DONNY YOUNGBLOOD OFFICE Telephone (661) 391-7500 Sheriff-Coroner Public Administrator COUNTY OF KERN . I 1350 Norris Road Bakersfield, California 93308-2231 April 26, 2019 Steven Wicklander. Field Representative Facilities Standards and Operations Division Board of State and Community Corrections 2590 Venture Oaks Way, Suite 200, Sacramento, CA 95833 Please find attached three Corrective Action Plans for the Lerdo Justice Facility, Central Receiving Facility and Detentions Bureau. These documents describe the actions that will be or are being taken to correct the items of non-compliance with Title 15 and 24 you cited in your letter dated August 2018. Please contact me at 661-391-2630 if you have any questions or require any follow-up documentation. Sincerely, DONNY YOUNGBLOOD, Sheriff-Coroner DAM By: Sergeant Jeri Laird Detentions Bureau PLEASE ADDRESS ALL COMMUNICATIONS TO THE SHERIFF DONNY YOUNGBLOOD OFFICE Telephone (661) 391-7500 Sheriff-Coroner Public Administrator COUNTY OF KERN Bakersfield, California 93308-2231 April 26, 2019 Steven Wicklander, Field Representative Facilities Standards and Operations Division Board of State and Community Corrections 2590 Venture Oaks Way, Suite 200, Sacramento, CA 95833 Dear Steven Wicklander, On June 12, 2018, the biennial Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) inspection of the Lerdo Justice Facility was conducted. The following information was provided by Lieutenant Earl Barnes, Manager of the Lerdo Justice Facility. Areas of non?compliance and plan to rectify the issue: 0 It was noted the station logbooks and floor office logbooks revealed the direct visual observations made by deputies exceeded one hour between checks on a number of occasions. To address this issue, supervisors will continue to review logbooks to ensure safety checks are being completed within the correct timeframe. . It was noted that supervisor notifications of late safety checks were not documented consistently. To address this issue, the method for recording safety checks has been revised at the Bureau level and a training bulletin was issued to ensure that retraining of staff is effective. 0 It was noted that the low staffing levels present at the Lerdo Justice Facility was the primary contributing factor in the late safety checks. To address this issue, inmate housing has been temporarily reconfigured at the Lerdo Facilities to allow consolidation of exiting staff to improve staffing levels. The Kern County Sheriff?s Office will continue to work towards filling existing vacant detentions deputy positions at the facility to improve staffing levels. A detentions academy is currently in progress and we are actively seeking lateral hires. The Kern County Sheriff?s Office is confident that the measures we have taken described above will address noted deficiencies and bring us into compliance. Please contact us if further information is needed, or to arrange for a follow up inspection. Sincerely, DONNY YOUNGBLOOD, Sheriff-Coroner By: Anthony Gordon, Compliance Lieutenant Detentions Bureau PLEASE ADDRESS ALL COMMUNICATIONS TO THE SHERIFF DONNY YOUNGBLOOD OFFICE Telephone (661) 391-7500 Sheriff-Coroner Public Administrator COUNTY OF KERN 1350 Norris Road Bakersfield, California 93308-2231 April 26, 2019 Steven Wicklander, Field Representative Facilities Standards and Operations Division Board of State and Community Corrections 2590 Venture Oaks Way, Suite 200, Sacramento, CA 95833 Dear Steven Wicklander, On June 15, 2018, the biennial Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) inspection of the Central Receiving Facility (CRF) was conducted. The following information was provided by Lieutenant Cesar Ollague, Manager of the Central Receiving Facility. Areas of non-compliance and plan to rectify the issue: 0 It was noted the Soberlng Cell observation logs on A-Deck revealed the direct visual observations made by deputies went beyond the 30 minutes per policy on several occasions. An administrative sergeant was added to provide oversight to the daily operations of the facility. The administrative sergeant will conduct daily internal reviews, in addition to the already mandated review conducted by the sergeants assigned to each shift, at the discontinuation of each log. It was noted the security cameras located in the A-Deck Soberlng Cells above the main door were too low and presented a safety hazard for possible hanging. The security cameras have been raised to prevent them from being used for self-harm. . It was noted the wooden benches in three holding cells on A-Deck were removed to control and reduce the potential of bed bug infestation. Those benches have been replaced with stainless steel benches. We are currently in the process of replacing the remaining wooden benches throughout the facility. The bench replacement project will replace 66 wooden benches and will be completed within fiscal year 2018/2019. I It was noted that late safety deck checks had gone beyond 30 minutes without supervisor notification. A review of the CRF logbooks revealed logbook documentation for supervisor notification of late checks was not consistent. To correct this, sergeants are now required to notate in the log book that they have been notified, per policy, of the late check. The additional sergeant will help ensure compliance in this area with the additional daily reviews. The Kern County Sheriff?s Office is confident that the implemented measures described above will address noted deficiencies and bring us into compliance. Please contact us if further information is needed or to arrange for a follow up inspection. PLEASE ADDRESS ALL COMMUNICATIONS TO THE SHERIFF April 26, 2019 Page 2 Sincerely, DONNY YOUNGBLOOD, Sheriff-Coroner Anthony Gordon, Compliance Lieutenant Detentions Bureau oomvv YOUNGBLOOD (551)391-7500 She??mme, OFFICE Public Administrator COUNTY OF KERN 1350 Norrie Road Bakers?eld, California 93308-2231 April 17. 