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HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda Packet 06-28-2012$To LUCIE COUNTY PUBLIC SAFETY COORDINATING COUNCIL June 28, 2012 3t3O p.m. $T. LUCIE COUNTY ADMINISTRATION ANNEX BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS CONFERENCE ROOM 3 1. Call to Order — Chairman Tod Mowery Z. Roll Call 3. Approval of Minutes- May 31, 2012 Meeting 4. Sheriff's Office Update — Sheriff Mascara/Major Tighe 5. Update by Criminal Justice Coordinator- Mark Godwin e. Judicial Update- Chief Judge Levin 7. Old Business 8. New Business: State Probation Travel Update 9. Adjournment Members: Suzanne Caudell Janet Collins State Attorney Bruce Colton Commissioner Tod Mowery Public Defender Diamond Litty Justine Patterson Sheriff Ken Mascara Chief Judge Levin John Romano Major Pat Tighe Judge Philip Vacucci PUBLIC SAFETV COORDINATING COUNCIL Minutes of Meeting June 28, 2012 Convened: 3:33 p.m. Adjourned: 4:24 p.m. CALL TO ORDER Commissioner Mowery called the meeting to order at 3:33 p.m. in Conference Room # 3, 2300 Virginia Avenue, Fort Pierce, Florida. ROLL CALL Roll call was taken. Members Present: Members Excused: Others Present: Commissioner Tod Mowery Chief Judge Steve Levin,l9th Circuit Scott Harloff for Suzanne Caudell, CORE Program 5heriff Ken Mascara Major Pat Tighe, SLSO Mitch Hilburn for Janet Collins, Bail Association John Romano, New Horizons Justine Patterson, Florida Department of Corrections Bruce Colton, State Attorney Diamond Litty, Public Defender Judge Philip J. VaCUCCi, l9th Circuit Marh Godwin, SLC Criminal Justice Coordinator Ethel Rowland, Taxpayer Broderick Underwood, C)IS Analyst Lisa Savage, SLC Pretrial Program Trevor Morganti, 5LSO APPROVAL OF MINUTES: The minutes from May 28, 2012 were unanimously approved. Public Safety Coordinating Council June 28, 20112 Page 2 UPDATE by SLC Sherriff's Office- Sheriff Mascara & Major Tighee Major Tighe reported the inmate population count at 1,218 with 37 US Marshal Inmates included. The Major informed the group that 23% of the inmate population is mentally ill and 280 inmates are on psychotropic medication. Sheriff Mascara gave the statistics of the percentage of male and female felony and misdemeanor inmates. The male felony inmates are reported to be the lowest 63% compared to the traditional 85% of the jail's population. The current male misdemeanor population is 37% of the population. The female felony inmates were at 77% of the population, and the misdemeanor female population is 23 percent. UPDATE by Criminal Justice Coordinator- Mark Godwint Mr. Godwin and members discussed the Monthly Population Report. Broderick Underwood, CJIS Analyst provided data regarding the average daily population and bookings from 2009 through 2012. Commissioner Mowery felt that the picture was not clear after the data was reviewed and discussed. Ideas were exchanged on what data to track, and if it could be done. The consensus among members was that more data would paint a more complete picture of the current jail population. Mr. Godwin suggested a rough draft of data be presented to the members. Mr. Godwin passed around a jail report provided by Mr. Tom Genung, Court Administer. This report is circuit wide and given on a monthly basis. The report shows how many individuals are in custody awaiting trial over 365 days. The report was for St. Lucie County, and there are eighty-five individuals who have been in jail for over a year. The discussion continued regarding the bookings and arrests being down, but the population was still up. Mitch Hilburn, from St. Lucie Bail Association commented that this maybe due to the increase in the new bond schedule. Mr. Godwin continued his report and announced that the SLC Drug Lab has moved into the new location which is still on the second floor of the courthouse across from Juvenile Clerk's Office. JUDICIAL UPDATE Chief Judge Levin indicated the possibility of having a Veterans Court but nothing has been decided, it is just an idea at this point. There was a brief discussion on the topic. Sheriff Mascara announced the promotion of Sargent now Lieutenant, Troy Church, head of security at the courthouse. OLD BUSINESS- None NEW BUSINESS- Justine Patterson, from Florida Department of Corrections gave an update on the budget and how it has affected staff and the ability to run the program. As of July first officers will be back in the field, she indicated community safety was not impeded. Sheriff Public Safety Coordinating Council June 28, 2012 Page 3 Mascara offered help by means possibly donating a vehicle. Ms. Patterson mentioned she does have one pool car and was told she may receive more. Mr. Godwin thanked the Sheriff for his recent donation of a vehicle to the Pretrial Program. Commentfo Commissioner Mowery asked members if there were