works and what doesn't. Maybe
we do have enough COs, but we saw three people in a tiny cell,
prisoners sleeping on the floor and prisoners housed in what
once was a gym. He asked what will happen to alleviate that
problem.
CHAIR FRENCH recognized that Representative Ramras had joined
the hearing.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT highlighted reentry programs, recidivism
course studies, and funding to study programs that will be
implemented. All that helps, but it isn't the magic cure, he
said. Phase 1 and 2 expansions will help. He continued:
We've taken previously approved capital monies or
operational monies from FY08 and we're building 60
beds out at Palmer. And the primary reason for those
is we're going to run a bus back and forth several
times a week if not more to relieve some of the
Anchorage burden. Anchorage is a tricky one. If you
want to see crowing, you gotta go to Anchorage because
those folks are all going to court. Daily, weekly,
monthly - they're there for a reason. The deputy
director and in some cases the commissioner calls the
classification folks every single day and asks who is
there who doesn't need to be there. Could they be in a
halfway house, could they be in another facility, is
their court date a couple months away so they could go
to Seward or Arizona or anywhere. Because that's the
one we know gets crowded and it's the one we have the
hardest time making un-crowded. This piece at Palmer
will give us some relief - the cure to that, of
course, is more hard beds in Anchorage. And as long as
we're processing people through court at the numbers
that we are, that's just what's going to have to
happen.
Phase 1 also talks about Fairbanks 38 beds and 60 beds
down at Kenai. Phase 2 is implementation of Senate
Bill 65. And that's going to put about 1,700 on line -
1,530 out at Point MacKenzie at a new facility.
Occupancy we expect February of 2012. Hopefully we'll
start late 2011 with some occupancy, but that's the
timeframe that we have.
CHAIR FRENCH confirmed that the 1,500 bed facility will be in
MatSu and asked if he agrees that last year the prison
population grew by about 300.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT replied we're using 250.
CHAIR FRENCH asked if he roughly agrees that the increase over
the previous 10 years was about 250 [per year].
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT said no. In January 2007 we looked back 5
years and took an average. The increase per year was 137.
CHAIR FRENCH asked how he explains the numbers ACOA is using.
MR. BRANDENBURG explained, "Our numbers came from central
classification that tracks our daily counts in all our
facilities. And so they gave us a yearly average based on those
counts from each of the facilities around the state."
CHAIR FRENCH asked if it's possible to look at the numbers and
be confused because there's a huge disparity.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT explained:
What happened is we're 137 and it was a 5-year
average. Well we had our first full year in and in
January '08 we were 250. And when we looked back to
take another 5-year average … there was a big spike
right at the end. The last couple of years were up
more. I don't know exactly what they were, but it was
more than 137. That made the average come up to 137.
CHAIR FRENCH continued to question the disparity between the two
averages.
1:45:25 PM
MR. BRANDENBURG explained that, "In '05 we were 3,341 and this
year so far we've been at 3,701 so whatever that amount is is
the average increase in our census from '05 to this month."
CHAIR FRENCH asked if there would still be inmates in Arizona
when the new 1,500 bed facility opens 4 years from now if the
prison population is increasing by 150-200 inmates per year.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT said yes. We were using 137 when we talked
about a 1,200 bed facility and when we started to realize it was
250 or more, we increased the estimate to 1,530 beds. Even
bumping it up we're looking at about 150 inmates being out of
state unless another unit is built. The reason they didn't start
over and come up with a way to build more beds is because there
are 165 prisoners in the system with release dates that are more
than 40 years from now. We haven't given up on those prisoners
but the one's that will never reintegrate would be the first to
go out of state. "They are our responsibility and they should be
here, but we can only afford to go so much and so fast."
1:46:46 PM
SENATOR McGUIRE pointed out that inmate safety is also a
concern. When she visited the Fairbanks facility she noted that
an inmate who was serving a DUI sentence could bunk next to a
documented serial murderer. She said she could feel the tension
and she was afraid. We tend to define problems the same way
forever, she said. We're looking at national averages rather
than going up to 35,000 feet and asking what ratio will provide
the best safety and morale. She said she also could feel tension
among the officers. That's an unhealthy work environment that
has to affect recruitment and retention, she said.
1:48:47 PM
MR. BRANDENBURG explained that currently there is no initial
classification system so all incoming prisoners are treated in
close custody. "So someone that has their first DUI is like a
minimum custody person so that they are not housed with someone
who is … a more serious felony." This administration is looking
at improving the system so that it's possible to classify new
prisoners within the first 24 hours. A pilot study is in
progress.
1:49:54 PM
CHAIR FRENCH asked who makes the classification decisions
because it's always struck him that you can win or lose the game
right there.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT replied it's the probation officers at each
facility. He continued to say:
The system that we use now is a historical static sort
of system so they look at a lot of different data that
really doesn't change for a person. The system that
we're looking at is more dynamic so that it gives an
individual an opportunity to change their custody
classification so that they can move within the
system, which will fit into what we're trying to do
with our programs and our rehabilitation program.
REPRESENTATIVE DOLL said she imagines that overtime is mandatory
so fatigue becomes a factor. "It appears as if we're spending
probably much more money on overtime than we actually would if
we hired more."
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT agreed and added that they're working to
fund every post with at least 4.8 PCNs so there won't be as much
need for overtime. Then we can cover most things that come up
when there's absenteeism, he said.
REPRESENTATIVE DOLL asked what the budget request for that would
be for next year.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT replied it's too early to say.
REPRESENTATIVE DOLL said she looks forward to seeing that.
