Florida DOC official's positive spin on prison malfeasance met with skepticism

Veteran law officer Julie Jones took over Department of Corrections in December

TALLAHASSEE -- Florida Department of Corrections Secretary Julie Jones put a positive spin on negative reports about scandal, death and excessive use of force at her agency Monday as she told a Senate committee the agency faces a "perception problem" but the obstacles are "temporary."

Her assurances that her proposal to spend $15 million on infrastructure improvements and $16.5 million on hiring new staff will bring a "new day" for the department were greeted with skepticism by some members of the Senate Committee on Criminal Justice, however.

State Sen. Greg Evers, R-Crestview, chairman of the committee, urged Jones to immediately renegotiate contracts with private companies to provide medical services to inmates. Jones previously said the companies are providing inadequate medical care.

He warned the state must act more aggressively to deal with its troubled prisons or face federal takeover of the system -- as happened 40 years ago when Florida State Prison inmate Michael Costello filed a lawsuit alleging his constitutional rights were violated because of inadequate medical care. The federal courts assumed oversight of the state's prisons for more than two decades, ordering legislators to relieve crowding and improve health care.

"We can operate our prison system more efficiently than the federal government," said Evers after the meeting. "If we do not make changes this legislative session, I am very afraid of what might happen."

His comments came a day after former DOC Secretary Mike Crews directed sharp criticism at Gov. Rick Scott, saying he ignored budget requests and appeals to increase staff and improve working conditions, which he said was contributing to stress and excessive use of force.

Perception problem

Jones said the agency abides by rules "that you don't lay hands on inmates" but "there's a perception that we're not doing it."

"We've got a perception problem," she said.

Responding to criticism about an 18 percent rise in use of force in the past year, she said deeper analysis shows a corresponding increase in actions by inmates provoked the use of force.

That prompted state Sen. Rob Bradley, R-Fleming Island, to ask if she thought Crews "is wrong?"

Jones said she hadn't heard what Crews said. "I'm having a difficult time with that," she said. "Use of force is going down."

She also denied allegations the agency covered up inmate deaths as a result of abuse by corrections officers.

"This is absolutely not true," she said, adding she has signed a new agreement with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to conduct an investigation of every inmate death -- an exercise former FDLE Commissioner Gerald Bailey said would cost about $64 million.

The governor did not include any additional money for those investigations in his proposed 2015-16 budget, but Jones did not address that.

The committee also heard from the agency Inspector General Jeffery Beasley, who said because a new policy increases reporting requirements on use of force incidents, "you're seeing an uptick in the numbers."

The committee was skeptical.

State Sen. Jeff Clemens, D-Lake Worth, noted numbers provided by the agency are "self-reported" and not validated by any independent authority.

Bradley asked Jones to produce names of prison guards who were "held accountable" for participating in contraband smuggling in the past two years.

"We we all know it's beyond a perception problem," Clemens added.

Jones clarified "the perception that we don't have policies to keep us accountable" is wrong, adding statutes exist and "it's up to me to make sure they're followed."

Evers, who conducted surprise inspections at three of the most troubled prisons -- Suwannee, Jefferson and Santa Rosa -- in the past two weeks, said there was only one medical staffer to attend to 1,434 prisoners during one of his visits.

"I think you need to renegotiate their contract and start immediately on that," he told Jones.

Jones did not respond. Spokesman, McKinley Lewis said she "is currently auditing our contractor's performance at each institution to ensure the inmates in our custody receive the best possible health care and treatment."

Jones acknowledged the greatest issues facing the agency are the understaffing of prisons, and crumbling facilities have added to stressful working conditions.

This story was originally published February 3, 2015 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Florida DOC official's positive spin on prison malfeasance met with skepticism ."