any objections to Not having a July Public Safety Coordinating Council meeting. There were no objections and therefore, NO July meeting will be held. Major Tighe announced that he would send out invitations to a Drug Summit in September. ADJOURNMENT: Commissioner Mowery adjourned the meeting at 4:24 p.m. Submitted by, Carlene Busse THE NEXT MEETING WILL BE HELD Auguft 30, 2012 What need's to be done so that inmates with mental • illness and%dr substance abuse Issues are safely and successfully reintegrated back Into the;. greater coin- mtr{nity7 WHAM IS THE EXTENT OF THE ISSUE? In a study thafwa§:released m 2006 titled Mental FIea1N1 Probfems�rlf Pnson and Jail Inmates, the Bureau of Justice Stabs !reported 56, percent of state inmates, 45 percent of federa).,lnmates anti 64 percent of jail ioumtes had a recent cnmental health diagnosis or _recent history of mental Reagan'ssteps were a. final action — not the beginning of demstitutionalization, The first. wave of deinstitutional- ization began in the 1950s with the advent of new medica- tions such as Thorazine. As the new medications stabilized mentally ill patients In ways "Of seen before, it was felt first by the medical community and then by states that were covering the cost that many no longer needed to be In a long-term facility; such as state mental hospitals, and could be treated at dome. At this time, Institutions were over - Populated; there were issuesof violence, neglect and mis- treatment; and the states bore tile cost :of maintaining and staffing the facilities, Additionally, these patients had'a poor .history of medication compliance After discharge. •� - o ..uaces and us percent of ted- ,eYal inmates meet file criteria for dual diagnosis moaning they had both mental health and substance abuse ➢.sues.- • • . • : • • What the study dirt not evaluate was the number of ,Inmates Who,met the diagnostic -:criteria for. substance. • ' ♦ • • ` .'dependency without a, mental health diagnosis. With many inmates being incarcerated for drug and alcohol offenses, this number would also be high, and services in many loca- • • `bons remain limited. Female`hnnates had significantly high- er rates of mental health issues than male inmates. At the. • ' time of the 2006 study,., more than half of all inmates had • eecent nlen(al health history or symptorns. Although coY-. rentnumbers are not avallable, based on subjective report- '• • • the number of urinates with mental illness has increased itsa result of the economic crisis that resulted in further cuts to community mental health services and access to pis chiatA ,medications an care DEINS,TITUTIONALIZATION i IN THE IJf. S. Thesecond wave of demstitutionalization occurred in ' History Is often looked at as a means to assign blame for the 1960s, in which the movement now :included the defn- the high number of mentally ill people being incarcerated, stitutlonallzation ofpeople with developmental disabilities. This.. measure was taken in 1963 behest as ,well as the high number of homeless people who are at. the of President John P. Kennedy through the Maternal. and Health mentailyllL,Thegrepter mental health community generally lays the blame on former President Ronald Reagan, Under :Child .and Mental Retardation Planning Amendments .and the Reagan's administration, the last piece of federal funding to Mental RetardationFacilitiesand Community Mental Health Centers Act. These the state mental health facilities was removed and the cost Of running these programs was transferred. acts relieved the states of much of the cost of providing mental lienith. care and care to the back to the states. Nationwide, this final set of cuts resulted In the clos- Ing developmentally disabled,, and established community mental': health.: It was believed that through of state hospitals and institutions: where many mentally Ill people had spent most. of their lives, outpatient treatment, costs would be reduced when compared to .the Painilfes4vld group homes were .not prepared for this, and as thousands of cost Of:long-term . hospitalization. Many patients were moved flora institutions to community health mentallyIll people were released, many had no place to go. Their homelbecame the streets, and mental hous- ing, such as group homes and residential treatment cea- acts of criminality — generally low-level offenses — became a means of. survival. Many mentally ill individuals received, ters However, a large numberof those who were moved out Of Institutions ended up homeless and on the. streets, and continue to receive, longer sentences for minor, crimes, not due to .the Studies in the late 1980s indicated that one-third to one-half of the homeless. Population bad disorders, needs of the community but based on the needs. of the indt- vfduaL Many in the justice system felt that Incarceration psychiatric