1:52:05 PM
MR. BRANDENBURG said that another thing about using the national
standard is that it's based on states that are also part of the
unified system, jails and prisons combined. "We're well within
those ratios for those facilities," he said. Some places around
the country have rations of 1 to 12 and 1 to 21 so we're lucky
to be where we are.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT referred to Senator McGuire's question
about the right ratios and said it's really not that easy to
answer. What do you do when you step away from national
averages? DOC is asking for a substantial amount of money and
you don't base that on feelings. One thing the union and
management can work on together is talking about how it would
improve morale to increase ratios, and if it makes sense we'll
present the case for more staff to the Legislature. We've never
asked for less staff, but we aren't willing to throw these posts
out there that have no positions and no funding. That isn't
responsible. We want to make sure our money is spent correctly.
"Everything we do is funded, every bed is counted." Currently
we're at 101 percent, but if we were to move 500 people to
Arizona tomorrow they would not come out of the Anchorage
complex. What would happen is that the budget down there would
increase by about $15 million and we'd have 500 empty beds in
the system up here. I don't believe the public would be okay
with that, he said. Our premise has been that we need to be at
100 percent before we spend money in Arizona. This year we're
spending $25 million down there to handle overflow, but it's not
overflow if we have empty beds up here.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT continued to say:
The bunks and gym were added in 2005 and 2006. "All I
did was count them. If there's prisoners sleeping in
them and we're using them, I put them on the count
sheet. That was quite a stir. The ads that the union
was running on TV were talking about your emergency
cap and all that. That's what they were talking about
is counting all those bunks. I said before and I'll
say again on record, I'd rather have the gyms back
frankly. Let the prisoners go in there particularly in
Fairbanks where it's 60 below and burn off some steam.
They're easier to manage. However, would the public
stand for that? Should we shift those 80 or 90 or 100
prisoners to Arizona to open the gym back up?
1:55:40 PM
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI recapped that according to the charts that
were displayed this morning there were 3,099 inmates at about
the time the Cleary decision was issued in August 1997. In
December 2006 there were 3,385 inmates and in December 2007
there were 3,718 inmates. In August 1997 there were 731
correction officers and in December 2007 there were 733
correction officers. He asked if he agrees that between 1997 and
2007 there was an increase of about 600 inmates and 2 correction
officers.
CHAIR FRENCH clarified that Senator Wielechowski was reading
from data under tab 5 of the document labeled "Legislative
Hearing May 27, 2008."
MR. BRANDENBURG said the administration used data from 2005 when
the average CO count was 697. In 2006 the average was 703 and in
2007 it was 736. That's based on average numbers out of the
personnel department in Juneau. In each of those years the
numbers went over and under. So far in 2008 the number of COs
employed is 736. "The same is true for the counts. Those are
from January to January for that year. It's an average census,"
he said.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked if he agrees that there's been an
increase of about 600 inmates since 1997.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT replied we don't know if the numbers quoted
from 1997 are the average number of officers working or PCNs. If
it's PCNs that weren't filled, it doesn't matter. Just as Mr.
Wilson said, what the union and management do agree on is that
the PCN count gets confusing. There can be lots of PCNs but
unless they're funded, available, and filled you don't know.
We're running with what's on the floor, he said.
1:58:33 PM
SENATOR McGUIRE asked what efforts he's made to communicate with
the union and why he thinks the Judiciary Committee had to get
involved with what feels like a family fight.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT relayed that the union met with the
governor's office in February to discuss a number of issues.
Randy Ruaro reported back that after a number of issues were
addressed the union president and business manager leaned across
the table and said that they didn't want to talk. They wanted
this commissioner gone. That's similar to what I was told during
a discipline process back the previous summer, he said. At that
time I was told that the union arsenal has the grievance and the
nuclear media bomb. Using the latter isn't negotiating, it's not
even communicating, he said. When the union went to the
governor's office and did basically the same thing, we wrote a
letter saying we'd be happy to meet. The union response was that
it was done with this commissioner and would only meet with the
deputy chief of staff. He continued to say:
Brad just within the last couple of days backed out of
a mediation we had scheduled for tentatively last week
to talk about a ULP that they filed against the state.
We're seeing more of a disconnect and what we'd like
to see is more of a connect. And if it's a labor
management committee, that's fine. If it's a mediated
resolution type meeting with a federal mediator,
that's fine. It doesn't matter, but many of the issues
that I saw, not knowing what was all going to be here
today, many of the issues that we saw this morning -
some communication would help or fix probably all of
them. We're not going to agree on certain things. …
However, if we're talking about it that's the way to
go. We've had an open invitation, but their refusal
has not come from our side. And it won't come from our
side. I've said we'll come to these meetings as often
as we need to. We'll be honest with our facts and
we're not going to be at odds with any lawmakers over
this. When the union comes to the table and starts
discussing matters, we're happy to do so. That's all
we've needed.
2:01:48 PM
DIANNE KIESEL, Deputy Director, Division of Personnel & Labor
Relations, Department of Administration, stated that in
September 2007 when issues came up between the commissioner's
officer and ACOA, she was asked to be the liaison. That isn't
unusual because unions don't typically walk into a
commissioner's office to make a deal. That's particularly true
if there's an issue related to labor relations or a contract.
Generally it goes through the admin process - at least the labor
relations section.
On Friday she was asked to be the liaison and the following week
she sent a message to Mr. Wilson at ACOA informing him that she
would be the liaison and that the lines of communication were
open. That generated a number of emails back and forth. Although
the union wasn't happy, she was in fact the contact until early
February or March when the union went to the governor's office.
The commissioner explained what happened with that process, she
said.
CHAIR FRENCH asked if she participated in the meetings at the
governor's office.
MS. KIESEL replied she was informed of the meetings after they
took place. She was asked if she would facilitate a meeting with
ACOA and the commissioner's office and she agreed to do so.
After the media issue she suggested that perhaps federal
mediation was a better avenue. Federal mediation was set up for
the end of May but it was postponed when this meeting came up.
Hopefully it will occur sometime in June.
CHAIR FRENCH asked what topics the mediation would cover.
MS. KIESEL replied her recommendation would be for each party to
list the topics because there seems to be some confusion.
CHAIR FRENCH asked what topics she would list.
