October 25, 2007
Judge releases fifteen inmates who are
awaiting trial
Federal cap squeezing the system
WORCESTER— A judge released another 15
pretrial detainees from the Worcester County Jail and House of
Correction in West Boylston yesterday to enable jail officials to
comply with a federal cap on the number of inmates.
The 15 inmates, who were being held on bail
while awaiting trial, were ordered released on personal recognizance
by Judge John S. McCann during a Worcester Superior Court hearing
attended by representatives of the offices of Sheriff Guy W. Glodis
and District Attorney Joseph D. Early Jr. and the court’s Probation
Department.
Brian Knuuttila, general counsel for the jail,
told Judge McCann the jail’s population was at 1,463 yesterday, 12
over the cap of 1,451 inmates ordered in July by U.S. District Court
Judge Rya W. Zobel under a consent decree first imposed in 1989. The
cap will be reduced to 1,351 inmates as of Nov. 1 and to 1,251 Dec.
1.
Superior Court judges have been releasing
inmates not considered a risk to public safety to ensure the jail’s
compliance with Judge Zobel’s order.
October 12, 2007
Worcester Judge John McCann voices frustration with House of
Correction issues.
conte2006
In the past few days Worcester County has
been abuzz with the House of Correction overcrowding issue.
Worcester Superior Judge John McCann, Sheriff Guy Glodis and
Worcester DA Joseph Early have been at odds over the current
number of inmates in the facility.
The
issues at the House of Correction
has surfaced again
since August 2007
federal court ruling ordering the reduction of the inmate
population.
Sheriff Guy W. Glodis
since his 2004 election has made several attempts to alleviate
this issue. District Attorney Joseph Early has also been
unsuccessful within the prosecutorial avenues to stop what has been
viewed in many cases as punitive incarcerations for minor
infractions based on monetary factors and or selective law
enforcement tactics.
Nothing
more exemplifies the reality of what actually happens in
Worcester County than the arrest of
Joshua D. Ryder, who had been released from the House of
Corrections last month due to overcrowding. Mr. Ryder on Tuesday
night was observed by Spencer police Officer Norman L. Hodgerney
Jr and Detective Michael Shea on Main Street allegedly shouting
obscenities. Mr. Ryder was arrested for disorderly behavior for
failing to obey the Officers order to go home, the Officers
followed him to a party and
than hr held without bail. This type of arrest is non productive for
society, costly for tax payer and furthers the overcrowding at
the House of Corrections
The
House of Correction contains pre trial detainees who failed to
make bail, many whom only have court appointed representation.
Anyone serving time in the House of Correction has received a
sentence of two and half years or less and convicted of what is
known in legal terms as a misdemeanor.
Telegram coverage which
implies the public into thinking “dangerous” criminal are being
released onto our streets is disingenuous. The majority of those
who are currently serving time in the House of Corrections have
failed to pay court fines, probation violations, alcohol related
issues, petty larceny, or serving restraining order violations.
The truly dangerous criminal convicted of a violent felony is
housed in our State Correctional facilities.
Sheriff
Guy Glodis nobly has been seeking to gain funding which is not
an unreasonable request based on the current condition of the
House of Correction facility. Sheriff Glodis has been mplementing
some programs within the system to address the
issue of overcrowding. Yet it appears under his watch the situation
has become unmanageable. Though his motives
may have been to force the hand of Governor Patrick to move
swiftly with funding, the only action Governor Patrick has
offered is a
$500,000 master-plan study of statewide prison needs
many feel is not necessary. The reality is a new County facility
even fully funded today would still at minimum take three years
to fully construct.
Worcester District Attorney Joseph Early needs to work with his
prosecutors not to move needles prosecutions forward, as well as
stop the practice of arresting those not revered in certain
legal circles. Police Departments need to learn tactics to deal
with certain aspects within society that do not meet the
criteria of serous illegal infractions. DA Early who ran a
campaign of changing Worcester County for the better of all
families needs to design and implement community programs to
encompass minor questionable infractions not necessary
applicable to judicial remedies .
The only people who are suffering for the lack of creativity and
actions by Worcester District Attorney Joseph Early and Sheriff
Guy Glodis are the tax payers. As both replaced seasoned
elected official many felt had lost a grip on what needed to be
done in this ever changing modern climate, all we have seen in
Worcester County is more of the past and less of futuristic
solutions.
October 2, 2007
Sheriff releases inmates
Decree calls
for relief of crowding
By Shaun Sutner
TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
WEST BOYLSTON—
Sheriff Guy W. Glodis has started releasing prisoners and
inmates awaiting trial in order to comply with a new federal
court order to reduce overcrowding at the Worcester County Jail
and House of Correction.
Jail officials
said that with the number of inmates at its highest level ever,
1,523 as of yesterday, the jail will keep releasing and
transferring to other jails 100 inmates a month until the
population is reduced to 1,251 by Dec. 1. The releases are to
comply with an order issued in August by U.S. District Court
Judge Rya S. Zobel to reduce the jail population.
Most of the 126
inmates let go last week were pretrial detainees, jail officials
said. Others were nonviolent offenders such as those convicted
of drug possession, theft and passing bad checks. No one who
committed a violent crime was released, they said.
Nearly half
were released with a promise to appear in court. Nine were
fitted with electronic monitoring devices; such devices are
often used with people convicted of low-level drug possession
charges, although they can also be used with more serious
offenses, including assault and rape.
The majority of
the released convicts had served at least 70 percent of their
sentences, though 11 had served only half or less of their
terms.
“The sheriff is
opposed to the release of people, and that is why he’s warning
that immediate prison expansion is needed to protect people in
Worcester County,” said Jeffrey R. Turco, deputy superintendent
of the jail.
Sheriff Glodis,
who has been campaigning without success for a bigger jail, had
sued to end a federal court consent decree, first issued in
1989, arguing that it was impossible to meet the federally set
limit of 800 inmates. The jail complex was built in 1973 to hold
490. Three hundred beds were added in 1991.
Now, with
inmates housed in makeshift cells in the infirmary and gymnasium
and double-bunking in cells built for one, “it only stands to
reason that a federal court would step in,” Mr. Turco said.
While jail
officials say they intend to release more prisoners, Worcester
District Attorney Joseph D. Early Jr. said he is trying to block
the federal order.
Mr. Early said
he is seeking standing in the case by becoming a party to the
sheriff’s original lawsuit and by invoking the 1996 federal
Prison Reform Act, which he argued gives him the authority to
challenge the judge’s decision.
“We are seeking
judicial intervention to ensure no more prisoners are released,”
Mr. Early said. “We fought this, but we never had the
opportunity to challenge it in court.”
Meanwhile, Mr.
Early has been involved with decisions about who to release.
Last week, the
district attorney took part in meetings with Worcester Superior
Court Judge Francis R. Fecteau, who, under the terms of the
decree, reviewed names of inmates submitted by the sheriff’s
office to determine whether they posed a threat to public
safety. Probation officials also participated in the meetings.
