Dismas House to open Winooski program

The Burlington Free Press reports that Dismas Inc., a nationwide residential program for people transitioning out of prison, plans to open a new residential location in Winooski by the end of May. "As is the tradition in Dismas houses, college students will board with those transitioning out of corrections." Indeed, two to three students will live in the Winooski house" which will house a total of ten people. According to house director Carol Snow, " Dismas House believes former prisoners and students can learn from each other." Notably, "the path to living at the house starts with a rigorous screening process, including an interview and criminal record review. Many of those who live in Vermont's two Dismas houses in Burlington and Rutland, and those who will settle in Winooski, come to the program after recommendations from parole officers. Prisoners on the verge of parole may also apply to the program."

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Senate recommends big changes in prisons

The Burlington Free Press reports that "Senators signaled Tuesday that they were ready to make big changes to the state's prison and probation systems -- to curb costs and create better outcomes." Indeed, "in a bill that won preliminary and final approval on unanimous voice votes, the Senate recommended more treatment for alcohol and substance abuse among inmates, increased transitional housing to help more inmates return successfully to the community, changes in probation standards to stop the flow of people back to jail for drinking alcohol, and caps on the number of cases probation officers may handle."

If the legislation is approved by the House, the recommendations would be paid for by a restructuring of the state's correctional facilities, including the closure of the Dale women's facility in Waterbury, the state's most expensive prison. Notably, the female inmates would be transferred to a prison in St. Albans, and "the men housed in St. Albans would be dispersed to prisons in Springfield, Newport, a new work camp developed at the Windsor prison or sent out of state."

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Update on Friday, April 11, 2008 at 02:56PM by VCF Staff

Lawmakers' prison plans causing anxiety around Vermont
The Times Argus reports that "as lawmakers continue working on a plan to cut prison costs by restructuring several facilities in Waterbury, Windsor and St. Albans, local leaders are concerned that there has been a lack of communication" about these plans. For example, Windsor Town Manager Mike Farrell said "he has not heard from any state officials regarding the plan to transform the town's Southeast State Correctional facility into an all-male work camp for inmates." Farrell stressed that "the selectboard really needs to be kept in the loop about this." According to Rep. Donna Sweeney, D-Windsor, "Part of the breakdown in communication may be because the changes are being pushed by the Legislature and many details will still be in flux until it finally passes both chambers and is signed into law."

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Update on Thursday, May 1, 2008 at 10:17AM by VCF Staff

Lawmakers agree to restructure prisons
The Burlington Free Press reports that "legislative negotiators agreed Wednesday that Vermont's prison system will be shuffled, with all female inmates moving to St. Albans, a new work camp for men coming to Windsor and the Dale unit in Waterbury closing." Notably, "the restructuring is intended to close the most expensive prison -- Dale. It would also move nonviolent male offenders to a new, less-expensive work camp. The savings from the changes would be invested in increased substance abuse treatment and transitional housing -- intended to produce better outcomes for inmates." The final agreement for the restructuring remains tentative until "the House and Senate iron out [their] differences."

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Incapacitated people pose problems for prisons

The Burlington Free Press reports that "legislators are considering a bill that would declare that, by 2010, state prisons will no longer take publicly inebriated people." According to state officials, "jail is not the right place" for inebriated individuals because they have not committed a crime; their medical conditions pose a liability risk to the Corrections Department; they are taking up prison space; and they are consuming staff time and resources. In response, local officials have said they are "nervous" because "they depend on prisons to provide the safest, most secure place for people too intoxicated to take care of themselves." Notably, the legislation would also create a task force which would determine by January what to do with these inebriated individuals.

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Grads step up to law enforcement

The Burlington Free Press reports that nine women will graduate from the Step Up to Law Enforcement class, a nine-week course operated by the Essex-based nonprofit Vermont Works for Women. The course offers women an introduction to the world of law enforcement and s chance to shadow working police officers. According to Kristen Mullins, director of programs for Vermont Works for Women, "Law enforcement and corrections officials increasingly value what qualified women bring to their institutions: communication skills, a good grasp of conflict resolution and a knack for de-escalating disputes."

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Corrections to pay $25,000 to settle suit by Jewish inmate

The Times Argus reports that "the state Corrections Department has agreed to pay $25,000 to settle a lawsuit brought by a Jewish former inmate who said he was denied traditional food including matzoh at Passover and was blocked from observing the holidays of his faith." The former inmate contends that "he was blocked from receiving kosher food for Passover from a Florida-based group that provides Jewish food and religious items, usually at no charge, to Jews in prisons, the military and mental institutions in the U.S. and abroad. The settlement mandates that inmates be allowed to receive items from that group, the Adelph Institute of Surfside, Fla."

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State improves screening in cases of alleged child abuse

The Times Argus reports that according to Steve Dale, commissioner of the Department of Children and Families, the "Department's Family Services Division will soon employ new measures aimed at eliminating deficiencies uncovered" by a federal review of the child welfare system in Vermont.

For example, Vermont currently has 12 geographically scattered child-service offices which "don't always have the same standards for launching an investigation into child abuse." By fall, however, "all abuse allegations will be forwarded to a central office that will determine, using a more universal standard, whether the claims warrant further investigation." In addition, "pending legislation in Montpelier will improve caseworkers' ability to intervene in homes." According to Dale, "under the new system, the number of investigations launched by the state could rise by as much as 20 percent, though many of those will not be full-fledged probes into criminal conduct but simply a conversation with family members about the alleged conduct."

Notably, "Vermont has seen incidents of child abuse drop steadily in the last decade" and "in 2006, the Department investigated 2,516 reports of abuse, of which 773 were substantiated."

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Burlington hopes ordinance will curb graffiti

The Burlington Free Press reports that graffiti is cropping up more and more in Burlington. According to Captain Todd Shepard of the South Burlington Police Department graffiti is also appearing in "more visible places in the city." In turn, the Department has "proposed a new public nuisance ordinance that would give officers authority to impose immediate penalties for the act of vandalism, in addition to a number of other common complaints by city residents." Indeed, "an officer could issue a ticket with a scheduled fine of up to $500 or community service for an offense under the proposed ordinance, rather than waiting for a case to be handled in court." The proposed ordinance the policy also addresses "improper use of private dumpsters and public urination and defecation."

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Vermont is fourth safest state, says report

2TheAdvocate.com reports that Congressional Quarterly Press has released their 2008 rankings for the nation's safest states. According to those rankings, Vermont is the fourth safest state in the nation. In 2007, Vermont ranked second in the nation. "The rankings are based on crime rates for six categories: murder, rape, aggravated assault, burglary, robbery and motor vehicle theft." Notably, the "rankings always draw criticism from law enforcement professionals and academics who study trends in crime. They question its methodology and have called the report simplistic and irresponsible."

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2007 statistics suggest that number of crimes did not increase; "seriousness" of crimes may be up

The Times Argus reports that according to Max Schlueter, director of the Vermont Crime Information Center, it seems unlikely that Vermont saw a dramatic increase in crime during 2007 as it experienced in 2006, when crime increased by about 6 percent overall. It is also unlikely, however, that the state will "see a return to the pre-2005 [crime] levels."

Schlueter noted that he has heard from police that "the seriousness of some crimes – for instance how badly victims are hurt or the amount of drugs involved – is increasing." For example, "assaults on police officers rose dramatically" in 2007. Montpelier Police Chief Anthony Facos added that the a lot of people are "committing crime for marijuana."

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Vermont Supreme Court takes up case of prison food

Vermont Public Radio reports that the Vermont Supreme Court "will hear arguments over a prison food known as nutraloaf that's at the center of a legal quandary." Nutraloaf "is made of whole wheat bread, non-dairy cheese, raw carrots, spinach, seedless raisins, beans, vegetable oil, tomato paste, powdered milk and dehydrated potato flakes" and is given to "prisoners who act up." The Court "will hear arguments in a class action suit brought by prison inmates who say [nutraloaf is] punishment and that anyone subjected to it should get a formal disciplinary process first." In response, state officials have said that the food is "a tool that helps them deal with unruly inmates."

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Update on Monday, March 24, 2008 at 02:54PM by VCF Staff

Nutraloaf is punishment, not a meal, says suit before state Supreme Court
MSNBC reports that "prison officials see nutraloaf as a tool for behavior modification." Indeed according to Vermont Corrections Commissioner Rob Hofmann, it is "commonplace in other states" to use certain foods as a "mechanism that dissuades inmates from throwing feces, urine, trays and silverware." Seth Lipschutz, an attorney with Vermont's Prisoner's Rights office, says that while "the state has a legitimate interest in changing the behavior of inmates who misbehave," a "diet of nutraloaf is punishment, plain and simple." In 1988, a federal judge agreed, ruling "that the use of nutraloaf by the Michigan Department of Corrections was punishment." Consequently today, "Michigan inmates are only given nutraloaf after going through the disciplinary process that lands them in segregation."

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Brattleboro Police Department welcomes five new officers

The Brattleboro Reformer reports that five new officers have joined the Brattleboro Police Department. The additions are welcomed news as a recent staffing shortage had forced officers to work extra shifts and longer hours and forced specialists and detectives to do road patrol. According to acting chief Capt. Gene Wrinn, "It's a relief to have five new officers on the road." Wrinn added, "It's clearly a morale booster to have some new bodies on. It's going to help, especially as the spring is coming, for them to get out of the cars more [and] meet the public and early on."

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Senate supports prisons proposal which calls for closing of one facility

The Times Argus reports that "the Vermont Senate unanimously passed a major corrections restructuring bill Tuesday, calling for the closure of at least one state prison and putting more money toward treatment and rehabilitation." The bill, which is considered the "latest effort to curb the rising cost of housing Vermont's criminals," calls for the closing of Waterbury's Dale Correctional Facility in 2009 and for the modification of the Southeast Vermont Correctional Facility in Windsor into a therapeutic work camp. If passed, the bill would also "transform parts of a facility in St. Albans to house female prisoners." Notably, Vermont currently spends "$1.37 on corrections for every dollar it spend[s] to support higher education."

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Update on Friday, March 28, 2008 at 02:08PM by VCF Staff

Department of Corrections Commissioner Robert Hofmann supports reorganization plan
The Rutland Herald reports that "Department of Corrections Commissioner Robert Hofmann [has] urged members of two Vermont House committees to approve [a] major prison reorganization plan, which many hope will stem the growing cost of running the state prisons." If the plan is passed, "Waterbury's Dale Correctional Facility could be closed as early as January 2009."

including closing Dale, transforming the St. Albans facility into a women-only building and converting the Southeast State Correctional Facility in Windsor into a male work camp.

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Crime victims to be offered free vacations

The Rutland Herald reports that Springfield native Robert Janowski recently founded Summer Home Dreams Inc., "a nonprofit group that will provide free one-week vacation[s] to Vermont victims of violent crime and sexual abuse." Janowski noted that "the therapeutic effects of a vacation can be great for victims allowing them to relax and just take a break." Janowski added that "the program will not be a safe house program and only survivors of crimes who feel they are no longer in danger are eligible for the program." Currently, Janowski and the Vermont Victims/Survivors of Crime Council are making placements and recommendations and "looking for vacation homeowners in Windsor County to donate their homes for a week or longer, to offer victims a respite from their troubles."

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Central Vermont Crimestoppers supports law enforcement

The Times Argus reports that Central Vermont Crimestoppers is a nonprofit that supports law enforcement by offering an anonymous tip line that residents can call to report crimes or crime tips anonymously. The organization also awards residents up to $5,000 for crime tips, depending on the case. Recently, the organization "paid a person $1,000 for information that led to [an] arrest and subsequent conviction" of a "felon who was wanted in connection with multiple burglaries." According to Nancy Rafferty, executive director of Central Vermont Crimestoppers, "the organization receives no state or federal funding, and award money comes from fundraising."  Vermont State Police Lt. Paul White lauded Police Crimestoppers' work saying that the police would not be able to solve "many, many crimes, without information from the public."

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Windsor schools lose battle for $500K over property contaminated by DOC facility

The Rutland Herald reports that "the Vermont Supreme Court ruled Friday that the Windsor School District will not be able to recoup about $500,000 in legal expenses following a long legal battle with the state Department of Corrections (DOC)." Notably, "the Windsor School District has been engaged in lawsuits with the DOC over a piece of land the DOC had given the town [in 1976] that later turned out to be contaminated." Indeed, a wood treatment facility that was operated on the property by the DOC from 1954 and 1958 used "a combination of kerosene and a wood preservative called pentachlorophenol" which contaminated the site.

According to the Court, "nobody was aware of the contamination until the DOC contacted the district superintendent in 1995." Windsor subsequently "hired two consulting firms to investigate the property for contamination and in November 1995 the town contacted the DOC telling them of the findings and asked the DOC to assume the full cost of site clean-up." The site, which is now used for a football field and track, was cleaned up by contractors and subcontractors hired by the the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources.

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