MS. KIESEL said staffing needs some work and it needs to be
clear to the union that the commissioner isn't always the one
who administers all the decisions that are handed down. He has
the final determination but administration often weighs in on
disciplinary issues and statewide issues. One issue mentioned
today involved denying an injury leave request from Mr. Godfrey.
She and Mr. Peeples met with the workers' compensation folks and
the decision was not to approve an injury leave because it
wasn't determined that the injury was work related. That
decision was laid on the commissioner's doorstep when it was a
decision made outside that realm. There are other issues that
are laid at his doorstep that shouldn't be as well. "So I think
there needs to be some communication with the union to let them
know why those issues are truly happening. It's generally
because there's a statewide impact or something within the
contract that prohibits us from doing some of those things," she
said.
2:05:23 PM
CHAIR FRENCH said the Legislature this year passed a law giving
firefighters a presumption if they acquire certain illnesses
during the course of their employment as a firefighter. Because
it's difficult to pin down where you get certain diseases, you
just assume that because they respond to fires on a regular
basis that an inhalation disease probably came from a fire. He
suggested thinking about something like that in the way of MRSA
infection claims for correction officers. "It sort of stands to
reason if you're going to a facility every day where there are
hundreds of less than perfectly sanitized individuals, you're
probably going to pick it up at work." He suggested she think it
over.
MS. KIESEL responded that DOC isn't the only department dealing
with public contact and the MRSA issue. I don't know where you'd
draw the line, she said.
2:06:56 PM
CHAIR FRENCH recognized that Senator Davis had joined the
hearing.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT said that if the Legislature is considering
a bill like the firefighters, he'd like to talk first. They
don't have to come into my office every time because there are
people who can advise me on these things, but it'd be nice once
in awhile, he said. The union would find is that if they were
talking things would move ahead.
REPRESENTATIVE RAMRAS noted that a fire alarm went off when he
was touring the Fairbanks facility and he was amazed that nobody
moved. It struck me that there were two groups that were
incarcerated at that moment - the inmates and the correction
officers. Echoing some of the remarks of Senator McGuire, he
said he's seen astronomical growth in the budget during his
tenure in the Legislature and he questions whether there has
been a commensurate growth in the DOC budget. It didn't strike
him that way. Also, the building is old and doesn't seem safe.
100 prisoners sleep on the floor of the gymnasium that's never
in the dark because of the row of high sodium lights. "I was
overall very impressed with the performance of the correctional
officers in maintaining order but … I was not very impressed
with the amount of resources they had to do their task," he
said.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT responded that he'd like Deputy
Commissioner Peeples to talk about the budget growth over the
last several years. He can say that SB 65 was the vehicle for a
statewide expansion and Fairbanks was supposed to get an
additional 80 beds. After looking at the numbers it was clear
that wasn't enough. "Fairbanks is one we could probably use 400
or 450 beds." It's a hub for many of the northern communities.
The building is old and there are issues but the expansion only
allowed 80 beds and there were also issues with the borough as
far as putting up the bonds and supporting the project. We all
believe that Fairbanks will need a new facility. How big it will
be will be dictated by growth and what's being done elsewhere in
the state.
CHAIR FRENCH asked Mr. Peeples to tell the committee the size of
the corrections budget 4 years ago, its size now, and the
percentage increase that represents.
2:13:20 PM
DWAYNE PEEPLES, Deputy Commissioner, Department of Corrections,
said he doesn't have all the numbers in his head, but from FY08
to FY09 the budget went from $227 million to $244 million. He'd
have to go back and pull numbers to do an historical comparative
analysis by department. Representative Ramras is correct, the
buildings are old and some may be getting to the end of their
life, he said. He has a list of capital budget repair,
maintenance, and equipment items that would quickly add up to $1
billion. There are current construction needs out into the next
10 years. The average projected growth over the next 10 years
would be 250 beds per year. A recent piece of legislation made
third-time misdemeanant assaults a felony so within 5 years
there will be an additional 600 people to adjudicate. About 450
of those will be convicted and about 80 percent will be held in
Nome, Bethel, and Fairbanks. They'll be short termers so there
will be need to increase jail beds in those areas, he said. "I
have not calculated it out but I think you'll be needing 400 to
500 beds in a half a decade in those facilities."
MR. PEEPLES said the growth projections were made to the House
Finance subcommittee and those numbers can be revised, based on
some recent legislation, and supplied to the committee.
2:15:59 PM
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL asked if there's any consideration of
separating the Fairbanks pretrial facility from housing.
MR. PEEPLES replied under SB 65 there was a preliminary plan for
building in Fairbanks, but it's not feasible right now. The plan
was for an 80-bed unit and you could do some separation with
that, but most of that population is pre-sentenced. To return
mid or long-term sentences to Fairbank is a little over the
horizon. He reminded members that the Fairbanks facility area
draws from the entire north end of the state. In the long run
you'll need to do something with the jail, he said. It's
possible to juggle for awhile, but it's expensive to operate. It
has steam heat and long term problems that the 80 additional
beds wouldn't address.
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL said he's reminded that the pretrial
situation is difficult partly because the fourth judicial
district reaches into the Kuskoquim area in Southwest Alaska.
There's a huge amount of traffic rotating through the court and
that facility. Often people have to go to Spring Creek, Nome,
Juneau, or Anchorage to make room for that ever-shifting
population in Fairbanks. The building simply gets overused.
CHAIR FRENCH recalled that a criticism he's heard about SB 65 is
that a large facility was envisioned and it's ever-shrinking. He
asked why that's happening and if 1,500 beds is the bottom line.
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT explained a couple of significant problems.
