Sims, 37, was admitted from Kings County on June 14, 2019, to serve six years for assault with force likely to produce great bodily injury, a second strike, and possession of paraphernalia/drugs/alcohol in jail/prison, a second strike. The warden of San Diego Countys state prison retired this month after holding the job for two years, during which he faced questions about his disciplinary and pandemic-related decisions and the prisons commitment to making court-ordered reforms. The department said the evidence couldnt prove the officer more likely than not assaulted his girlfriend the standard of proof required to discipline public employees in California. When the OIG asked Pollard how he thought the girlfriend got her injuries, Pollard blamed the girlfriend and guessed that she could have tripped and fallen, according to the report. The next day, police arrested the officer at Donovan. Medical personnel brought the woman to a hospital where she received six stitches for a laceration on her lip. In December, when cases started going up, she said she called out Pollard, along with other prison leaders, saying, Pollard, you shouldve had a handle on this. Covello found the evidence supported the allegation that the officer assaulted his girlfriend and he found that the officer lied to investigators about the assault, according to the report. A report from the Office of Inspector General published in June 2020 concluded that the corrections officer should nevertheless have been disciplined. Madden took over at the beginning of October when Pollard took his annual leave one month ahead of his retirement. As a result, according to the filing, many dont ask for accommodations or other help for their disabilities, people suffering from mental illness dont report suicidality or need for treatment and refrain from filing grievances against staff for fear of retaliation. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. That use of force was not ever reported by staff. Finally, in 2018, Knight claimed no contest and entered a plea to spend 28 years in prison. Bond, Jr. and Andrew T. Hofer as suspects in this case. Mary Estrada, who served on Donovans Inmate Family Council, said Pollard assured her and others in council meetings that the prison was prepared to handle COVID-19. There was an error and we couldn't process your subscription. Two other incarcerated people later reported that after the man was discovered in his cell, staff got physical with him, which may have contributed to his death according to the report. Whoops! Members of the California Correctional Supervisors Organization who worked with Pollard praised him, Paul Curry, a legislative advocate with the organization, said. San Diego, CA 92179 92179. The cellmate of one of those men said Donovan staff denied the man medicine he requested to soothe his throat after he had tested positive for COVID-19 and had been coughing a lot, including through the night. "Corrections officers are supposed to supervise inmates, not collaborate with them on crimes," said U.S. Attorney Randy Grossman. Madden took over at the beginning of October when Pollard took his annual leave one month ahead of his retirement. We use cookies for analytics, personalized content and ads. SAN DIEGO, CA -The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation reported that an attack on corrections officers left officers, correctional staff, and at least two inmates hurt on August 16 th. We scan thousands of news sites, so you don't have to, saving Phone: 619-325-0525. The next month, September 2019, the department held a Skelly hearing for the officer, where the state presents the allegations to the accused officer and the officers representative makes a defense. SAN DIEGO - Eleven people, including a former Corrections Officer at Richard J. Donovan ("RJD") Correctional Facility, are charged in federal court as members of a network that smuggled methamphetamine, heroin, marijuana and cellular telephones into the prison. that affects your company, organization or interest. But that story right there, I jumped on top of it because I didnt want it to spread. He was admitted on October 23, 2018, and is eligible for parole in October 2037. The brothers were housed in different prisons for many years, but are both are currently incarcerated at the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego. Public health experts who spoke to inewsource in April said prison staff should frequently monitor and test higher risk residents and criticized the prison, saying the men should not have been found unresponsive in their cells. Warden Hill has held numerous classifications, including correctional officer, sergeant, counselor I and lieutenant. The Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in Otay Mesa. In a scathing email to all California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation staff, Francisco Armenta, a 25-year veteran of the department, urged his colleagues to . Protects the Rights of Tipped Workers in SoCal, Asian Americans Mourns the Loss of William Consovoy, SwabTek Launches 