“We’ve been
opposed to anyone being let out, but we’ve attended meetings to
make sure any violent people aren’t released,” Mr. Early said.
Prisoner
advocates welcomed the sheriff’s move, saying that it vindicated
their longstanding call for sentencing that does not involve
jail time and that it would create more humane living conditions
for inmates at a jail that is considered one of the most crowded
in the state.
The unusual
coalition is pressing lawmakers and the administration of Gov.
Deval L. Patrick, which has put a moratorium on jail expansion
until a $500,000 study of corrections operations in the state is
complete, to move more quickly on new jail space.
“The jail is
finally coming around to our position. Unfortunately, it took a
federal court decree to do it,” said Russell S. Chernin, a
Worcester lawyer and board member of the local chapter of the
American Civil Liberties Union. “Jail officials have said over
and over again that they are sitting on a tinderbox.
“The real issue
is if you want to put more people in jail, you’re going to have
to give them more space,” he continued. “The Legislature hasn’t
done that, and unless we come around to alternative sentencing,
I guess that’s the way it’s going to be.”
Central
Massachusetts legislators said they plan to testify for the
jail’s need for more space at upcoming Statehouse hearings on
bond authorizations for building projects.
State Sen.
Edward M. Augustus Jr., D-Worcester, noted, however, that while
only the administration has the power to authorize spending on
building projects financed by borrowing money, he is confident
that lawmakers will include in a capital bond bill money for
expanding the Worcester County jail complex.
The sheriff,
who originally promoted a $100 million, 500-bed expansion after
he was elected in 2004, has scaled down his proposal to $50
million, which would finance the construction of a new jail unit
with 250 more beds.
“I’ve always
been positive about the idea that we would include funds for a
new jail in our bonding, but the administration wants to do a
$500,000 study,” Mr. Augustus said. “Quite frankly, I don’t
think we can wait for that. Some of these federal orders are a
way to get off the dime and do what we ought to do.”
Contact Shaun
Sutner by e-mail at ssutner@telegram.com.
May 6, 2006
Jail inmate dies after restraint
DA launches investigation
By Shaun Sutner TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
ssutner@telegram.com
WEST BOYLSTON— A 35-year-old inmate at the
Worcester County House of Correction died of cardiac arrest
after being restrained by correction officers, according to jail
officials.
The death is being investigated by Worcester District Attorney
John J. Conte’s office, according to a spokesman for the state
medical examiner’s office.
Johnny Walker, of 2 Holland Road, Worcester, who was serving a
15-month sentence for assault and battery, died Tuesday at UMass
Memorial Medical Center — University Campus in Worcester,
according to Deputy Superintendent Jeffrey Turco.
Mr. Walker was hospitalized overnight Monday after complaining
that he had had a seizure. He was released the next day.
On Tuesday, Mr. Walker was acting “bizarrely” in his cell and
was banging his head against the wall, Mr. Turco said.
Correction officers shackled his arms and legs to a bed and
placed a helmet over his head, after a jail nurse said he had no
medical condition that would prevent him from being restrained,
Mr. Turco said.
A nurse then checked the restraints to make sure they were
medically safe, he said.
Mr. Walker then apparently went into cardiac arrest. Officers
tried to resuscitate him using an electronic defibrillator, but
were unsuccessful, Mr. Turco said.
Mr. Turco said Mr. Walker was taken back to the hospital, where
he was pronounced dead at 10:20 p.m.
The chief medical examiner’s office determined that Mr. Walker
died of cardiac arrest and coronary disease, Mr. Turco said.
John Cronin, a spokesman for the medical examiner, said he could
not confirm that finding because the district attorney’s office
is involved.
February 27, 2006
SJC: Judges Cannot Order Transfer Of Pretrial Detainees
Court Says Commissioner Has Discretion To Accept Transfers
associated press
BOSTON -- The state's highest court on Monday rejected the
transfer of Worcester County jail inmates to state prisons,
ruling that the state Department of Correction -- not a Superior
Court judge -- has the authority to approve such transfers.
The Supreme
Judicial Court found that Worcester Superior Court Judge John
McCann did not have the authority to approve the transfer of 51
inmates from the county jail to state prisons.
The transfers
were sought by Worcester District Attorney John Conte and
Sheriff Guy Glodis last summer because of overcrowding in the
jail in West Boylston, which was designed to hold just over 800
detainees but was holding as many as 1,400.
The state
Department of Correction appealed the decision, saying it opened
the door for sheriffs to use state prisons to relieve their own
overcrowding problems.
In its
ruling, the SJC said that the DOC commissioner has the
discretion to either accept or reject detainee transfers. The
court said that if Superior Court judges sitting in every county
were allowed to decide how many pretrial detainees would be
transferred from county jails to state prisons, it could "wreak
havoc" on the management of the correctional system.
The court
found that the commissioner "is in the best position to know
whether and which state facilities have bed space, whether those
facilities include an appropriate level of security, and whether
such facilities are geographically suitable to accept any
particular detainee."
February 1, 2006
Inmates at jail change cells
Categories are separated
By Milton
Valencia TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
WEST BOYLSTON—
Inmates at the Worcester County Jail and House of Correction have
been placed in lockdown while administrators work to better
categorize and separate detainees.
With the jail seeking national accreditation, administrators are now
trying to comply with a state code requiring sentenced inmates to be
jailed separately from those awaiting trial.
For years administrators have housed both categories of inmates
together, saying that the jail’s limited space and surging
population leaves them no choice but to house the groups together,
despite the state code. The failure to meet the requirement was
cited by the district attorney last year, when an inmate sentenced
on a drunken-driving conviction was beaten to death by a cellmate
who was awaiting trail.
Jeffrey A. Turco, deputy superintendent of the jail, said at the
time that the state code was seen as a luxury the jail couldn’t
follow. But now, with Sheriff Guy W. Glodis intent on having the
jail receive national accreditation, administrators are
reconfiguring the population, to keep sentenced inmates in different
buildings from pretrial detainees.
“The first step of (national accreditation) is complying with the
state code the best we can,” Mr. Turco said.
He said inmates were placed in lockdown at 7 a.m. Monday, and were
to remain in lockdown until late last night or this morning. Mr.
Turco would not say when exactly, citing security concerns.
He said the lockdown enables correction officers to transfer inmates
throughout the facility more easily. On Monday, 320 inmates were
transferred to different cells, and some 150 were supposed to be
transferred yesterday.
Mr. Turco said part of the process involves re-designating modular
buildings. For instance, the K building will house pretrial inmates,
and the L building will house sentenced inmates. Previously, those
buildings housed both categories.
Mr. Turco said the jail will maintain the separation. If an inmate
count in any category exceeds a building’s capacity, inmates will be
housed in the gymnasium or moved to another jail, instead of being
placed with inmates in a different category, he said.
As of yesterday the jail had 481 pretrial detainees, and 898 inmates
who have been convicted and sentenced. The jail’s capacity is just
over 800 inmates.