SB 65 was passed in 2004 and sat dormant until June 2006. During
those years the Anchorage CPI ran about 3 percent a year and
construction inflation ran between 7 and 9 percent per year. The
bill provided $330 million to build a prison and the mega prison
that was designed as of December 2006 was estimated to cost $405
million. "So we were almost $80 million over budget before we
ever started," he said. A more significant problem was that the
attached fiscal note called for staffing for a 1,200 bed
facility. Anything more would come from departmental
efficiencies. We decided we weren't going to move ahead on a
project that was $80 million over budget and had a fiscal note
that provided staff for 1,200 beds and 2,250 actual beds. "I
have no idea how anybody was planning on doing that," he said.
We cut the beds to 1,200 and spread it back out into other
communities such as Seward and Bethel. And we talked to
Fairbanks because the original intent of the bill was a regional
expansion. The outlying communities supported it and the MatSu
Borough agreed to the reduction because nobody was very excited
about mega. They just wanted the business out there. We knew if
we tried to go ahead with a big project and then several years
later came and asked for staffing for 2,400 you'd rightfully say
that the bill was passed with the understanding that you'd find
efficiencies in the department for the extra 1,000 beds. "I
wasn't willing or able to do that." We believe that we can
comfortably staff a 1,530 bed facility.
2:21:00 PM
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT said he hopes this results in better
communication. He agrees with Senator McGuire's remark that it's
an in-house fight. A lot of this doesn't need to be at this
level. "We'd be happy to sit down and work a lot of this stuff
out but we can't do it with threats and we can't get bullied. We
have to do it fair and we have to talk to each other and mean
what we say," he said.
SENATOR THERRIAULT commented that this discussion points out a
problem in the Legislature as well. SB 65 passed in an era when
budgets were projected to be tight going forward so there were
restrictions put on the costs. The comparison was what it would
cost to build and house people in Alaska versus the cost of
continuing to ship them out of state. Corrections generally
doesn't get a lot of attention, but it's a constitutionally
obligated governmental responsibility. The capital budget this
year was staggeringly large but there was nothing in the budget
this year that addresses the needs you mentioned 4, 5 and 6
years out. And there's nothing on the drawing board. Legislators
need to refocus their attention on what the constitution
mandates and pass that information on to their constituents.
It's not necessarily what we'd like to do, but it's what we're
obligated to do, he said.
2:23:51 PM
REPRESENTATIVE STOLTZE asked if he had an opportunity to
aggressively lobby for the $7 million for utility lines that the
Governor vetoed from the capital budget. That budget cut was
very befuddling, he said. "Did you have an arm wrestling contest
with Karen Rehfeld and lose?"
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT replied the project was viable before that.
He recalled that the borough lobbied to have that put in the
budget. We certainly wouldn't stand in the way, but it didn't
fit into the plan, he said.
REPRESENTATIVE STOLTZE said he had the House companion bill and
he's happy to be past that ugly time in legislative history.
2:25:08 PM
REPRESENTATIVE RAMRAS said he wasn't familiar with the $7
million that was vetoed, but he does know that twice he put
$10,000 in the budget for a climbing wall at the 40-plus year
old Fairbanks Youth Facility and it was cut both times. The
ideology behind it was to do something to rescue young people in
the facility and bring something fresh into an antiquated
facility. He doesn't think there is support coming from the
current administration and he's frankly not impressed when he
has a commissioner come before him and speak so disparagingly of
the people he is supposed to supervise. In the private sector he
himself supervises 300 people and he would never use the words
"bullying or threatening" in a public setting. It's
inappropriate language and hurtful to morale to use that sort of
vernacular. "I would suggest Commissioner that you work on the
language that you should use in the future to work together with
a group where there are obvious differences in intensions and
frictions and not enough resources to go around." That sort of
language is incendiary and counterproductive and it's probably
part of the reason we're sitting here today. "I would vigorously
encourage you to find more constructive language to use in
articulating the relationship between you and this very
impressive body of correctional officers," he said.
2:30:20 PM
COMMISSIONER SCHMIDT responded, "I felt bullied and that's what
I said, but I hear you. And if it at all will cause further
delays in our communication, then it's not productive. What I'm
about is getting back to a table. … The key to this is
effective, polite, professional communication"
CHAIR FRENCH thanked the commissioner and said the next
presentation is from the state epidemiologist.
2:31:28 PM
DOCTOR JOE MCLAUGHLIN, Acting Chief, Section of Epidemiology,
Division of Public Health, Department of Health and Social
Services, introduced himself and delivered a PowerPoint
presentation on Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus
(MRSA). He said he would start with the epidemiology of MRSA
beginning with the background. He would go into how to diagnose
and treat MRSA infections as well as some precautionary
measures. Next he would discuss MRSA in prisons.
Staphylococcus aureus is a bacterium that is commonly carried on
the skin or the nose of healthy people. It is the common cause
of minor skin infections. The typical presentation is pimples or
boils. Oftentimes it can be treated without antibiotics, but it
can also cause serious infections such as surgical wound
infections, bloodstream infections and pneumonia.
MRSA stands for Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus,
which means it's resistant to the certain antibiotics. Those are
beta-lactam antibiotics, which include methicillin, oxacillin,
penicillin, and amoxicillin.
CHAIR FRENCH asked when the medical community first noticed
there were staph strains that couldn't be treated by the beta-
lactam antibiotics.
DR. MCLAUGHLIN replied that started in the '70s; a subsequent
slide would address that.
DR. MCLAUGHLIN continued to explain that about 25 percent to 30
percent of the general population in the United States is
colonized with Staphylococcus aureus. Colonization is typically
in the nares, axilla, and groin and those people are considered
to be carriers.
MRSA is the form of Staphylococcus aureus that's resistant to
antibiotics. In 2001 and 2002 about .8 percent of the general
population was colonized with MRSA. Two years later 1.5 percent
of the population was colonized so it's increasing in this
country. Staphylococcus aureus colonization is a risk factor for
infection. About 80 percent of infections are endogenous. That
means that of those people who are infected with Staphylococcus
aureus, about 80 percent are carriers.
