Massachusetts Department of Correction

Last updated
Massachusetts Department of Correction
Massachusettes DOC.jpg
AbbreviationMADOC
Agency overview
Formed1919
Employees4,800
Annual budget$750 Million
Jurisdictional structure
Operations jurisdictionMassachusetts, USA
Map of USA MA.svg
Map of Massachusetts Department of Correction's jurisdiction
Size7,840 square miles (20,300 km2)
Population6,587,536 (2011 est.) [1]
Legal jurisdictionCommonwealth of Massachusetts
General nature
Operational structure
Headquarters Milford, Massachusetts
Correction Officers3,200
Civilians1,200
Agency executives
  • Shawn Jenkins [2] , Commissioner
  • Christopher Nichols, Deputy Commissioner of Prison Division
  • Mitzi Peterson, Deputy Commissioner of Clinical Services and Reentry
  • Thomas Preston, Deputy Commissioner of Administration
  • Vacant, Chief of Staff
  • Nelson Alves, Deputy Chief of Staff
Parent agencyExecutive Office of Public Safety and Security
Specialized TeamsTactical Response Team (TRT)

Special Response Team (SRT)

Tactical Reaction Team (TRT)

Hostage Negotiations Team (HNT)

High Risk Transportation (HRT)

Central Transportation Unit (CTU)

K9 Team

Inner Perimeter Security (IPS)

Radio Communications Unit

Honor Guard Unit

Firearms Unit

Gang Intelligence Unit

Fugitive Apprehension Unit

Office of Investigative Services (OIS)

Communications Division
Facilities
State Prisons13
Vehicles Ford E-Series Van
K9 Teams Retriever German Shepherd
Website
http://www.mass.gov/doc

The Massachusetts Department of Correction is the government agency responsible for operating the prison system of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The Massachusetts Department of Correction is responsible for the custody of about 8,292 prisoners (as of January 2020) [3] throughout 13 correctional facilities [4] and is the 5th largest state agency in the state of Massachusetts, [5] employing over 4,800 people (about 3,200 of whom are sworn correctional officers [6] ). The Massachusetts Department of Correction also has a fugitive apprehension unit, a gang intelligence unit, a K9 Unit, a Special Reaction Team (SRT), and a Tactical Response Team (TRT). Both of these tactical units are highly trained and are paramilitary in nature. The agency is headquartered in Milford, Massachusetts and currently headed by Commissioner Carol Mici. [7]

Contents

Mission statement

The Massachusetts Department of Correction's mission is to promote public safety by incarcerating offenders while providing opportunities for participation in effective programming designed to reduce recidivism. [8]

Officer rank structure

Only the ranks of Captain and below wear uniforms, the ranks and insignia are as shown below. [9]

TitleInsignia
Commissioner
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Deputy Commissioner
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Assistant Deputy Commissioner
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Superintendent
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Deputy Superintendent
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Director
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Deputy Director
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Captain [9]
Captain insignia gold.svg
Lieutenant [9]
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Sergeant [9]
Baltimore Police Sergeant Insignia.svg
Correction Officer
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Correctional facilities

See List of Massachusetts state correctional facilities

Security levels

The following security levels are utilized by the Massachusetts Department of Correction. [10]

Prison overcrowding rates

The total operational occupancy for DOC facilities as of January 6, 2020 was 72%. [11] Operational capacity, according to the Association of State Correctional Administrators (ASCA), is the number of beds authorized for safe and efficient operation of the facility. It does not include beds reserved for discipline, investigations, infirmary or other temporary holds for special purposes. The total design occupancy for DOC facilities as of 1st quarter 2020 was 101%. [12] Design capacity is the number of inmates that planners or architects intended for the institution [as defined by the U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS)]. Rated capacity is the number of beds or inmates assigned by a rating official to institutions within the jurisdiction, essentially formally updated from the original design capacity. [13]

Prison COVID-19 testing and cases

Pursuant to the Supreme Judicial Court's April 3, 2020 Opinion and Order in the Committee for Public Counsel Services v. Chief Justice of the Trial Court, SJC-12926 matter, as amended on April 10, April 28 and June 23, 2020 (the “Order”), the Special Master posts weekly reports which are located on the SJC website here for COVID testing and cases for each of the correctional facilities administered by the Department of Correction and each of the county Sheriffs’ offices. The SJC Special master link above has the most up to date information reported by the correctional agencies and is posted for the public to view.