many with substance abuse or dependency disorders as Was the safer: and wiser option for the mentally Ill. person rather than returning the. to the community, well.. .Although the intent of demstitutionalization was noble and there was more acceptance of the mentally ill by the ApriUMay 2012 Corrections Today — 53 h. LUSION ences. of release, no Individual should be discharged without an treat adequate supply of psychiatric medications, appointments set with atherapist/social Worker, appointments with com eds of inunity me-fid health treatment services, housing and sup-, arkers port Man 1 risdictions ar ,till `I h y 1 a now u z ng pro atlon/parole treatment officers specializing in mental health as an additional sup- .ed lmowl port, with good results. :ed. Many IAs the munber of individuals with mental Illnesses con - treatment tires to riseYirthe correctional system,, pat tnerships, link - le — as -:a ages.and dtalogue will become more and mom Important. y ill pop"- There is no cure to mental illness, and. there is no one cot- ip to their rect, approach. There is, 'however, the opportunity to ,erts, they Improve services to this very vulnerable population:: vide staff entally :ill Peter Coffey is the director of therapy services at St. Lakes Behaaiond Heath Center in Phoenix. - mitt' Is so Je9uately location i services losts has es would the com- hi transi - hould be prior to the time f St. Lucie County Criminal Justice System purple arun odor Red —zoos zau lnso — Average Daily Population 1350—.._- t]V,y-�! 0GESMA 1254 lzos 1220 •.• 1vs lln3 1192 uos 1vz 1oa��o 1oa6 loso------ Mn Feb Mar Apr May IIm Jul Aug Sep OR Nov Oer� Through 6/27/2012 Thrau�h 6/27/2012 Teamsters, Dept. of Corrections battle about probation visits By Jim Saunders, The News Service of Florida - June 6, 2012 THE CAPITAL, TALLAHASSEE —A state judge heard arguments Wednesday about whether the Florida Department of Corrections acted improperly this year when it severely restricted probation officers from going to probationers' homes to check on them. The department placed travel restrictions on probation officers in March as a cost-cutting move. But the Teamsters union, which represents officers, contends that the department needed to go through a formal rule -making process before approving the change --- and that the restrictions endanger public safety. "I think we are putting the community at risk," Miami probation officer Kimberly Schultz testified during a hearing before Administrative Law Judge Elizabeth McArthur. But department officials said the change has not compromised safety. If officers suspect wrongdoing, they can seek permission from supervisors to visit probationers' homes and also have other ways to conduct monitoring, such as drug tests, the officials said. "Nothing has been brought to my attention that we have jeopardized public safety," said Jenny Nimer, a department assistant secretary who helped author the changes. The case centers on past requirements that officers make periodic visits to the homes or workplaces of probationers, with the number of visits based on the offenders' backgrounds and potential risks. Schultz said, for example, that such visits were required at least once a month for "maximum" cases --- which she said can include people who have served long prison terms and have records of violent crimes. The department approved the restrictions because it faced a $79 million budget deficit this fiscal year, Nimer said. In February, it paid $277,000 in probation -related travel reimbursements, a total that dropped after the change to $99,000 in March and $80,000 in April. Nimer said the department intends to lift the restrictions when the 2012-13 fiscal year starts July 1. Some visits, such as to the homes of sex offenders, have not been restricted. McArthur listened to nearly five hours of arguments and testimony about the issue and will likely rule this summer. Offenders are required to go to probation offices once a month and provide information about such things as where they live and work. But Schultz said it is critical for officers to visit homes to verify the information, look for signs of possible criminal activity and make sure probationers are complying with requirements such as curfews. "When the offender just comes into the office and fills out a report, he can say whatever he wants," said Schultz, who has a current caseload of 43 people, with the majority either sex offenders or "maximum" cases. The challenge in the Division of Administrative Hearings, however, centers on more -arcane questions of rule -making instead of whether restricting visits is a good idea or jeopardizes safety. State law often requires agencies to go through a public process of adopting rules when changing the way policies are carried out. The department argues that documents