Mr. Turco said there are two exceptions to the new policy. Inmates
on mental health watch will be housed together, so the jail’s
private mental healthcare group can work in the same area. And,
inmates in the segregation unit will still be housed in the same
building. However, he said, the jail will work to keep the different
categories in the segregation building on separate floors, unless
the number of inmates in one category increases beyond the capacity
on that floor.
November 18, 2005
conte2006.com
Department of Correction
appeals
detainee transfers from Worcester House of Correction.
Three months after the initial
transfers, Sheriff Guy Glodis has been unable to obtain a reduction in intimate
population.
The
Worcester County Jail and House of Correction
still remains critically overcrowded. Currently the jail population is
1,413 inmates.
Most of theses inmates that are held
in the Worcester House of Correction are awaiting trials, trials that DA's
Office has not been able to bring forward. Let us not forget, that DA Conte
gains the majority of his court victories by use of "Plea Bargain's" usually
arraigned by a public defender who has little resources to conduct a real
defense. According to the release of his own statistics the Worcester ADA's
lose 75% of all trials held.
Of the inmates being held in the
House of correction as of August 21, 2005, only
484 were sentenced inmates.
The
state Department of Correction had previously argued that neither the county
jail, district attorney’s office nor a judge has the authority to force the
inmates onto the state system. They said the law gives the state commissioner of
corrections the prerogative to accept inmates who meet the criteria, but that it
is the sole discretion of the commissioner.
Jail
officials had first asked the district attorney to consider allowing inmates
charged with minor crimes to be released on lower bail or personal recognizance,
to free up space. District Attorney John Conte, instead initiated court
actions to have prisoners transferred to state facilities.
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial
court will hear the appeal issued by the
Department of Correction.
September 23, 2005
Worcester House of Correction finds another dead.
Fourth death since being elected in January for Sheriff Guy
W. Glodis
conte2006.com
In now what has become a regular occurrence, another
inmate is found dead at the Worcester House of Corrections. On Thursday
September 22, 2005 a 35 year old man was found hanging from his cell.
Jason Smith, of Australia,
was arrested in Holden earlier this month on misdemeanor larceny and
check-forging charges. He was being held on $2,500 bail pending a scheduled
appearance in Leominster District Court Monday.
According to prison official he left a note in his Bible.
Daniel McMullen 41, died in January, his sisters believe that prison guards
were responsible for his death.
John
Yovino, 38, was found unconscious in his bunk and died of a heron drug
overdose in February. In April
Ronald G.
Binette, 33, who gave authorities addresses in Worcester, was
found hanged from a doorway in a second-floor bathroom in one of the jail’s
modular buildings.
Inside the walls, inmates are faced with a living hell.
These inmates have been reporting carnage, abuse, and failed policies now since
the on set of Sheriff Glodis control.
Sheriff Glodis has refused to accept
responsibility for the actions from within.
Overcrowding, and lack of expansion
funds are no excuse for allowing another prisoner to die.
These over crowding conditions will
be allowed to continue as long as DA Conte remains in power. This has nothing
to do with crime and punishment.
These overcrowding conditions are
directly related to the fact that DA John Conte has failed to conduct over 800
plus trials which is the major cause of the jail overcrowding. Only those who
can not afford bail are sent to the House, as pretrial detainees.
Jail officials stated the population in the House of
Corrections was at 1,348 inmates. Of those inmates only 484 were sentenced
inmates, the remaining 865 were detainees awaiting trail.
With the cost of proper legal
representation out of reach for most residence of Worcester County, this
manipulation of our legal system will continue.
Instead of throwing more money at
housing of inmates awaiting trial, we should spend our money on qualified legal
representation and move these cases threw the Criminal Justice system. But if
we did that, DA Conte who lost 75 percent of his trials
according to his 2004,static report, would not be able to release such
illustrated plea bargain static's, of which he uses as a measure of his success
as Worcester District Attorney.
The crimes committed by these individuals should not
have resulted in a death sentence.
Wednesday, December 14, 2005
Incentive programs are
lacking at jail
JEFFREY D. PETERSON Jr.
Sterling
As an inmate recently released from the jail after serving nine months, I have
seen Sheriff Guy W. Glodis implement numerous policy changes, rules and
regulations that have only made for a more progressively volatile environment.
He only took and took, whittling down the few rights and privileges that were
afforded us.
The jail is getting to the point where there won’t be anything left to take,
leaving inmates with nothing to work for or look forward to. Once everything has
been stripped from them, what will they have to lose? What incentive is there to
behave? If Mr. Glodis’ campaign promise was to “lock ’em up and throw away the
key” (with no new or promising self-help rehabilitation programs), then he is a
sincere politician.
I’m not saying inmates should be allowed to run rampant and have all the
amenities of home. I’m simply saying there has to be a point at which there is
some rationale behind all that’s happening.
Reward-based incentive programs would inspire inmates to work more on
themselves, their problems and their self-esteem. The opposite seemed to be the
case during my stay.
All inmates will be released sooner or later and I think it’s more important to
focus on rehabilitation and reducing recidivism. Building more jail cells isn’t
the answer. They’ll only fill up and overcrowding will happen again.
In a perfect world I can only hope and pray that Mr. Glodis will ease up on the
reins.
Friday, June 24, 2005
Zoloft cited in jail
death blamed on heroin overdose
Fitchburg man had Rx for drug
By Milton J. Valencia TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
An inmate at the Worcester County Jail and House of
Correction who died of a heroin overdose was taking Zoloft, an antidepressant
drug that when combined with heroin contributed to his death, according to a
medical examiner’s report.
John Yovino, 38, of Fitchburg, was taking the antidepressant medication as a
prescription when he overdosed Feb. 17, a jail official confirmed yesterday.
What remains unclear, however, is how much of the drug Mr. Yovino took before he
died at the jail, which is in West Boylston. The official said jail policy
requires a nurse to supervise an inmate while he takes the drug regularly rather
than allowing him to stockpile the medication for use at once, but it is not
known if the policy was followed.
A Worcester police investigator, speaking generally and not about Mr. Yovino,
said addicts are known to use Zoloft as a street detoxification drug, in
addition to being an antidepressant. Several Internet sites note the medication
has been used for addicts going through withdrawal. The investigator said,
however, that Zoloft could raise drug users’ tolerance for heroin, and that drug
users on the medication would have to boost their heroin dosage to get high.
The amount of heroin Mr. Yovino took before dying also remains unclear. District
Attorney John J. Conte, who said the death remains under investigation, said he
is waiting to hear from the state medical examiner’s office. He did confirm that
the cause of death was listed as acute opiate (heroin) and sertraline (Zoloft)
intoxication.
Detectives have been told that Mr. Yovino bought two grams of heroin inside the
jail from Victor Vargas, also known as Victor Sanchez, according to several
sources familiar with the investigation. Both were confined to the jail’s
Francis J. Deignan facility, a medium-security block. Mr. Vargas, 54, is also
from Fitchburg, and is serving a one-year sentence for distribution of heroin.
