Massachusetts' Inmate Management Systems: Information Sharing Made Easy

• NCJ Number: 201517
• Journal: Corrections Today Volume: 65 Issue: 4 Dated: July 2003 Pages: 66-69,72
• Author(s): Paul DiPaolo
• Date Published: July 2003
• Length: 5 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Technical Assistance
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This article discusses the Inmate Management System (IMS), an automated system for tracking inmates initiated in Massachusetts.

Abstract

The Massachusetts Department of Corrections (DOC) faces a number of challenges including effectively managing a growing inmate population, the need to access detailed and accurate offender information, the geographic dispersion of DOC facilities and support divisions, and the cost-effective response to information queries from other agencies, the legislature, and residents of Massachusetts. In order to meet these challenges, the department embarked on a mission to develop and deploy an integrated IMS. IMS is designed to track inmates from the time they enter the system until they are released. The information collected in this database relates to inmate demographics, criminal history, disciplinary and incident reporting, program needs assessment and planning, escape notification, date computation, and bed management. The system also supports the department’s investigation needs across all DOC facilities and facilitates interagency sharing of investigative data. IMS was designed to empower correctional staff by providing them with timely access to accurate and detailed information. IMS not only organizes and automates the information contained in the inmate file but it actually automates many security processes fundamental to facility operations and good security. Initially, there were a number of problems with the application and strategies for IMS implementation. Chief among these was that IMS was just too large and complex to go live with each module on the same day. Another major problem was the staff’s failure to retain what they had learned during training. At all IMS sites, the time necessary to complete a major count has been reduced by between 20 percent and 40 percent. Using IMS, officers report incidents and disciplinary infractions in real time.