Colorado Department of Corrections Offender Counts PDF

ADMINISTRATIVE REGULATION COLORADO DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS RELATED STANDARDS: ACA Standards: 2-CO-3A-01, 5ACI-1F-10, 5-ACI-3A-13 OPR: DOP REGULATION NUMBER PAGE NUMBER 300-04 1 OF 4 CHAPTER: Facility Security SUBJECT: Offender Counts EFFECTIVE DATE: August 1, 2021 SUPERSESSION: 07/15/19 REVIEW MON...

ADMINISTRATIVE REGULATION COLORADO DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS RELATED STANDARDS: ACA Standards: 2-CO-3A-01, 5ACI-1F-10, 5-ACI-3A-13 OPR: DOP REGULATION NUMBER PAGE NUMBER 300-04 1 OF 4 CHAPTER: Facility Security SUBJECT: Offender Counts EFFECTIVE DATE: August 1, 2021 SUPERSESSION: 07/15/19 REVIEW MONTH: AUGUST Dean Williams Executive Director I. POLICY It is the policy of the Colorado Department of Corrections (DOC) to confine, control, account for, and manage offenders through regularly scheduled and unscheduled counts. [2-CO-3A-01] II. PURPOSE The purpose of this administrative regulation (AR) is to: A. Ensure the development of formal and informal systems of offender counts for the daily accountability of all offenders assigned to the DOC. [2-CO-3A-01] B. Provide a plan for control and supervision of all offender movement and to ensure the maintenance of a daily report on offender population movement. Also, to provide a record of offender locations and movement on an ongoing basis. [5-ACI1F-10] C. Delineate procedures to detect and prevent offender escapes and to prevent unauthorized access by the general public. III. DEFINITIONS A. Contract Worker: A person who provides services to the DOC under contract, special assignment, or informal agreement (e.g. purchase order). A contract worker includes self-employed persons, sole proprietors, and persons employed by an employer in the private sector, another public entity, or by another agency of the state of Colorado. B. Employee: Someone who occupies a classified, full or part-time position in the State Personnel System (including management and non-classified positions) in which the Department has affect over pay, tenure, and status. C. Emergency Count: A physical count taken at an unscheduled time based on a need determined by the shift commander, which requires a standing count. D. Formal Count: A physical count conducted at a specific time, in an organized manner, of the status of all offenders assigned to the facility. [5-ACI-3A-13] E. Gate Pass: Offenders counted as inside the fence in their living unit but are physically off grounds or outside of the facility gate. F. Informal Count: A count conducted at irregular times while offenders are working, engaged in daily living activities, or attending programs. Employees/contract workers are required to maintain records of informal counts. [5-3A-4187] [5ACI-3A-13] CHAPTER SUBJECT Facility Security Offender Counts AR # Page 2 300-04 EFFECTIVE 08/01/21 G. Movement Log: A document recording offender movement within the facility, in and out of the facility, off-grounds and out-count status, date and movement location. H. Off-Grounds: Status of an offender who is assigned to a facility but is not physically present at the facility. [5-ACI-3A13] I. On-Grounds: Status of an offender who is within the confines of the facility or working as part of an outside work crew. J. Standing Count: A visual verification of a living, breathing offender who has both feet on the floor, standing in an upright position in his/her cell or work assignment, verifying the offender against his/her ID card. IV. PROCEDURES A. Formal Counts [5-ACI-3A-13] 1. Formal counts will be conducted by no less than two employees/contract workers, per area, with the exception of outside work crews. 2. Each facility will conduct at least one certified formal count during each shift. 3. Formal counts will not be separated by more than eight hours. 4. Each offender on-grounds at a DOC facility will be visually observed by an employee/contract worker and each offender off-grounds will be accounted for during formal counts. Employees/contract workers will be required to actually observe and see a living human body when counting the offender, to ensure it is not a facsimile or mannequin. Each offender’s name and DOC number will be on the cell door and employees/contract workers will ensure that the offender who is being counted is in that cell. 5. Living unit counts will be conducted accordingly. Each employee/contract worker will start at opposite ends of the tier/room, count that tier/room crossing over and verify their count with each other before proceeding to the next tier/room. This procedure will be repeated for each tier/room, thereafter. 