Sources said he had 7 grams of heroin smuggled into the jail through a family
visit. His son, Soniell Sanchez, 25, was also in the Deignan facility when Mr.
Yovino died, serving a sentence for assault and battery on a child, and is
considered a suspect, sources said.
Neither of the Vargases has been charged with any crime related to the overdose.
The overdose highlighted concern about drugs getting into the jail, and within a
week Sheriff Guy W. Glodis instituted reforms that he said would curtail
smuggling, including the elimination of contact visits, where inmates are
allowed to touch visitors. More than a dozen inmates tested positive for heroin
within a day after the overdose.
Mr. Yovino’s death was the second of four that occurred soon after Sheriff
Glodis took office in January. In one case, Daniel McMullen, 42, was beaten by
his cellmate, Dennis Hadley, 49, and died of the injuries 20 days later. Ronald
Binette, 33, hanged himself in his cell, and Pedro Alvarez, 44, died of a
reported heart attack.
In addition, two inmates who had been under the sheriff’s custody recently died,
one of what a jail official called natural causes and the other from injuries he
suffered after hanging himself in his cell.
Jeffrey A. Turco, deputy superintendent of the jail, said Phillip G. Delianedis,
a participant in the jail’s Correctional Opportunity Advancement Program, died
Sunday at home, after collapsing. Mr. Conte’s office is investigating the case,
following state law to probe all inmate deaths.
However, Mr. Turco said the death appears to be from natural causes. He said
there is no indication the death was an overdose, saying Mr. Delianedis was
tested regularly as part of his involvement in COAP. In the program, inmates
nearing the end of their sentence are allowed to go home with electronic
monitoring bracelets, and must attend a daily education and job training and
development course. Mr. Delianedis, 45, had been convicted of assault with a
dangerous weapon, and possession of heroin.
Mr. Conte’s office is also investigating the death of Jesse Matthews, 34, who
died Sunday after he allegedly tried to hang himself in the jail on June 5. Mr.
Turco said Mr. Matthews had shown medical problems before he hanged himself.
Nurses checked his cell regularly to make sure he was OK, he said. Later in the
morning, he was found hanged with his bed sheet.
Mr. Turco said correction officers quickly removed the noose and resuscitated
Mr. Matthews, and he was taken to a Worcester hospital. He died Sunday.
Mr. Matthews had been in jail after being arrested in Leominster on outstanding
warrants from Northampton. While he was in the hospital, a judge released Mr.
Matthews on his own recognizance, Mr. Turco said. So, he said, Mr. Matthews was
not in jail custody when he died.
August 23, 2005
Superior Court Judge McCann uphold Worcester detainee
transfers.
conte2006.com
In a stunning move to all those who follow the legal
events in Worcester, once again Worcester is like no other place in
Massachusetts. In what appears to be nothing more than a political move we see
once again DA Conte making a mountain out of a mole hill. Can the transfer of
just 40 prisoners make such a difference when the overcrowding is so high at the
Worcester House of Correction? Those of us with a sound mind, know not. Those
of us who see our political career winding down, having had control and power
for so long, see a last ditch effort for public support.
The answer to the solution is plain, get Worcester DA
Conte to move the cases threw the justice system, (800 plus are awaiting trials)
have accountability within the courts when this does not happen, and stop using
the County Jail system as a social service agency. Millions of dollars are
spent housing prisoners who are mentally ill, who do not meet the criteria for
dangerous, yet the DA and Judge McCann failed to note this.
This smoke an mirror show is just that. If these
"prisoners" are so dangerous and have been incarcerated for such serious crimes
were are the convictions?
By all presentations the only people in the Worcester
County jail awaiting trials are the poor, and helpless. Those dependent on the
public defenders system which in Worcester means "Pleas Bargain" system.
Just recently 70 prisoners wrote a letter to the
Worcester Telegram declaring how DA Conte had an
informer
providing information from within in
the House of Corrections, so all legal avenues being explored were being
reported to the DA. This must be some new form of justice that DA Conte is
exploring.
DA Conte's statements that “We’ve had
intense law enforcement and prosecution for a number of years now, so the
overcrowding is not going to slow down. As a matter of fact, many people who go
to the neighborhood crime watch groups… get the message that there should be
more people incarcerated, not less,” Mr. Conte said.
If more intense law enforcement is
true, were are the murderer (s) of Molly Bish, Candace Scola, or baby Santos,
still all unsolved major crimes.
Reality is, the only men incarcerated
are the weak, poor and those who lack a proper defense. Until that story is
told DA Conte will continue to misrepresent who goes to jail and who doesn't.
August 21, 2005
Worcester House of Correction backlog due to inmates
awaiting trial.
conte2006.com
On Friday August 19, 2005 Jail officials stated the
population in the House of Corrections was at 1,348 inmates. Of those inmates
only 484 were sentenced inmates the remaining 865 area detainees awaiting trail.
Yes awaiting trials ,not convicted of a crime, but
waiting for District Attorney John Conte an his staff to get their cases before
a Judge and have a trial. There again we have a serious issue in Worcester. The
word trail is used very lightly, as in Worcester according to the D A Conte's
own statistics 469 cases
were prosecuted in 2004, and, of those, 406 ended in plea bargains. This leaves
63 cases that went to trial, in which Mr. Conte got 16 convictions. This figures
out to a 75 percent failure rate in trials.
So were are the criminals? According to Worcester DA
Conte these people are in jail for a reason. Obviously two thirds (865) have
not been convicted of a crime.
We see those who are dependent on the public defenders
system sitting idol for months. Those who can not afford a simple bail are
housed at tax payer's expense.
Societies social illnesses are not best kept in the
County Jail system. Social programs, in house detention, post conviction
monitoring all work and are available.
Mr. Daniel Mc Mullen is a perfect example of 2005 in the Worcester House of
Correction. Mr. McMullen was housed with a pretrial detainee, even against
prison regulations. Presently, Mr. McMullen's cell mate, Mr. Dennis Hadley, 49
who was being held in lieu of bail on charges filed in Milford District Court of
breaking and entering during the daytime with intent to commit a felony,
destruction of property over $250, larceny over $250 and larceny in a building.
Mr. Hadley is currently charged with causing the death of Mr. McMullen. Mr.
McMullen was incarcerated for a driving offence.
DA Conte in his twenty-eight years as Worcester DA has
never admitted to falsely convicting anyone. It is well past time for the truth
to be told. The truth in this case is the overcrowding within the Worcester
House of Corrections is not due to convicted criminals, but the 800 plus
detainees who are being held due to the inability to have their day in court.
August 19, 2005
Worcester
Superior Court Judge John S. McCann fails to make
ruling in Worcester County prisoner transfer case.
conte2006.com
After being asked by Worcester DA John Conte, Tuesday to
sign an order transferring 40 low risk prisoners into the custody of the
Department of corrections , Judge McCann failed to
make a ruling yesterday on the appeal filed by the Massachusetts department of
corrections.