2019 Steven Wicklander. Field Representative Facilities Standards and Operations Division Board of State and Community Corrections 2590 Venture Oaks Way, Suite 200, Sacramento, CA 95833 Dear Steven Wicklander, in your 2016-2018 Biennial inspection report. you asked that if the Kern County Sheriff's Of?ce chose to address the noncompliant issues, we provide a response to you indicating how we intended to resolve the issues documented in your inspection of the Detentions Facilities. The intent of this letter is to provide the requested response regarding identi?ed agency wide deficiencies. You noted in your report that facility administrator(s) shall develop and publish a manual of policy and procedures for the facility. The policy and procedures manual shall address all applicable Title 15 and Title 24 regulations. and shall be comprehensively reviewed and updated at least every two years as required by Title 15. Section 1029. Policies and Procedures Manual. You determined the Detentions Bureau Policies and Procedures and the Temporary and Court Holding Station Policies (Shafter Court Holding, Delano Court Holding and Kern River Valley Sheriff's Substation) are noncompliant with Title 15. Section 1029, Policy and Procedures Manual, due to the manuals not being comprehensively reviewed and updated at least every two years. The revision of the Detentions Bureau manual has been an ongoing project for the last several years. We are in the process of eliminating facility speci?c manuals and moving towards one single manual which will cover the entire Detentions Bureau. The Compliance Section is currently in the process of reviewing policies which have not been updated. We have also changed the format of our policies to mirror Department policy formatting. Fields have been added to the policy to document the date of last review, in addition to the last update. Our review process has been streamlined to make it more ef?cient. As noted in your report, Title 15. Section 1027, Number of Personnel. requires a suf?cient number of personnel shall be employed in each local detention facility to conduct at least hourly safety checks of inmates through direct visual observation and to ensure the implementation and operation of the programs and activities required by these regulations. The Sheriff?s Of?ce has taken several steps to improve our compliance with safety checks, including training, recon?guration of populated housing units and consolidation of available staff. A Detentions Deputy Academy is currently in progress. which will help address the number of currently vacant allocated positions. We are also actively hiring lateral Detentions Deputies. We have revised the way security checks are documented in the log books and how we use the PIPE system. Previously, all checks were written horizontally at the bottom of the page. We now require staff to document the checks vertically on the side of the page. When staff documents a late check, they will PLEASE ADDRESS ALL COMMUNICATIONS TO THE SHERIFF April 17, 2019 Page 2 make a corresponding log entry directly next to the check time. This change makes late checks easier to spot and will help supervisors accurately review the logbooks. As noted in your report, Title 15. Section 1272, Mattresses, requires that any mattress issued to an inmate in any facility shall be enclosed in an easily cleaned, non?absorbent ticking, and conform to the size of the bunk as referenced in Title 24, Part 2, Section 1231.3.5, Beds. Additionally, you referenced the State Marshal on the Bureau of Home Furnishings. Section 1374, Flammability, which is the test standard for penal mattresses. Your report also states the TheraBand Professional Floor Exercise Mat we currently issue to inmates on suicide watch or in the safety cell, does not meet the current Title 15 requirements, Title 24 requirements and the Bureau of Home Furnishings, Section 1374, Flammability. Our interpretation is that since inmates on suicide watch or housed in the safety cell are visually checked twice every 30 minutes, we are meeting the ?re check requirement reducing any potential fire risk while providing the inmate the comfort of padding, albeit minimal, in an environment which is uncomfortable by design. Your report states the intended use of the safety cell is for the short term holding of inmates until housing arrangements are made. Further, you indicated during the occasions in which the safety cell must be utilized as a suicide watch overflow and an inmate is provided a mattress in a safety cell for an extended amount of time, we are non-compliant with Title 24, CCR 1231.25. and Title 15, Section 1055, Safety Cell. Our interpretation of the definition speci?ed in Title 24, CCR 12312.5 and Title 15, Section 1055, Use of Safety Cell, is that inmates who are displaying suicidal ideation or self-harm meet the requirement to be placed in a safety cell for this purpose. We believe that our practice of using the safety cell for suicide watch is not out of compliance with this standard. Placement of an inmate in the safety cell for suicide watch overflow is not used as a substitution for treatment; it is intended to reduce the risk of self-harm to the individual. Inmates are placed in a safety cell for suicide watch purposes to ensure a safe environment when there are no available suicide watch cells. It is our most highly observed direct observation cell by security staff, as well as medical/mental health personnel. Our safety cell policy is clear that a safety cell shall not be used for punishment or as a substitute for treatment. The policy has specific parameters that require medical and mental health assessments, and a review of retention in the cell by the Shift Supervisor to remove the individual as soon as possible. Additionally, our safety cell policy meets all requirements of safety cell use as outlined by Title 15, Section 1055, Safety Cell. With the addition of the Justice Facility, we have added suicide watch cells and have reduced our use of the safety cell for this purpose. Sincerely, DON NY YOUNGBLOOD, Sheriff-Coroner By: Tyson Davis, Ch fDeputy Detentions Bureau