outlining the travel restrictions are "internal management memoranda" that are not subject to rule -making. Also, it contends that such information is not subject to the state's public -records laws because it involves "surveillance techniques." "Rulemaking in this area is not feasible, practicable or advisable," the department said in court document. "Requiring the Department of Corrections to promulgate restricted surveillance techniques and procedures would violate the confidentiality required for effective surveillance and supervision of parolees and probationers." But Teamsters attorney Holly Van Horsten said Wednesday that the department's actions are a rule that significantly affects the jobs of probation officers. She also said the issue deals with officers making contacts with probationers --- not surveillance --- and that the department was trying to "fly under the radar" by describing it as a travel matter. Florida should reconsider lengthy prison sentences OUR VIEW June 13, 2012 12:05 AM Posted in: • N-J Editorials Tagged: • prison sentences It's not a secret that prisoners in the United States are serving longer sentences for their crimes. Beginning in the 1970s, politicians and criminal justice officials saw the solution to crime as one of catch and imprison. To a large degree, the officials were right when that practice was applied to violent, career criminals -- the type of criminals who compile a long list of crimes in a few years. In Florida, however, that philosophy has accelerated to include nonviolent offenders. State leatla s need to examine this trend to see if the cost of housing these nonviolent criminals exceeds the benefit in public safety. According to a Pew Center on the States study issued June 6, Florida led 35 states with a 166 percent increase -- from 1990 to 2009 -- in estimated average time that released prisoners had spent behind bars. In Pew's recent policy study, "Time Served: The High Cost, Low Return of Longer Prison Terms," Florida is fingered as one of the states with the biggest expansion of Prison sentences for offenders of all stripes. It came with a cost too. Pew believes the state paid $1.4 billion more in prison costs because sentences have been extended longer fora wider range of offenders, most of them considered nonviolent. Pew found that average time served in Florida increased more for nonviolent and drug offenders than for violent criminals or criminals who engaged in property -related crimes. "Violent and career criminals belong behind bars, and for a long time, but building more prisons to house lower -risk, nonviolent inmates for longer sentences simply is not the best way to reduce crime," said Adam Gelb, Pew project director, in a statement. Pew's charts in the study indicate that both sentence time and time served grew most in the 1 nonviolent offenders in the 1990s and grew by another 2 percent in the 200os990s. According to The Associated Press, the culprit was a 1995 law that required inmates to serve at least 85 percent of their sentences before they can be released. Time served rocketed by 168 percent for , according to Pew. Prison sentences themselves grew by less -- 51 percent for nonviolent offenders in the 1990s. Sentences for nonviolent offenders actually shrank 17 percent in the 2000s. Clearly, the problem is in forcing nonviolent offenders to serve at least 85 percent of their sentence. The Legislature knows this and tried to alter the law for a limited number of nonviolent inmates who serve at least half of their terms and go through rehabilitation programs. Gov. Rick Scott vetoed that legislation. According to AP, Scott said the measure would have been an Injustice to victims and violated the 85 percent requirement. r The governor should rethink his commitment to the 85 percent requirement when it comes to nonviolent offenders. Of course, it's legitimate to ask about public safety. According to AP, a companion Pew analysis based on 2004 data found some nonviolent prisoners could have been released up to two years earlier with little or no effect on public safety. And Pew found Florida could have reduced its prison population by 2,640 inmates and saved $54 million that year with shorter terms for nonviolent offenders. Over time, the savings for taxpayers could be in the billions of dollars if the Legislature and governor enact proper reforms regarding nonviolent offenders. Rehabilitating nonviolent offenders outside of costly prisons is a matter of saving dollars and cents -- and it's just the right thing to do in many cases. 2011 The Daytona Beach News -Journal. Suzanne Caudell, M.S. Sxeeutive Director (772) 286-7333 phone (772)223-0903 fax suzannec@coreprogram.org The C.O.R.L. Program Serving the 19th Judicial Circuit Comprehensive Offender Rehabilitation & Rducation 905 Johnson Avenue Stuart, FL 34994