Judge McCann on Wednesday gave
Worcester assistant district Attorney Ms Ellyn H. Lazar-Moore until the end of
the day (Thursday) to file her written opposition because ADA Lazar-Moore did
not receive William D. Saltzman, a lawyer for the Correction Department, motion
until just before Wednesdays hearing.
So while prisoners back up in the Worcester County House
of Corrections, causing the overcrowding problem that is at the bases for this
transfer, due to the inability in many cases to have their trial held, we see
Worcester District Attorney John Conte taking up more of the courts time.
It appears Worcester County would be better served if DA
John Conte could move his cases forward. Which is the primary root of
overcrowding. according to DA
Conte 469 cases were prosecuted in 2004, and, of those, 406 ended in plea
bargains. This leaves 63 cases that went to trial, in which Mr. Conte got 16
convictions. This figures out to a 75 percent failure rate in trials.
August 18, 2005
John Conte waste more taxpayer money, move of low risk prisoners seen as
punitive.
conte2006.com
Yesterday in Worcester Superior Court, arguments were
heard
to rescind DA John Conte's day-old order
to transfer of the forty prisoner some only held on
disorderly conduct, to state prisons. Where as according to the head of
Massachusetts Corrections they face overcrowding already. Within the walls of
are State Prison System are those who have been convicted of major crimes with
sentences longer than two and a half years.
During
yesterday’s hearing, William D. Saltzman, a lawyer for the Correction
Department, and Ellyn H. Lazar-Moore, an assistant district attorney, offered
conflicting interpretations of the statute under which the transfers were
ordered.
It is often that justice applied in
Worcester does not reflect justice in any other part of the State of
Massachusetts. For years now the outcry from within the system has been
strong. You need only to look at the case of
Mr. James Kelly, who never
spent a day in prison, after being convicted for rape, until the victim
frustrated with the 'runaround" from DA Conte's Office hired Attorney
Wendy-Murphy of Boston. The
Supreme Judicial Court
laid
the blame for the delay squarely in Conte's lap, citing the ``tortured
procedural history of the case.''
Again we have seen no trial for cases of major crimes, it
appears these are low income individuals who are easy targets for DA Conte. He
is well aware that without money and the proper legal representation he can run
rampant on these individuals and no real defense will ever be raised.
August 17, 2005
Worcester DA John Conte Once again seeks harsh punishment for inmates due to
his failure.
State prison officials to appeal Worcester DA's actions.
conte2006.com
IN not a very surprising move for those of us who
understand the philosophy behind Worcester DA Conte's ambitions, this latest
move is nothing other than political.
Rather than allow those who are being held on minor
charges, like disorderly conduct, to be released on personnel recognize, and
those close to the end of sentence to be released on post conviction probation,
DA John Conte has sent them to State prison were the life style is harsher and
more dangerous. Not to mention the increase in tax revenue spent.
The
sheriff’s office first proposed reducing bail or considering personal
recognizance for inmates charged with minor crimes, to release them to free
space in the Worcester County Jail and House of Correction.
At
issue is a recent spike in inmates awaiting trial being sent to the county jail.
Sheriff Glodis has raised concerns of crowding before, but said the population
Monday night was 1,402, the highest ever at the jail and close to double its
capacity of 822 inmates.
By most standards this action bewilders the mind.
Under the law, a person in
custody awaiting trial who has previously served a state prison sentence for a
felony may be transferred by the commissioner of correction to a state
institution. A law very seldom invoked.
However, Like Dorothy so poignantly put
it "your not in Kansas anymore" and Worcester County does not reflect any other
area of Massachusetts. With 28 years in power DA Conte in his 75th year appears
to be rapidly losing touch with reality.
Most of theses inmates that are held in
the Worcester House of Correction are awaiting trials, that DA's Office has not
been able to bring forward. Let us not forget, that DA Conte gains the majority
of his court victories by use of "Plea Bargain's" usually arraigned by a public
defender who has little resources to conduct a real defense. According to the
release of his own statistics the Worcester ADA's lose 75% of all trials held.
At least credit should be given to
Sheriff Glodis who attempted to initiate the proper actions.
Jail officials initially proposed personal
recognizance for 20 inmates held in lieu of relatively low cash bail while
awaiting trial, by initiating releases for those who were being held on
petty crimes.
DA Conte position is
“They’re incarcerated for a
reason,” pointing towards his attitude that he has
already convicted these individuals. Has DA Conte forgot
that is up to a Judge and or Jury to do?
No doubt with the election in 2006 on
the horizon we will see other actions from the DA to hope to gain public support
for his re-election.
The tax payer of course wants criminals
off the street no doubt , however in Worcester we have not seen that happen.
No real convictions for the most
serious crimes such as murder in the Bish and Scola cases have ever occurred.
Those who committed such crimes are still walking free. All while the petty
criminals (disorderly conduct)
are being used to as examples of crime and
protection.
The reality is no longer will theses
back door tactics work.
August 6, 2005
Conte's inside informer exposed, once again, the
question of justice being controlled in Worcester arises.
conte2006.com
How many more stories must come for the Worcester House of
Correction before some legal authority begins a proper investigation?
A recent letter sent to the Worcester Telegram outlines
the control of legal avenues by prisoners due to
informers providing information
to Worcester District Attorney John Conte.
Those who have been committed to the Worcester House of
Correction are in jail for one of two reasons, they have been convicted of a
minor crime with the sentence being no more than two and a half years or they
are awaiting trial.
In recent months
three deaths have occurred to prisoners while in the custody of Sheriff Guy
Glodis, in the Worcester House of Correction. In each of these deaths, numerous
questions of proper actions and supervision have occurred.
In the case of Mr. Daniel McMullen, the sisters Beatrice
and Mary have been outraged with the treatment their bother Daniel received. On
February 3, 2005, Mr. McMullen who was taken from his cell after being beaten
was returned to the same cell, after returning from the hospital. This return
eventually lead to the death of Mr. McMullen. Twenty days later, Mr. McMullen
was removed from life support. Both sisters have chastised the Jail authorities
for the inability to protect Mr. McMullen and District Attorney John Conte for
failing to prosecute the prison guards for their failure.
Both sisters have stated that they believe that the
beating their brother took was initiated by more than one person, and that the
real murderers have not been charged.
On the morning of Feb. 27, Mr. John
Yovino was found unresponsive in his West Boylston jail cell. Correction
officers and a nurse who used defibrillators tried to revive Mr. Yovino, but to
no avail. Mr. Yovino died at a hospital. Cause of death has been ruled a heroin
overdose. No one has been charged with a crime as of this dated by Worcester DA
John Conte.
In Mr. Yonino's case the Worcester County Jail
authorities took it upon itself to initiate criminal charges against
Mr. Victor Vargas, 54 of Fitchburg.
Friday, June 24, 2005, an assistant clerk magistrate in
Clinton District Court approved a complaint jail officials filed seeking charges
of possession of heroin, possession with intent to distribute heroin, and
distribution within 1,000 feet of a school zone (Salem Covenant Community
Nursery School), said Jeffrey Turco, deputy superintendent of the jail. He
provided several documents showing the complaint was approved and that an
arraignment was scheduled for July 12.
