OIG Releases New Report Reviewing First Two Years of HALT at DOCC...

INSPECTOR GENERAL LANG URGES MODERNIZATION OF DOCCS RECORDKEEPING
SYSTEMS TO ENHANCE ABILITY TO MONITOR COMPLIANCE WITH HALT ACT

OIG Releases New Report Reviewing First Two Years of HALT at DOCCS

New York State Inspector General Lucy Lang today released a report on the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision's (DOCCS) compliance with the Humane Alternatives to Long-Term Solitary Confinement (HALT) Act. Effective as of March 31, 2022, HALT placed restrictions on the use, duration, and circumstances of segregated confinement as a punishment in New York State correctional facilities, created alternative therapeutic and rehabilitative confinement options, and imposed periodic public reporting requirements on DOCCS.

Following HALT's enactment, the Offices of the Inspector General (OIG) received numerous complaints regarding DOCCS' implementation of the law, including that DOCCS was failing to issue required written justifications for the use of segregated confinement, was exceeding the mandated limits on segregated confinement, was improperly using restraints in Residential Rehabilitation Units (RRUs), was inconsistent in its program offerings, and was violating the prohibition on the use of segregated confinement for people with disabilities. OIG immediately commenced an investigation, the findings of which are reflected in today's report.

In this report, IG Lang notes that while there has been an upward trend towards compliance with each of the law's mandates, DOCCS' antiquated recordkeeping systems pose significant impediments to DOCCS' ability to accurately monitor and report on critical metrics such as the use and duration of segregated confinement, out-of-cell recreation time, the offering of programming, and the verification of misbehavior reports. In one such example, DOCCS was unable to produce records identifying all individuals held in segregated confinement since the enactment of HALT, as its data only distinguished the location of confinement such as in a Segregated Housing Unit (SHU) or RRU. This, despite the fact that segregated confinement as defined under HALT is determined by the number of hours spent confined in a cell, regardless of its location.

Adequate collection and maintenance of such information is critical to OIG's ability to fully exercise its oversight jurisdiction and ensure that DOCCS is operating in compliance with all relevant laws and regulations. Here, OIG was forced to obtain and review voluminous paper logs to assess DOCCS compliance, which was still hindered by inconsistent and at times incomplete records depending on the facility from which they came.

"DOCCS has shown progress in implementing HALT over the past two years, including improved compliance with time limits and the introduction of a uniform justification form for confinement," said Inspector General Lucy Lang. "However, outdated paper and electronic recordkeeping systems have hampered effective oversight both internally and by external agencies like ours, particularly regarding out-of-cell programming and recreation. I have seen these inadequacies firsthand during my visits to each of New York State's correctional facilities and I know we can do better."

Aside from issues relating to recordkeeping, OIG also identified a number of areas where DOCCS remains short of full compliance with the provisions of HALT, including insufficiencies in documentation supporting the use of segregated confinement, instances where mandated consultations with OMH staff were not conducted, and disparities in access to programs and recreation in RRUs compared to general population settings. Additionally, OIG identified clear ambiguities in the HALT Act in defining special populations exempt from segregated confinement. This lack of clarity is, and will remain, the source of significant complaints absent legislative clarification.

In light of these findings, and the critical role of effective oversight in protecting incarcerated individuals' wellbeing, Inspector General Lang recommends urgent reforms at DOCCS. These reforms include modernizing recordkeeping systems to improve transparency and reporting accuracy, aligning public reporting practices with HALT's requirements, and ensuring robust data management capabilities.

"Modernizing DOCCS' recordkeeping systems is essential to enhance transparency and improve our ability, as well as that of other oversight bodies, to monitor compliance with HALT," said Lang. "By embracing these reforms and modernizing movement and tracking systems, DOCCS can uphold humane treatment standards and move towards more rehabilitative practices, ultimately aligning with HALT's goal of reducing the use of prolonged segregated confinement."

Ivan Calaff Sr., a Reintegration Specialist at the Center for Justice at Columbia University and someone who directly experienced the impact of solitary confinement, shared his perspective on the report's findings.

"The HALT Act is a crucial step forward in making the conditions inside of DOCCS facilities safer for all. As someone who has seen the impacts of both incarceration and solitary confinement, it's outrageous that DOCCS is utilizing such an antiquated system of record keeping," said Calaff. "DOCCS is tasked with a difficult job, but choosing to not invest in technology makes that job even harder and undermines the public's confidence. Under the leadership of Commissioner Martuscello we have seen some improvements, and I'm thankful to Inspector General Lucy Lang for her dedication to improving conditions within DOCCS for incarcerated people and officers alike. I hope that DOCCS takes these recommendations seriously."

"CANY strongly supports New York State Inspector General Lang's call for modernized data collection within the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision to allow for more rigorous oversight of the implementation of the HALT Solitary Confinement Act," said Jennifer Scaife, Executive Director of the Correctional Association of New York (CANY). "Without detailed electronic documentation, it is difficult to ensure that the state is achieving the law's intended purpose of reducing the harms of solitary confinement. We are grateful to Inspector General Lucy Lang for her investigation, report, and commitment to shining a light on these critical issues."

"PLS commends the Inspector General's Office for identifying several inadequacies in DOCCS' implementation of the HALT Act and making recommendations to stem the overuse of solitary confinement of New York's incarcerated population. PLS also thanks IG Lang for her continued efforts to ensure transparency and guarantee fairness and justice in our corrections system," said Karen Murtagh, Executive Director of Prisoners' Legal Services of New York.

The Inspector General thanked members of her team for their work on this investigation and today's report, including George Frany, Attorney-in-Charge of DOCCS Matters, Carmen Frangella, Deputy Chief of Investigations for the Upstate Region, and Senior Investigative Counsel & Director of Report Writing Jonathan Masters. The Inspector General also expressed her appreciation to the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision for their partnership in investigating this matter and their shared commitment to addressing the issues detailed within the report.

DOCCS' response to the review is included in the report.

Read OIG's complete report and follow the office's work @NewYorkStateIG.

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