6. Each count must be verified and cleared through a cross-check between DeCORuM (eOMIS) Open Shift Count at the time of the scheduled count, Living Unit Count worksheet, bed rosters, and Living Units Move log. 7. If there is any doubt as to the accuracy or if there is any discrepancy, an emergency count will be ordered by the shift commander. 8. Formal counts may be conducted more than three times each day at the discretion of the administrative head or designee. 9. All documents relating to a formal count will be kept electronically for at least six months. Living Unit Count Worksheets will be physically kept in the living units for at least six months. 10. Each formal count will have the signature of the master control center officer who is responsible for the completion of the total offender count assigned to the facility and certified by signature of the shift commander. 11. Each administrative head will implement a minimum of two standing counts, per 24-hour period. a. Offenders with qualifying disabilities/impairments, who are unable to stand for count as indicated on their accommodation resolution, and/or offenders with medical conditions, as evidenced by restrictions contained in CHAPTER SUBJECT Facility Security Offender Counts AR # Page 3 300-04 EFFECTIVE 08/01/21 DeCORuM (eOMIS) or Offender portal who are unable to stand for count, are allowed to be counted in a sitting position in their wheelchair or lying on their bunk with their ID cards verified. b. Each facility will develop a written procedure and practice to ensure effective communication of count for offenders with disabilities. B. Informal Counts 1. Informal counts may be conducted at the discretion of the administrative head or designee as often as deemed necessary. 2. Supervisors of offender work crews will conduct informal counts, in accordance with facility implementation/adjustments. 3. Informal counts will be conducted at irregular times for any reason. 4. Informal counts will be documented in accordance with facility implementation/adjustment. C. Emergency Counts 1. Each facility will conduct an emergency count if there is reason to believe an offender is missing from the designated perimeter of the facility or offender work program. This count may be necessary to determine who and how many offenders are unaccounted for. 2. After a major incident is under control, an emergency count must be taken to account for all offenders and to detect any life-threatening injuries. 3. Offenders will be returned to their respective housing units, if practical. 4. Anytime an emergency count is conducted, the facility appointing authority and area law enforcement will be notified. Once the emergency count is completed, a follow up notification will be made to inform the facility appointing authority and law enforcement of the count result. D. Movement Log 1. To facilitate tracking and count procedures, each facility will ensure an ongoing record of offender movement is kept utilizing a facility movement log, which will be signed by the shift commander, prior to shift change. 2. All offender movement information will be submitted for data entry, via DeCORuM (eOMIS), with adherence to entry timelines. V. RESPONSIBILITY A. It is the responsibility of each administrative head to ensure compliance with this AR and to develop implementation/adjustments in compliance with this AR. B. Employees/contract workers conducting counts will be responsible for ensuring the accuracy of the count, and for confirming that each counted offender is living and present in the appropriate cell or area. C. It will be the responsibility of the director of Prisons to review this policy annually and update as necessary. CHAPTER SUBJECT Facility Security Offender Counts VI. AUTHORITY A. C.R.S. 17-1-103. Duties of the executive director. VII. HISTORY July 15, 2019 August 15, 2016 June 1, 2011 December 15, 2009 August 15, 2009 August 15, 2008 February 25, 2008 August 1, 2007 August 1, 2006 August 1, 2005 June 15, 2005 June 15, 2004 ATTACHMENTS: A. AR Form 100-01A, Administrative Regulation Implementation/Adjustments AR # Page 4 300-04 EFFECTIVE 08/01/21 ADMINISTRATIVE REGULATION IMPLEMENTATION/ADJUSTMENTS AR Form 100-01A (04/15/08) CHAPTER SUBJECT Facility Security Offender Counts AR # EFFECTIVE 300-04 08/01/21 (FACILITY/WORK UNIT NAME) _________________________________________________________________________ WILL ACCEPT AND IMPLEMENT THE PROVISIONS OF THE ABOVE ADMINISTRATIVE REGULATION: [ ] AS WRITTEN [ ] NOT APPLICABLE [ ] WITH THE FOLLOWING PROCEDURES TO ACCOMPLISH THE INTENT OF THE AR (SIGNED) (DATE) _________________________ Administrative Head Attachment A Page 1 of 1