However, later Friday afternoon,
mysteriously,
the clerk magistrate of Clinton District Court faxed a letter
to the jail saying the charges would be “vacated,”
because there wasn’t sufficient evidence, The letter is handwritten on a sheet
of paper and signed by the clerk magistrate, Leonard F. Tomaiolo.
Sunday, April 10, 2005, Mr. Ronald G.
Binette, 33, who gave authorities addresses in Worcester, was found hanging
from a doorway in a second-floor bathroom in one of the jail’s modular
buildings. The body was discovered shortly after Mr. Binette was reported
missing during a routine count of prisoners.
Ms Rachel Binette said, sister of Mr.
Binette said “He had issues. He had a drug problem. He needed help, however she
questioned why her brother was not on a suicide watch.
“By statute, in Massachusetts, any time
a death occurs inside the walls of a prison or county facility, the
Massachusetts State Police assigned to the district attorney’s office will do an
investigation,”
Obviously, allowing the State Police
Auburn C-Pac unit, attached to John Conte's office to investigate these
situations will and has lead to more protection for those who are ultimately
responsible for these deaths. Failure to supervisor, failure to follow certain
rules and procedures like not placing those tried and convicted with those
awaiting trial have been violated. These violations along with other very
questionable actions are being routinely overlooked.
Friday, November 18,
2005
SJC to rule on jail transfers
Conte vs. the state prison system
By Milton J. Valencia TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
WORCESTER— Disagreements between the district attorney’s office and the
state prison system will head to Massachusetts’ highest court, with state
correction officials arguing a judge has no authority to force county jail
inmates onto the state prison system.
The state Department of Correction is challenging Worcester District
Attorney John J. Conte’s use of state law to send inmates who meet a certain
criteria to state prison, to ease overcrowding at what has been called a
bursting-at-the-seams Worcester County Jail and House of Correction. Under
the law, inmates who are awaiting trial can be sent to a state prison if
they have already served a felony sentence in the state system.
Mr. Conte’s office invoked the state law in August, after the county jail’s
population swelled to more than 1,400 inmates at the West Boylston facility.
Jail officials had first asked the district attorney to consider allowing
inmates charged with minor crimes to be released on lower bail or personal
recognizance, to free up space. The request came after a weekend that saw a
sudden spike in the jail’s population, forcing the jail to have inmates
sleep on mattresses on floors.
Jail officials embraced Mr. Conte’s plan to invoke the state law, and the
measure was approved by Superior Court Judge John S. McCann without a
hearing.
State prison officials appealed the next day, however, arguing a judge has
no authority to force the inmates onto a state system they said has its own
overcrowding woes. The state DOC abided by the initial order to transfer 40
inmates, for what were called security reasons, but sought an injunction in
Superior Court. After a hearing, Judge McCann reaffirmed his ruling, and
then did so again after the state asked him to reconsider in a separate
hearing.
Jeffrey A. Turco, deputy superintendent of the jail, said yesterday that the
state appealed the judge’s ruling and that a single justice of the
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court referred the case to the full bench. A
hearing is scheduled for January, he said.
“Obviously, in light of the overcrowding, it is critical to the safety and
security of the running of this operation that this decision brought by the
district attorney and our office prevail in” the SJC, Mr. Turco said.
Since the law was first invoked in August, 102 inmates have been transferred
to the state system, Mr. Turco said. Under an agreement with state
officials, a cap has been set so that no more than 60 county jail detainees
are housed in the state system at one time. Mr. Turco said state officials
have contested the use of the law but have agreed for security reasons to
accept the inmates while appeals are processed.
Still, the jail’s population yesterday was 1,413 inmates; its rated capacity
is 822 inmates.
State officials were not available for comment yesterday, but had previously
argued that neither the county jail, district attorney’s office nor a judge
has the authority to force the inmates onto the state system. They said the
law gives the state commissioner of corrections the prerogative to accept
inmates who meet the criteria, but that it is the sole discretion of the
commissioner.
In rejecting the argument, Judge McCann said the use of the law was
acceptable because of the “critical mass” of overcrowding the Worcester
County jail faced.
Sunday, September 18,
2005
Jail transfers 25
more inmates
WORCESTER — Another 25 pretrial detainees at the Worcester County Jail and
House of Correction were transferred to the state prison system last week
under court order.
The transfers, approved Tuesday by Superior Court Judge Kenneth J. Fishman,
were requested by Sheriff Guy W. Glodis and District Attorney John J. Conte
as part of an effort to relieve the crowded county jail in West Boylston.
The prisoner population at the jail, designed to hold 822 inmates, swelled
last month to more than 1,400, an all-time high.
State law allows for the transfer to the state prison system of inmates
awaiting trial at a county jail who have previously served state time.
The district attorney said the state Department of Correction, which opposed
the Aug. 16 court-ordered transfer of 40 pretial detainees from the jail,
has since agreed to accept up to 60 such inmates at a time. Of the 40
prisoners transferred to the state system last month, five have either been
released from custody or their cases were resolved in court, leaving room
for the additional 25 inmates transferred this week, Mr. Conte said.
Sheriff Glodis is seeking state funds for a major jail expansion project.
August 27, 2005
Judge explains inmate transfer ruling -
‘Critical mass' in overcrowding at jail
Author: Richard Nangle, Worcester Telegram & Gazette (MA)
WORCESTER - A Superior Court judge who allowed the overcrowded county jail
to transfer some of its inmates to state prison says Massachusetts law
permits a Superior Court judge to order the state to accept any pretrial
inmate who has already served time in a state prison on a felony conviction.
In a six-page memorandum explaining his ruling on the transfers, Judge
John S. McCann said longstanding overcrowded conditions at the Worcester
County Jail and House of Correction in West Boylston have reached "critical
mass."
He disagreed with the state commissioner of correction's argument that she
had the sole authority to decide whether to accept or remove pretrial
detainees.
"A plain textual reading of the statutory language does not support the
commissioner's interpretations," Judge McCann said in the memo, which was
released Wednesday. The statute in question was most recently amended in
1973.
Judge McCann on Monday reaffirmed his order that the state prison system
accept 40 county jail prisoners who were transferred from the West Boylston
jail last week. All were awaiting trial and all had previously served time
in state prison. The jail, with a capacity of 822, had seen its population
balloon to 1,402 inmates on Aug. 15.
District Attorney John J. Conte sought the court order from
Judge McCann after expressing concerns about releasing inmates to ease
overcrowding. Inmates were forced to sleep on blankets and on floors until
the sheriff could buy new mattresses.
Sheriff Guy W. Glodis reacted to the ruling by asking state lawmakers to
approve a $45 million to $90 million jail expansion, arguing that the
Worcester County Jail is the only one in the state not to expand its housing
capacity in the last decade.