2:35:49 PM
DR. MCLAUGHLIN highlighted some of the consequences of MRSA
colonization: it leads to increased risk of infection; hospital
stays last about 10 days longer; there's a 2.5 fold higher
mortality; and health care costs are increased.
There are two main types of MRSA infections: healthcare
associated and community associated. In a healthcare setting the
immunocompromised patients are at highest risk for MRSA
infection. The most common manifestation includes wound
infections, urinary tract infections, bloodstream infections,
and pneumonia. The proportion of staph aureus infections that
were MRSA positive in intensive care units in the U.S. went from
around 2 percent in 1974 to 64 percent in 2004.
Community acquired MRSA occurs in otherwise healthy people who
haven't been hospitalized nor had a medical procedure in the
last year. Approximately 12 percent of MRSA infections are
community acquired. The remainder is acquired in a hospital
setting.
CHAIR FRENCH said when a corrections officer gets MRSA it is
community associated.
DR. MCLAUGHLIN replied most people who are infected in the
prison system have community associated MRSA. Some cases are
hospital associated. There are ways to test and therefore
determine whether the strain is consistent with community
acquired or hospital acquired.
CHAIR FRENCH asked if it's possible to go further to say exactly
where the strain came from - a particular school, bathroom in a
bar, or prison.
DR. MCLAUGHLIN said when there's a viral outbreak of some sort
it's possible to look at the DNA of the strain of the bacteria
that caused the outbreak and identify that the particular strain
is consistent among patients who are associated with the
outbreak. The same applies for MRSA. If there's a MRSA outbreak,
it's possible to take cultures from clinical specimens and look
at the DNA patterns of the isolates to determine whether there's
one strain of MRSA or multiple strain.
2:39:06 PM
SENATOR THERRIAULT asked if MRSA is an umbrella term for many
different bugs.
DR. MCLAUGHLIN said that's correct.
SENATOR THERRIAULT asked if it would apply to common childhood
infections such as impetigo and conjunctivitis.
DR. MCLAUGHLIN replied there are many different manifestations
of MRSA including impetigo, skin rashes, cellulites, pimples,
and boils. It can also be internalized causing bloodstream
infections, infections of an organ, or pneumonia.
2:39:54 PM
DR. MCLAUGHLIN said about 12 million outpatients healthcare
visits are estimated to occur each year in the U.S. And about
292,000 hospitalizations are thought to be associated with staph
aureus infections each year in the U.S. In 2005 about 94,000
people were diagnosed with invasive MRSA. Invasive means it's
gone from a skin infection to colonizing. About 19,000 people
died of invasive MRSA; 86 percent were healthcare associated
MRSA infections and 14 percent were community acquired MRSA
infections. The annual cost is estimated to be between $3.2
billion and $4.2 billion.
CHAIR FRENCH asked how he accounts for the fact that one in five
who get invasive MRSA die, and most are healthcare associated.
Is it deeper in the system before it's caught?
Dr. MCLAUGHLIN said yes. The vast majority of MRSA infections
seen in medical facilities are skin infections. They are benign
and don't require any specific antibiotic treatment. Just a
small proportion of those skin infections become an invasive
disease - colonization of the lungs, for example. But once the
infection becomes invasive there's a very high case-fatality
rate.
2:42:13 PM
Dr. MCLAUGHLIN said most states don't have regulations or
statutes mandating the reporting of MRSA infections. Primarily
that's because the reporting is a burden to healthcare providers
and lab personnel. The role that public health officials have in
intervening in MRSA incidents is as unclear as it is with the
common cold. A very few states require reporting of every
laboratory confirmed case of MRSA and some states are looking at
mandating reporting of MRSA infections that occur in sterile
sites such as blood and urine. Those are things to look at down
the road, but currently Alaska reporting regulations don't
require reporting MRSA infections. Currently there are 56 or 57
reportable infectious diseases in Alaska. Although MRSA isn't
one of those, there is a clause in the infectious disease
reporting regulations that says that an unusual number or a
clustering of any infectious disease is reportable. He said that
another common example of how this might apply is the Norovirus.
That's a very common virus that causes frequent outbreaks on
cruise ships. That isn't reportable but as soon as there is an
indication of an outbreak, healthcare providers are required, by
law, to report that to public health. The report triggers an
outbreak investigation.
2:44:28 PM
Dr. MCLAUGHLIN showed slide examples of staph and MRSA
infections. They range from pimples to boils and cellulites,
which is a red infected skin tissue. It also manifests as
ulcers, impetigo, and drainage.
SENATOR THERRIAULT asked if the pimples always progress into the
more obvious infections.
DR. MCLAUGHLIN replied they usually don't, but if they do
progress into ulcers that would be an increased risk factor for
a bloodstream infection. He indicated a slide showing the most
commonly seen infection and said many people report their first
symptoms feel and look like a spider bite.
Dr. MCLAUGHLIN said people are at increased risk for community
acquired MRSA if they have: skin to skin contact; openings in
the skin such as abrasions; contact with contaminated items and
surfaces; crowded living conditions; and poor hygiene. People
who have been identified as being at increased risk for
infection from community acquired MRSA include: Alaska Natives,
athletes, children, men who have sex with men, military
recruits, Native Americans, Pacific Islanders, and prisoners.
2:46:41 PM
Dr. MCLAUGHLIN discussed the diagnosis of MRSA skin infection.
First there's the clinical diagnosis. The health care provider
makes an assessment and presumptive clinical diagnosis and
decides whether or not to culture the lesion. The Center for
Disease Control (CDC) recommends culturing every lesion whenever
possible. The culture is taken from the weeping wound or from a
skin biopsy. Antimicrobial resistance testing is also highly
recommended. That determines whether or not the strain is
sensitive or resistant to antibiotics.
Treatment involves the application of warm or hot compresses to
the lesion. Sometimes it involves an incision to drain the
wound. This should only be done by a healthcare provider because
it's a risk factor for infection. Treatment can also include
antibiotics, but it's important to know the specific strain of
the bacteria because the use of a particular antibiotic is
guided by the susceptibility profile of the organism. Oftentimes
antibiotics are unnecessary.
CHAIR FRENCH asked what causes the boils to go away without
antibiotics.
DR. MCLAUGHLIN explained that sometimes the body fights off the
bacteria and sometimes warm compresses help. Antibiotics are
indicated if there's a large area of cellulites, a systemic
illness where the patient is febrile, the patient is immune
compromised or has serious health conditions, or the patient has
immune suppression.
2:49:17 PM
DR. MCLAUGHLIN said that mupirocin is an antibiotic that's
commonly used for decolonization. Occasionally it's been
effective in the short term in individual patients who are very
ill. But the effectiveness of interrupting transmission in the
healthcare setting hasn't been established and there is no data
for community transmission. Also there's been increasing
resistance to mupirocin so there's no consensus recommendation.
If it actually worked it would be a great way to prevent MRSA
infections. It involves applying an ointment in the nares,
axilla, and groin to essentially decolonize someone who is
colonized, not infected, with the bacteria.
Dr. MCLAUGHLIN said the prognosis is very favorable for people
who are in generally good health and have a mild case of MRSA.
However, patients may be carriers for years and recurrence may
be as high as 40 percent in certain populations. Because this
isn't a nationally notifiable condition, there isn't good rate
and incidence data to guide and inform the epidemiology of the
disease. However current thinking is that less than 1 percent
and up to 7 percent of people who have MRSA infections develop
an invasive disease. As previously stated, invasive disease has
severe morbidity and mortality. About 20 percent of the people
with invasive MRSA die.
2:51:28 PM
Dr. MCLAUGHLIN said that the number one prevention is to wash
your hands. Also, keep cuts and scrapes clean and covered until
healed; avoid contact with other people's wounds and bandages;
avoid sharing personal items such as towels and razors; and
effectively diagnose and treat to prevent methicillin sensitive
staph aureus from becoming methicillin resistant staph aureus.
DR. MCLAUGHLIN said that in prisons specifically, implicated
risk factors include: longer incarceration, prior antibiotic
use, male gender, washing clothes by hand, not using soap to
wash, other infections or chronic diseases, self draining of
boils, sharing towels and razors, and tattooing. On initial
presentation prisoners typically say they have spider bites.
2:53:08 PM
Studies were done in prison populations in Mississippi, New York
and Louisiana. Colonization rates range from 0.8 percent to 16.6
percent. There's little data on the incidence of disease. A
Texas study looking at about 300,000 inmates incarcerated from
1999 to 2001 showed an incidence of 12 MRSA infections per
100,000 person years.
2:54:14 PM
The federal bureau of prisons put out updated management of MRSA
infections guidelines in August 2005. It goes through screening,
reporting, treatment, infection control, and outbreak management
recommendations.
CHAIR FRENCH asked what role he and the division of public
health would play in the MRSA screening that's planned.
DR. MCLAUGHLIN replied the DOC staff will do the surveillance in
the selected prisons and public health will help in calculating
and interpreting the rates. Those rates will be compared with
the published literature rates.
REPRESENTATIVE DOLL asked him to restate the difference between
MRSA in the nasal passage and in a wound on the hands and how
that relates to showers, steam, and lower water temperatures.
DR. MCLAUGHLIN explained that MRSA can infect any area of the
skin. About 30 percent of the general population is colonized
with staph aureus, and about 1.5 percent of the population is
colonized with MRSA - usually in the nose. Colonization is
different than infection, but if there's a scratch in the nasal
mucosa that can introduce the bacteria deeper into the skin and
cause a local skin infection. It may go deeper and cause a
bloodstream infection, pneumonia, or infection of other areas of
the body.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked what would be considered an outbreak
in a prison population of 3,600.
DR. MCLAUGHLIN replied we don't have a good grip on that
nationally. The division of public health asks healthcare
providers to report anything that seems to be unusual and they
will determine whether an investigation is warranted. If it is,
an outbreak investigation will be conducted. Influenza provides
a good corollary. Most of the time seasonal influenza outbreaks
aren't investigated, but there are focal pockets of influenza
where the incidence rate is high enough to warrant further
investigation.
2:59:15 PM
REPRESENTATIVE RAMRAS highlighted that 100 men are housed in the
Fairbanks correctional facility gymnasium that has 2 toilets and
probably the same number of sinks. He asked about sanitation in
that sort of environment.
DR. MCLAUGHLIN replied epidemiologically it's been demonstrated
that crowding is a risk factor for MRSA colonization and
infection.
REPRESENTATIVE RAMRAS remarked that he was impressed with the
cleanliness of the laundry facility in Fairbanks, but he has
questions about the plastic boats they saw at the beginning of
the tour. He asked if they're sanitized and it they aren't if
they could be a breeding ground for MRSA or other infectious
diseases.
DR. MCLAUGHLIN acknowledged that he isn't sure he knows what the
boats are, but objects that people routinely come in contact
with are known risk factors for transmission. Toilet seats
should be sanitized frequently. The Federal Bureau of Prisons
document on the management of MRSA infections provides specific
and detailed recommendations for sanitizing. Certainly any
fomite should be sanitized frequently with a detergent. Sheets
and other things should be washed in water that is between 120
and 140 degrees Fahrenheit.
REPRESENTATIVE RAMRAS asked if someone within the system could
talk about what effort is made to sanitize the sleeping units
that are hard plastic or a mat.
3:03:03 PM
CHAIR FRENCH suggested the commissioner provide that information
during wrap up at the end of the day.
SENATOR THERRIAULT asked if there's increased risk in a
restaurant on a busy Friday night, in a multiplex movie theater,
or in a daycare.