Prisoner demographics

MA DOC Jurisdiction Population by Race/Ethnicity on January 1, 2020. [14]

MA DOC Jurisdiction Population by Gender on January 1, 2020. [14]

Correction Officer Training Academy

The Department of Correction's training is conducted at the Department Headquarters located in Milford, MA. The academy consists of 10–12 weeks of paramilitary type training for new correction officer recruits. (The academy also trains Correctional Program Officers (CPO), Industrial Instructors, Recreation Officers, Correctional Cooks). Recruits are taught the policies and procedures of the department, self-defense, firearms use, proper handcuffing and restraint techniques, proper emergency vehicle operations, suicide prevention, security operations, and many other topics. Once a recruit completes the academy he or she is sworn in as a Massachusetts State Correction Officer and is assigned to one of the state's sixteen correctional facilities to be further trained by a Field Training Officer (FTO). The field training program is similar to the type of training police departments use to train new police officers.

Fallen officers

Since the establishment of the Massachusetts Department of Correction, 14 officers have died in the line of duty. The most recent line of duty death was in 1998 at MCI-Shirley. [15]

Inmate suicide

The suicide rates among people locked up in Massachusetts has been among the highest in the nation. [16] A 2020 report from the US Department of Justice concluded there is "reasonable cause to believe that MDOC has engaged in a pattern or practice of resistance to rights protected by the Eighth Amendment because it fails to provide constitutionally adequate supervision and mental health care to prisoners in mental health crisis and places them in mental health watch for prolonged periods of time under restrictive housing conditions that violate their constitutional rights." [17]

See also

Related Research Articles

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Massachusetts Correctional Institution – Shirley is a medium-security state prison in Shirley, Massachusetts. The facility also contains a minimum-security section which houses less dangerous prisoners. MCI-Shirley maintains 13 inmate housing units, a 28-bed full-service hospital unit, a 59-bed segregation unit, gym, recreation areas, school, industries, laundry, vocational area, and food services/programs. This facility is under the jurisdiction of the Massachusetts Department of Correction. It is located directly to the north of the Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center, a maximum-security facility in the town of Lancaster. On January 6, 2020 there was 992 Medium and 269 minimum inmates in general population beds.

Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center (SBCC) is a maximum security prison in Lancaster, Massachusetts. It is operated by the Massachusetts Department of Correction. It is close to the medium-security prison Massachusetts Correctional Institution – Shirley, which is directly to the north over the town border. Souza-Baranowski opened on September 30, 1998. As of January 6, 2020 SBCC housed 672 inmates in general population beds.

Massachusetts Correctional Institution at Norfolk, or MCI-Norfolk, is a medium security prison in Norfolk, Massachusetts under the jurisdiction of the Massachusetts Department of Correction. Though it is rated medium security, it also houses up to 98 maximum security inmates. Opened in the early 1930s, MCI-Norfolk is the largest state prison in Massachusetts. On January 6, 2020, there were 1,251 inmates in general population beds.

Massachusetts Correctional Institution – Framingham (MCI-Framingham) is the Massachusetts Department of Correction's institution for female offenders. It is located in Framingham, Massachusetts, a city located midway between Worcester and Boston. The prison was once known as "Framingham State Prison". However, MCI-Framingham is its official name and is favored. As of May 2022 there are approximately 190 inmates in general population beds.

The Massachusetts Correctional Institution—Cedar Junction, formerly known as MCI-Walpole, was a mens maximum security prison under the jurisdiction of the Massachusetts Department of Correction. It was opened in 1956 to replace Charlestown State Prison, the oldest prison in the nation at that time. MCI-Cedar Junction is one of two maximum security prisons for male offenders in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. As of January 6, 2020, there was 346 Maximum and 65 Medium inmates in general population beds. The MADOC announced on June 21, 2023 that they concluded housing operations at MCI-Cedar Junction.

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Bridgewater State Hospital, located in southeastern Massachusetts, is a state facility housing the criminally insane and those whose sanity is being evaluated for the criminal justice system. It was established in 1855 as an almshouse. It was then used as a workhouse for inmates with short sentences who worked the surrounding farmland. It was later rebuilt in the 1880s and again in 1974. As of January 6, 2020 there were 217 inmates in general population beds. The facility was the subject of the 1967 documentary Titicut Follies. Bridgewater State Hospital falls under the jurisdiction of the Massachusetts Department of Correction but its day to day operations is managed by Wellpath, a contracted vendor.