The state Department of Correction appealed the order, arguing that it
has the discretion to reject the transfers and has its own overcrowding
issues. Judge McCann denied the commissioner of correction's objection,
however, and said his reasons would be explained in a Memorandum of
Decision, now released.
Paul J. Henderson, a spokesman for the state Department of Correction, said
the commissioner is reviewing the memorandum and will have a statement on
Monday or Tuesday.
Sheriff Glodis met with state legislators from Central Massachusetts
yesterday to discuss adding money to a capital bond bill for one or two new
units. Each unit would cost about $45 million and house 250 prisoners who
need to be segregated for disciplinary lock-ins, suicide watch or protective
custody.
Sheriff Glodis had warned that if the project did not make it into this
year's capital bond bill, it might have to wait two years.
"It was a very productive meeting," Sheriff Glodis said, adding that
there was bipartisan support from lawmakers throughout Central Massachusetts
for funding two new units.
Area state representatives will meet with the speaker of the House shortly
after Labor Day to lobby for the jail expansion.
Sheriff Glodis said two new units would eliminate overcrowding while the
addition of a single unit, "would alleviate it and bring it to a more
manageable condition."
The jail has tried to reduce its numbers by quintupling those released with
ankle bracelet monitors from 15 to 75; increasing the use of seven-day
furloughs; and holding more video court bail review hearings.
Last week was the first time since Sheriff Glodis took office in January
that the jail has sent detainees to the state prison system. In previous
years, the jail routinely sent 30 to 35 eligible detainees to state prisons
through an administrative process. But when Sheriff Glodis took office, the
commissioner's office said the state facilities were too crowded to take any
more detainees voluntarily, according to Deputy Jail Superintendent Jeffrey
R. Turco.
The jail has compiled a list of 11 more inmates who could be transferred to
the state system, and may seek again to invoke state law on the matter.
The transfer of county inmates into the state system prompted Ronal C.
Madnick, head of the Worcester chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union
of Massachusetts, to suggest that state prison was an inappropriate option
for detainees who have not been sentenced. He called for more drug
counseling sessions and programs and lower bail for nonviolent offenders.
Contact Richard Nangle by e-mail at
rnangle@telegram.com.
Monday, September 12, 2005
Lawmakers must address overcrowded prisons
editorial Worcester telegram
Sheriff Guy W. Glodis,
District Attorney John J. Conte and other officials alarmed over
overcrowding at the Worcester County Jail and House of Correction caught a
break last week when Superior Court Judge John S. McCann correctly
reaffirmed his order allowing the transfer of 40 county jail inmates to the
state prison system.
On Aug. 16, the day after the jail’s population reached 1,402 — the highest
ever, and nearly double the facility’s capacity of 822 inmates — Mr. Glodis
and Mr. Conte properly invoked a state law allowing the transfer of
pre-trial detainees who previously served a state prison sentence for a
felony. Since then, the state Department of Correction has sought
unsuccessfully to nullify the order.
The fact is, the county jail is part of the state prison system. It makes
perfect sense to make inmate transfers within the system to ease severe
overcrowding. For the safety of guards and prisoners alike, it also is not a
bad idea to get some of the potentially dangerous criminals out of the West
Boylston facility.
The judge’s decision buys some time, but chronic overcrowding needs to be
addressed. Whether there is a need for the full $100 million jail expansion
Mr. Glodis has proposed remains to be determined.
In the short term, several approaches to overcrowding may ease the
situation. In some instances, where public safety is not an issue,
alternatives to incarceration may be appropriate. Mr. Glodis already is
exploring alternatives such as moving inmates into community correction
programs or mental-health programs.
Given that a large majority of inmates at the jail are pre-trial
detainees, aggressive efforts in the courts to speed up the pre-trial
process would help. (Other “solutions,” such as arbitrarily reducing
sentences after convictions and releasing inmates willy-nilly, would not.)
Alternative sentencing and other expedients may help. However, adding and
maintaining adequate jail capacity must be part of the mix.
Thursday, September 1,
2005
State asks judge to
reconsider inmate transfers
WORCESTER— While
Sheriff Guy W. Glodis seeks legislative support for a $100 million expansion
of the Worcester County Jail and House of Correction in West Boylston, the
state Department of Correction is asking a judge to reconsider his order
allowing the transfer of 40 jail inmates to the state prison system.
William D. Saltzman, a lawyer for the department, and Special Assistant
Attorney General Nancy Ankers White filed a motion yesterday in Worcester
Superior Court asking Judge John S. McCann to reconsider his denial of a
department request that he vacate an Aug.16 order authorizing the transfer
of 40 pretrial detainees at the county jail to the state system.
The 40 inmates had all served time in state prison. The sheriff and District
Attorney John J. Conte sought the transfers in an effort to relieve
overcrowding at the West Boylston facility.
At an Aug.17 hearing on the department’s motion asking Judge McCann to
rescind his order, Mr. Saltzman argued that the law gave the commissioner of
correction the discretion to accept or reject such transfers. Assistant
District Attorney Ellyn H. Lazar-Moore disagreed with Mr. Saltzman’s
interpretation of the statute and argued that the law gave judges the
authority to order the transfer of pretrial detainees from one institution
to another “to remedy emergency situations such as the one faced by the jail
currently.”
In denying the Department of Correction’s request that he lift the transfer
order, Judge McCann rejected Mr. Saltzman’s reading of the statute in
question and said overcrowding at the county jail had reached “critical
mass.”
Mr. Saltzman and Ms. Ankers White argue in the motion for reconsideration
that an analysis of the legislative history of the law warrants the
conclusion that the Legislature did not intend to give Superior Court judges
the “administrative authority” to compel the commissioner of correction to
accept the transfer of pretrial detainees from county jails into the state
prison system.
A court spokesman said yesterday that Judge McCann had been given a copy of
the motion and had not decided whether he would hold a hearing on it.
Sheriff Glodis has asked legislators to add up to $100 million to a pending
state capital bond bill for two modular housing units at the county jail
that would hold a total of 500 inmates. The population of the West Boylston
facility, designed to hold 822 inmates, reached an all-time high of 1,402
two weeks ago, jail officials said.
Tuesday, August 23, 2005
Judge backs jail
transfers
State ordered to take county inmate overflow
By Jacqueline Reis TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
WORCESTER—
Hours after a Superior Court judge ruled yesterday that the state prison
system must accept prisoners from the overcrowded Worcester County Jail and
House of Correction, Sheriff Guy W. Glodis said that he will ask state legislators for $45 million to $90
million for an expansion at the West Boylston facility.
Superior Court Justice John S. McCann ruled yesterday that the state prison
system must accept 40 Worcester County Jail and House of Correction inmates
who were transferred out of West Boylston last week. The detainees were all
awaiting trial and previously had served time in state prison.
Judge McCann had ordered them transferred last Tuesday at the request of
Assistant District Attorney John J. Conte and Sheriff Glodis after the jail
population reached 1,402, well over its capacity of 822 inmates.
The state Department of Correction appealed the order, arguing that it has
the discretion to reject the transfers and has its own overcrowding issues.