DR. MCLAUGHLIN said the majority of the epidemiologic studies
that look at crowding as a risk factor for illness have focused
on living in the same quarters. Anytime the environment is
crowded there's increased risk that the bacteria will be
transmitted through person-to-person contact or contact with
inanimate objects that are contaminated.
CHAIR FRENCH commented that it sounds as though our mothers were
right again; you need to wash your hands.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI noted that people who work in prisons were
not on the list of individuals who are more likely to get MRSA.
He asked if he would add that group to the list.
DR. MCLAUGHLIN said a review article was published just last
year that suggested that prison employees might be at increased
risk for infection. He offered to provide a copy of the article.
CHAIR FRENCH asked him to send a copy to his office and he'd
make sure it was circulated.
At ease from 3:05:19 PM to 3:27:36 PM.
CHAIR FRENCH said that Mr. Bodick from the Department of Law is
up next. He's here to because issues such as overcrowding and
disease raise the specter of litigation. He's been with the
department for some time and he'll discuss the Cleary litigation
and its settlement.
JOHN BODICK, Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division,
Department of Law, said he represented DOC for about 20 years.
He's been asked to explain the Cleary agreement, where the case
is now and where it came from. He became involved in 1995 but
the case started in 1981 due to perceived unconstitutional
conditions in the Alaska prisons. In 1984 the state won the
trial on all but some minor issues. The judge found the Alaska
prison system to be safe, humane and not unconstitutionally
overcrowded. Despite that finding, the judge imposed population
caps thinking that it was likely there would be overcrowded at
some time in the future. Both sides appealed and rather that
pursuing the appellate process negotiations took place and
resulted in a final settlement agreement and order. He said part
of it came from the State's belief that it would give better
caps from the plaintiffs than from the judge. The belief at that
time was that it could be used to secure financing from the
Legislature.
3:29:20 PM
The State worked under that agreement for about 10 years and
achieved substantial compliance with the agreement. In 1997 he
took over the case fulltime and in 2001 Judge Hunt released
class counsel and ended court oversight. Since that time there
has been no court oversight and there's been no attorney for the
plaintiffs - just himself and the open case.
MR. BODICK said that in 1999 the Legislature enacted AS
9.19.200, which is the "Alaska Prison Litigation Reform Act." He
noted that copies were circulated to members. That Act prevents
the court from enforcing consent decrees, like Cleary, or from
imposing any prospective relief, such as an injunction ordering
the Department of Corrections to do something in prisoner
litigation. The court can still impose injunctions if certain
findings are made. The most important is a finding of a
violation of a state or federal right. That comes from state or
federal constitutions or statutes.
The court must also find that any relief must be drawn narrowly
to remedy a specific violation. And it must be the least
intrusive means to correct the specific violation. Class relief,
such as the Cleary class consent decree, is only available if
the violation of rights applies to the entire class. For
example, if there was a deficiency in the food service in
Fairbanks, a consent decree couldn't be issued that would apply
to Spring Creek. It would be limited to the specific Fairbanks
population and area.
3:31:30 PM
CHAIR FRENCH recognized that Representative Buch was present and
had been much earlier in the day.
SENATOR THERRIAULT commented that he is pleased to hear him say
that the State won most of the issues in the Cleary case because
many people mistakenly concluded that the State system was so
mismanaged that the Court had to take over operations of the
corrections facilities. He asked if any of the things he
mentioned would have been triggered if this law had been on the
books at that time.
MR. BODICK replied he wasn't involved in the case in the '80s so
he isn't sure what the conditions were, but the short answer is
that it wouldn't happen today. First there weren't any findings
of unconstitutionality and second there's a provision in the Act
that allows the State to enter into a consent decree without
these findings. That's limited to two years. For the consent
decree or prospective relief to continue after that time, the
court must make a finding of unconstitutionality as well as the
other findings in Section (a) of the Act. He said that it wisely
allowed the State to settle cases, but it limited the length of
time that the Court could control operations of DOC.
3:33:30 PM
MR. BODICK continued to explain that the statute was in place
and there were provisions that allowed for the State to move to
terminate the consent decree and the prospective relief. He said
he filed a motion to that effect in 2000. The prisoners claimed
to counsel that the statute was unconstitutional. The State's
claim that it was constitutional prevailed. Judge Anders ruled
that the Court could no longer enter prospective relief under
the consent decree, but that the final order didn't end. So the
court can only enforce the final order if findings are made of
unconstitutionality and the least obtrusive means. But, he said,
the court can always make those findings; a prisoner can always
sue for unconstitutional conditions irrespective of the Cleary
settlement agreement. "Really what that's done is taken the legs
out from under Cleary." It still exists but it can't be
enforced, he said.
CHAIR FRENCH said that's a key point. Page 7 of the Cleary
settlement talks about cell and dayroom size. Legislators today
saw examples of 3 prisoners to a cell and Cleary says that
future facilities may not provide for housing of inmates in
dormitories. He asked if that applies to the gymnasium that has
bunks in it or if he'd argue that AS 09.19.200 vitiates that.
MR. BODICK replied he would argue that to make that claim the
prisoners would have to show that the gym that's used as a
dormitory is unconstitutional or in violation of a state or
federal right or constitution.
CHAIR FRENCH said it's not whether it violates Cleary; it's
whether it violates the constitution.
MR. BODICK said that's correct; that claim could be made in
state or federal court without Cleary by filing a civil rights
action. Cleary is essentially an open case that prisoners
occasionally file lawsuits in to enforce the consent decree.
When suit is filed he responds under the PLRA [Prison Reform
Litigation Act] and the Court throws out the complaint, he said.
CHAIR FRENCH questioned how overcrowded it would have to get to
rise to a constitutional violation as opposed to a violation of
Cleary.
MR. BODICK explained that an analysis of overcrowding under the
constitution looks at the totality of the circumstances. Cell
size, dayroom size, how often prisoners are out of their cell,
recreational opportunities, food service, medical, clothing,
change of bedding, staffing, incidence of violence and assaults
would all be looked at to determine whether or not a particular
facility was constitutionally overcrowded.
