Correctional Psychology RSS Feed

Mentally ill Colo. inmates sue to get out of solitary

Fri, 18 May 2012 18:06:30 UTC

The Associated Press via Fox News DENVER — Troy Anderson is a mentally ill inmate in isolation at the Colorado State Penitentiary, deemed for more than a decade too dangerous to be among other offenders. His lawyers argue, however, that prolonged solitary confinement is contributing to a vicious cycle, making his psychiatric conditions worse and resulting in misbehavior that warrants further punishment ...

Accused killer to have competency hearing

Tue, 8 May 2012 15:17:19 UTC

By Christine Steele Las Cruces Sun-News SILVER CITY, N.M. — Accused killer Allen Hurley will have a competency hearing after the state's independent forensic examiner's report contradicted the defense's report that Hurley is not competent to stand trial. The state requested a competency hearing on Monday, after the independent clinical psychologist it hired to evaluate Hurley disagreed ...

Mom in scissors slaying expected to plead insanity

Thu, 3 May 2012 17:53:01 UTC

Associated Press LAS VEGAS — The lawyer for a Las Vegas mother accused of killing her 6-year-old daughter with scissors says her client is expected to plead not guilty by reason of insanity. Deputy Clark County public defender Andrea Luem (LOOM) has said 27-year-old Danielle Yvonne Slaughter will enter the plea Thursday during a first appearance in state court. Slaughter was hospitalized after ...

Judge grants Okla. inmate stay of execution

Thu, 12 Apr 2012 13:43:18 UTC

By Katie Fretland The Associated Press OKLAHOMA CITY — A federal judge has granted a stay of execution for an Oklahoma inmate who was diagnosed with schizophrenia but later found sane by the jury that considered years later whether he was competent enough to be put to death. Garry Allen was set to die Thursday. He'll now have 15 days to file an appeal under the ruling issued by U.S. District ...

Lawyers question prison care of Iraq shooting suspect

Wed, 28 Mar 2012 13:00:34 UTC

By John Milburn The Associated Press FORT LEAVENWORTH, Kan. — Attorneys for an Army sergeant charged with killing five service members in Iraq in 2009 are concerned about the soldier's medical treatment at a prison in Washington state. The lawyers filed a request last month with the Army's I Corps headquarters that Russell receive proper care. The 47-year-old Russell is accused of carrying ...

Help control inmates through better understanding

Lorry Schoenly, PhD, RN, CCHP — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 21:19:23 UTC

Can an understanding of your inmate's traumatic past help with current management issues? You bet! According to Stephanie S. Covington, Ph.D., L.C.S.W, you can help to keep the situation under control by looking behind erratic behavior and violent outbursts to better understand the inmate's thought process. Dr. Covington is the author of several books on the subject of trauma-informed practices, including ...

Unhealthy inmate relationships: 5 danger signs

Lorry Schoenly, PhD, RN, CCHP — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 20:20:56 UTC

By Lorry Schoenly Prison and jail medical units are over-represented by female staff, creating a number of challenges to avoiding inappropriate inmate relationships. It is a common saying that the inmates go to medical to ‘enjoy the view’, and in one prison system in which I, we explicitly stated to all orientees that “You cannot have sex with an inmate.” As crass as that sounds ...

When a hunger strike strikes

Lorry Schoenly, PhD, RN, CCHP — Tue, 9 Nov 2010 00:44:14 UTC

On the surface, hunger strikes may seem fairly easy to manage, but this is hardly the case. Although uncommon in United States prisons and jails, hunger strikes that are not handled appropriately can lead to bad press and dangerous outcomes for both inmates and staff. A recent hunger strike initiated by a Cleveland inmate provides a good example. In that instance, the inmate decided to fast after being ...

Making a difference with 3 rules and Vince Lombardi

Rory Thelen — Tue, 6 Jul 2010 22:37:00 UTC

By Rory ThelenWhen people ask me what I do for a living, I give a pretty generic response. I tell them I work for the Wisconsin Department of Corrections and then tell them the capacity I am currently working in (as Security Director). Then they usually ask me, “What the heck for? Have you ever been in that spot? Have you ever really thought about it?” I believe we draw our motivation to ...

Thinking with a twisted mind - a contraband knowledge quiz

Joe Bouchard — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 22:48:22 UTC

Here's a series of questions designed to help open the mind to new inmate contraband schemes

Tactical Empathy: Getting inside the criminal mind

Gary T Klugiewicz — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 22:44:25 UTC

Related Article: Showtime! The impact of how you say what you say, and do what you do I have often heard officers - both street and correctional - make the comment that it is not necessarily important to know what the person they are dealing with is thinking or motivated by. Nothing could be further from the truth. Getting inside a criminal’s head is one of the most important tactical advantages ...

Significant Medical Behavior: Tactical Response to Medical Emergencies

Gary T. Klugiwicz — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 22:07:32 UTC

=In my last tactical tip, I discussed how to recognize the signs and symptoms of Significant Medical Behavior, a term used to describe a broad category of life-threatening medical conditions from Positional Asphyxia and Cocaine Psychosis to Excited Delirium. You can read it here: Significant Medical Behavior: Sign & symptoms of impending disaster In this tip, I am going to discuss how to respond ...

Significant Medical Behavior: Sign & Symptoms of Impending Disaster

Gary T. Klugiwicz — Tue, 7 Apr 2009 22:42:47 UTC

People die suddenly in custody everyday. We watch it on TV. We read it in the paper. We view it on the Internet. The bottom line is that they die. Over the years, these sudden custody deaths have been attributed to such things as positional asphyxia, cocaine psychosis, and excited delirium to name just a few. Lately these life threatening conditions have been bundled under the term of Significant Medical ...

The importance of attending to a prisoner's medical needs

Thu, 6 Sep 2007 16:29:32 UTC

Why is it so important for you to provide for a prisoner�s medical needs?

There are four main reasons why it's in your best interest to take care of a prisoner in you "care

Inmate hobbies in Ala. prison

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 18:45:07 UTC

This MSNBC video shows a few interesting makeshift hobbies found in an Alabama maximum security prison.