Audit recommends changes to prison assault reporting
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – An audit of Tennessee prisons is recommending the Correction Department change the way it classifies assaults.
If adopted, the department will likely see a spike in prison violence, at least on paper.
That’s because currently an assault on staff where no one is injured is classified as “staff-inmate provocation,” which is considered a nonviolent offense.
Richard Stalder is one of the auditors for the American Correctional Association. Speaking at a Wednesday meeting of the Senate Corrections Subcommittee, Stalder explained the recommended change this way: “If I swing a baseball bat at your head and just barely miss you, it should be sanctioned the same way whether I hit you or not.”
The audit also recommended moving correctional officers from a 28-day work schedule to a 14-day schedule.