2023 National Initiative: $100K Presumptive Field Tests Pledged for Safer Fentanyl/Narcotics Detection, JoAnna Baltzo of Personal Growth Center to be Featured on Close Up Radio. The next month, September 2019, the department held a Skelly hearing for the officer, where the state presents the allegations to the accused officer and the officers representative makes a defense. Despite the OIGs appeals to several department executives, they upheld the decision, noting that there were not third-party witnesses to the incident, it was a he said/she said situation, there were inconsistencies in the girlfriends statements, and, after criminal charges were filed, the girlfriend had sent an email message to the officer stating she could no longer recall exactly how she sustained the injuries that night.. The judge ordered a criminal protective order, routine in domestic abuse cases, against the officer and a jury trial was set for Aug. 5 2019. In response to those requests, officers repeatedly told the declarant and his cell mate to fuck or fight, i.e. or live RSS feed. With two years at the helm, Pollard led Donovan at the tail end of decades-long litigation against the state corrections department stemming in part from the alleged abuse of incarcerated people with disabilities at the facility, which is near the U.S.-Mexico border. In December, when cases started going up, she said she called out Pollard, along with other prison leaders, saying, Pollard, you should've had a handle on this. More by Sofa Mejas-Pascoe. When the OIG asked Pollard how he thought the girlfriend got her injuries, Pollard blamed the girlfriend and guessed that she could have tripped and fallen, according to the report. Sixty-six percent of the prison staff are vaccinated, slightly higher than the state prison staff average. That changed in Dec. 2020, when reported cases suddenly surged, and deaths followed suit. The city also offers an abundance of fun attractions year-round for all ages, including; arts and culture, sports activities, a multitude of parks, recreation centers, unique shops and restaurants. "There was an assault on an inmate on Friday, August 30 at Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility at 2:21 p.m," said a statement released to ABC News by the state corrections department on Sunday. Estradas husband, who is incarcerated at Donovan, got sick with COVID-19 during the winter outbreak. After [redacted] told me that information, I lived in fear that any day my cell door would be popped open by staff and incarcerated people would be let in to attack me, he wrote in his January declaration. After the hearing, Pollard walked back the decision to terminate the officer dropping the allegations against him that the previous warden had sustained weeks before. Corrections officials said officers have been using body-worn cameras at the prison since January, but the prison has yet to release any body-worn camera footage to inewsource after requesting those records in August. The OIG report said the charges were dropped after the girlfriend sent the officer an email saying she couldnt exactly remember how she had been injured. CALPIA also employees inmates in maintenance, warehouse, and also implemented the Health Care Facility Maintenance program. People who are in custody in the prison context are really isolated from the outside world, so the brutality in prison is sometimes not as obvious to the public as what we see in the streets and in the news., A use of force expert for the plaintiffs reviewed disciplinary records from Donovan and found the profound shortcomings of the system allow staff to assault and retaliate against people with disabilities with near-impunity, only facing discipline in the rare cases when video evidence or staff reports make it impossible for [the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation] to find that the misconduct did not occur.. I think theyre the ones who broke it, so whoever told them was on a good one. Thus, for now, Suge is in prison and wont be out anytime soon. In letters to the court since January 2021, four Donovan residents have claimed that retaliatory conduct from corrections staff has continued, especially toward residents involved in the Armstrong litigation, and often in the form of false rules violation reports, which could affect a persons time in prison. Members of the California Correctional Supervisors Organization who worked with Pollard praised him, Paul Curry, a legislative advocate with the organization, said. He has not responded to those requests for comment. The Richard J. Donovan state prison in Otay Mesa is shown on Dec. 21, 2018. Something went wrong. If you want to get out of your cell, if you want to get food, if you want to get medical care, you need them., Dina Simas, a spokeswoman for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, declined to comment, citing the pending litigation, but said we take the safety and security of inmates very seriously, and will be carefully reviewing the complaint.. 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