CHAIR FRENCH asked if prisoners have brought claims of
unconstitutional overcrowding since the Cleary settlement.
MR. BODICK said no; there have been no claims asserted since
Cleary.
3:37:18 PM
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI observed that if the Cleary settlement
agreement were in effect today, the State would probably be in
violation of a number of parts of it; AS 09.19.200 basically
renders the Cleary settlement decision unenforceable.
MR. BODICK agreed. He said that over the last few years he's
dealt with the settlement agreement a lot and his opinion is
that many of the provisions are above the constitutional floor.
He advises DOC to use national standards for cell size, for
example, as opposed to Cleary.
3:38:13 PM
CHAIR FRENCH, noting that MRSA is a new development since
Cleary, asked what a prisoner's disease claim about MRSA might
add to the mix.
MR. BODICK explained that a prisoner can sue about MRSA in two
ways. First they would allege that they weren't provided enough
medical care under the constitution. To do that they'd have to
show the State is deliberately indifferent to their serious
medical needs. He's heard that there are plans in place to take
care of MRSA and "I doesn't think we're even close to that
standard," he said. The other way for a prisoner to sue would be
to claim negligence; they received negligent medical care. In
the few reported MRSA cases that he's seen, appropriate care has
been given immediately. In the cases he's analyzed it was the
prisoner who failed to keep their wound clean or tend to after
care.
3:39:40 PM
REPRESENTATIVE STOLTZE asked how many cases from the Office of
the Ombudsman end up in his shop each year.
MR. BODICK replied they don't end up in his shop but he is
consulted. The statute says the ombudsman can not provide the
information they get in their investigation to litigants so that
cuts off the lawsuit angle. Some years the ombudsman seems to be
on top of the department and then they seem to forget it for a
few years. In the last year or so there have been more requests
than usual, but it's not excessive.
3:40:52 PM
CHAIR FRENCH recognized that Representative Mike Chenault had
joined the hearing.
REPRESENTATIVE STOLTZE asked if the issue of officer safety
entered in to the Cleary litigation because that's a major
concern for him.
MR. BODICK replied not to his knowledge; Cleary was mostly from
the prisoner perspective.
CHAIR FRENCH told the committee that former Commissioner Antrim
wasn't able to attend because of a scheduling conflict. He
solicited closing comments.
3:42:26 PM
REPRESENTATIVE DOLL said she'd like more information on how
prisoner MRSA, HIV and other outbreaks are tracked and treated
and what happens when the person is released into the community.
3:43:54 PM
SAM EDWARDS, Deputy Commissioner, Department of Corrections,
explained that the medical file follows the prisoner regardless
of the length of their sentence and as they move from
institution to institution. Bed space demands impact how often a
prisoner is moved, but generally they stay close to where they
were arrested. Each prisoner is assessed in terms of programs
that are needed and available. Substance abuse is a primary
issue among inmates and currently there are three residential
substance abuse programs - one for women at Highland Mountain,
one for men at Wildwood in Kenai, and the third is in the
Arizona prison. Odds are that someone with a 10-year sentence
who has been adjudicated and has a substance abuse problem will
go to Arizona following their stay at the first facility. At the
end of his term, if his classification is such that he is
eligible to go into the community on furlough or into another
community treatment program, that would be his third stop.
"Ideally there would be three stops for that person," he said.
3:46:17 PM
REPRESENTATIVE DOLL said Dr. Luban, the corrections medical
officer, indicated that records aren't kept and that the
computers aren't set up to handle that data.
MR. EDWARDS clarified that Dr. Luban was probably talking about
the fact that there is no broad electronic tracking system so
it's not possible to look at how many prisoners in the
department had incidents of MRSA or any other disease. However,
individual medical files are kept up to date and they travel
with the person wherever they go.
REPRESENTATIVE DOLL surmised that work could be done in that
area.
MR. EDWARDS said we wouldn't argue with that. Electronic record
keeping and retrieval was a central issue at the recent crime
summit, he added.
CHAIR FRENCH said he's been asked what would come out of the
hearing today, and his intention is to analyze what was learned.
Most of what has been seen and learned will probably manifest
itself in the budget next year. There will be greater focus on
rehabilitation, the growth in the prison population, and the
number of COs that are available to manage the population. He
noted that some money is in the capital budget this year to do
an evidence-based study on which rehabilitation programs
actually work. It gets legislators' attention to hear that it
can cost $500,000 to fill one post in one correctional facility.
He's sorry Representative Holmes isn't here today because her
three strikes assault bill helped drive home to many the huge
cost of incarcerating individuals for long periods. That will
have a beneficial effect going forward because the more focus
there is on keeping bad guys in jail and getting people with
substance abuse problems out, the more the strains on the system
will be relieved , he said.
3:48:57 PM
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL observed that as he's watched the budget
over the years, one thing they haven't gotten a handle on is how
to deal with people who have mental health issues who do bad
things. Perhaps we could work on that component, he said.
CHAIR FRENCH said he's glad he brought that up because
legislators learned today that DOC is the number one health
services provider in the state.
SENATOR THERRIAULT remarked that the Budget and Audit Committee
will use the information coming out of this hearing when it
revisits the audit request.
REPRESENTATIVE RAMRAS said apart from the funds for the climbing
wall, which he will submit a third time, he wants to highlight
recidivism. It's the worst demon we face and we need to get to
young people before they become a burden on the adult
correctional system. Last week he spoke at the GED commencement
in Fairbanks and he doesn't want to overlook the value of
getting folks their GEDs while they're in prison.
REPRESENTATIVE DOLL added for the record that village safety
officers and crime coming in from the villages hasn't been
discussed. We need to connect all the dots on this kind of thing
so that we look at things holistically, she said.
CHAIR FRENCH adjourned the hearing at 3:53:49 PM.
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