Old Colony Correctional Center is a Massachusetts Department of Correction men's prison in Bridgewater, Massachusetts. The medium security facility is located in a 30-acre (12 ha) plot of land in the Bridgewater Correctional Complex with the Bridgewater State Hospital and the Massachusetts Treatment Center. Old Colony Correctional Center Minimum Unit is under the authority of the correctional center. As of January 6, 2020 there were 553 medium and 106 minimum inmates in general population beds.

North Central Correctional Institution is a medium/minimum security prison located in Gardner, MA. Within the facility are eighteen buildings, with a perimeter consisting of two chain-linked fences topped with razor wire. The perimeter is manned by three towers and foot patrols of K9 teams. It is under the jurisdiction of the Massachusetts Department of Correction. NCCI is considered a low medium due to the interior design of the facility. It is a converted state hospital facility with many dormitory style units. The inmate population consists of adult male felons serving sentences ranging from 2.5 years to life. On January 6, 2020, there were 974 inmates in general population beds.

The Boston Pre-Release Center is a minimum security correctional facility located on Canterbury Street in Roslindale, Massachusetts. The current facility opened in 2003 and it is under the jurisdiction of the Massachusetts Department of Correction. As of January 6, 2020 there was 90 inmates in general population beds.

The Northeastern Correctional Center is a minimum security/pre-release state prison in Massachusetts that opened in 1932. NCC sits on 300 acres of farmland and provides many inmates with work opportunities prior to being released from prison. The facility is accredited by the American Correctional Association (ACA), managed by the Massachusetts Department of Correction, and overseen by the Massachusetts Department of Public Safety. On January 6, 2020, there were 188 inmates in general population beds.

The South Middlesex Correctional Center (SMCC) is a small, minimum security/pre-release state prison for women located in Framingham, Massachusetts. The prison opened in 1976, originally as a part of MCI-Framingham. Today, it is its own facility specifically for women. Most, if not all inmates work in the community during the day for an average wage of $7/day. Many work in fast food restaurants, as janitors, carpenters, or painters. On January 6, 2020, there was 63 inmates in general population beds.

The Massachusetts Treatment Center is a medium-security secured facility for men, operated by the Massachusetts Department of Correction. The facility is located within the Bridgewater Correctional Complex and houses both state prison inmates convicted of sex crimes and civilly committed persons deemed 'sexually dangerous' by a court of law. This civil commitment process is determined by Massachusetts General Law Chapter 123A. On January 6, 2020, there was 572 inmates in general population beds.

References

  1. "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for the U.S., Regions, States, and Puerto Rico: April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2008". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on July 9, 2009. Retrieved 2009-01-26.
  2. https://www.mass.gov/news/governor-maura-healey-appoints-shawn-jenkins-as-massachusetts-department-of-correction-commissioner
  3. "January 1 Snapshot Dashboard | Mass.gov". www.mass.gov. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  4. https://www.mass.gov/orgs/massachusetts-department-of-correction/locations?_page=1 [ bare URL ]
  5. "Statewide Payroll Home Open Payroll". cthrupayroll.mass.gov. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  6. "Statewide Payroll Home Open Payroll". cthrupayroll.mass.gov. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  7. "." Massachusetts Executive Office of Public Safety and Security. Retrieved on December 7, 2009.
  8. Massachusetts Department of Correction policies - DOC 100
  9. 1 2 3 4 Massachusetts Department of Correction policies - DOC 224 Uniforms
  10. Massachusetts Department of Correction Security Level page
  11. "Weekly DOC Count January 6th".PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  12. "Prison Capacity Report - Q1 2020".PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  13. D. Baker, Charles; A. Turco III, Thomas; Mici, Carol (May 2020). Quarterly Report on the Status of Prison Capacity, First Quarter 2020 (Report). Massachusetts Department of Correction. p. 10.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  14. 1 2 "MA DOC Prison Population Trends".
  15. The Officer Down Memorial Page
  16. "Dragging state prisons into the 21st century - the Boston Globe". The Boston Globe .
  17. Investigation of The Massachusetts Department of Correction (Report). United States Department of Justice. November 17, 2020. p. 26.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .