NCJ Number
185404
Journal
Corrections Today Volume: 62 Issue: 6 Dated: October 2000 Pages: 84-127
Date Published
October 2000
Length
5 pages
Annotation
This article describes the origins of direct-supervision jails, the ways in which they have been modified over time to meet changing conditions, and probable future developments.
Abstract
The first direct-supervision jail opened in 1981. It replaced the separation of inmates and staff that was characteristic of the first-generation and second-generation jails with a method that ensured continuing direct contact between inmates and staff by posting a correctional officer inside each housing unit. The principles of direct supervision include effective control, effective supervision, competent staff, safety of staff and inmates, manageable and cost-effective operations, effective communications, classification and orientation, justice and fairness, and ownership of operation. Design features included single cells for general-population inmates, an inmate-to-staff ratio of up to 50- to-1 in direct-supervision pods, builders’ hardware fixtures and furnishings instead of high-security materials, and others. Crowding was the main factor that led to changes during the 1980’s and 1990’s. Changes included the use of double-occupancy cell configuration and an increase in the ratio of inmates to staff. Direct-supervision dormitories such as those created in Hillsborough County (Fla.), 2 years ago will prove to be safer, more secure, and more practical than the previous configurations and represent the next logical development in the evolution of direct supervision. Photograph