Yesterday, Judge McCann denied the commissioner of correction’s objection.
The brief order did not give the judge’s reasoning, but said his “reasons
will be explained in a Memorandum of Decision that will be issued
forthwith.”
Paul J. Henderson, a spokesman for the state Department of Correction, said
the department would not comment on the issue until the judge issues his
memo.
Sheriff Glodis said he is grateful for the ruling. “We’re the most
overcrowded county jail in the state,” he said. “It’s an option that we like
to have in crisis situations.”
Last week was the first time the jail exceeded 1,400 inmates, and it forced
officials to buy mattresses from Middlesex County corrections supplies,
Sheriff Glodis said. “This is the only county jail that has seen no
expansion or addition to their housing in the last decade, but at the same
time, our inmate population has spiraled upward,” he said.
Because of that combination, he said, Judge McCann’s ruling will not set a
precedent for other facilities in other counties to ship their prisoners
into the state prison systems. “Those systems are not in the dire need that
Worcester County is,” he said.
Sheriff Glodis plans to meet with state legislators from Central
Massachusetts on Friday to discuss adding money to a capital bonding bill
for one or two new units, each of which would cost approximately $45 million
and house 250 inmates who need to be segregated for disciplinary lock-ins,
suicide watch or protective custody. If a project does not make it into this
year’s capital bond bill, it might have to wait two years for the next bond
bill, Sheriff Glodis said.
Adding capacity is “a last resort tactic,” he said. The jail already has
tried to reduce the population through measures such as quintupling the
number of people released with ankle bracelet monitors, from 15 to 75;
increasing the use of seven-day furloughs, and increasing the use of video
court to make bail review hearings easier, Sheriff Glodis said.
Mr. Conte said Judge McCann’s ruling “temporarily eases a tremendous burden
at the jail,” but that the real solution lies in more beds at the jail, more
programs, and more attempts to reach people at a very young age.
“We’ve had intense law enforcement and prosecution for a number of years
now, so the overcrowding is not going to slow down. As a matter of fact,
many people who go to the neighborhood crime watch groups… get the message
that there should be more people incarcerated, not less,” Mr. Conte said.
“We have a scarcity of beds, we have a scarcity of programs, and we have
some unrealistic programs out there that aren’t working. That’s the real
situation.”
He noted that the district that the jail serves has gained 78,000 residents
in the last five years, which adds to the jail’s burden.
The 40 detainees who were transferred are awaiting trial on charges that
range from murder to receiving stolen property, according to the district
attorney’s office.
Last week was the first time since Sheriff Glodis took office in January
that the jail has sent detainees to the state prison system. The jail
routinely sent 30 to 35 eligible detainees to state prisons through an
administrative process before this year, but when Sheriff Glodis took
office, the commissioner’s office said the state facilities were too crowded
to take any more detainees voluntarily, according to Deputy Jail
Superintendent Jeffrey R. Turco.
Sunday, August 21,
2005
Inmate levels
bedevil officials
Jail festers with overcrowding
WEST
BOYLSTON— The transfer of inmates to the state prison system may be a
Band-Aid for overcrowding woes at the Worcester County Jail and House of
Correction, but the move will do little to remedy what has been a
longstanding problem at the West Boylston jail, officials said.
With inmates forced to sleep in receiving rooms and use blankets as
mattresses last week after a spike in the jail’s population, inmate
advocates are now probing an issue known all too well by jail officials: the
need for a long-term plan to house prisoners.
“If the sheriff’s even concerned about it … it shows there’s a serious
problem,” said Jim Pingeon, a staff lawyer with the Massachusetts
Correctional Legal Services, an inmate advocacy group. He said reported
conditions in the jail — that inmates are sleeping on floors and are
double-bunked in small cells — are “troubling.”
“It’s a violation of constitutional principles,” he said
The American Civil Liberties Union has raised the concerns before. In March,
Ronal C. Madnick, director of the Worcester County chapter, sent a letter to
jail officials calling for other methods to sentence inmates, such as home
confinement or stringent probation, to free space at jail, which he noted
has a history of overcrowding.
Last week, Sheriff Guy W. Glodis and District Attorney John J. Conte
achieved a quick-fix to a recent surge in the jail’s population, a spike the
sheriff said threatened public safety, by invoking a state law allowing for
the transfer of inmates awaiting trial to the state prison system. The
inmates who fall under the law must have served time for a felony in state
prison and be held awaiting trial on separate charges.
On Tuesday, after being contacted by the jail, Mr. Conte secured a court
order to transfer 40 inmates who met the criteria. It was a quick-fix for a
jail faced with housing 1,402 inmates, its highest-ever population — close
to double its capacity of 822 inmates.
The plan has already run into controversy, however. The day after the law
was invoked, the state Department of Correction appealed the order, arguing
the court had no authority to impose the law on the state system.
A lawyer for the state argued the commissioner of correction has the sole
discretion to reject or accept the transfers, and said allowing the court to
impose an order would cause an undue hardship on a jail system facing its
own overcrowding.
Judge John S. McCann is expected to make a ruling this week. In the
meantime, the prison system, abiding by the initial order while the appeal
is pending, has accepted the 40 inmates to assist in what a state official
said is a public safety issue.
County jail officials said that, if the ruling is in their favor, they will
continue to transfer inmates to the state prison system who meet the state
law criteria, as a remedy to reduce overcrowding.
Still, officials acknowledge the state law will only serve as a temporary
measure to help at a jail Sheriff Glodis said is “bursting at the seams.”
A jail official and District Attorney John J. Conte said Friday even if
their use of the law stands, they may resort to an initial plan the sheriff
had to ask the court for personal recognizance or a reduction in bail for
nonviolent detainees awaiting trial, to free space at the county jail.
Mr. Conte and probation officials opposed the plan last week, saying inmates
had been ordered incarcerated for a reason, and they shouldn’t be released
simply because of a problem in the jail system.
“It’s just that people don’t want these criminals in their community,” said
Mr. Conte, explaining his opposition to the plan to ask for a bail reduction
and his desire, instead, to invoke the state law.
However, he acknowledged the jail still faces overcrowding even with the
transfers to the state, and measures need to be taken.
A jail official said Friday that the population was 1,349 inmates, not
including the 40 detainees who were already transferred.
Of that number, 484 were sentenced inmates, and 865 were detainees awaiting
trial.
“It’s an untenable position,” said Jeffrey Turco, deputy superintendent of
the jail.
Mr. Conte and jail officials said there must be a long-term plan to
construct a new facility. Mr. Turco said a 1,000-bed expansion would be
necessary to handle the overcrowding and the forecast need for more space.
Inmate advocates have opposed the construction of a new facility, saying it
will fill up with inmates just as quickly. They proposed long-term plans to
help rehabilitate inmates, noting drugs and alcohol play a role in most of
the crimes that put the inmates in jail.
Mr. Madnick, the ACLU director, said the courts should play a role in
helping to reduce the jail’s population by ordering quicker trials and using
alternative sentencing measures, such as drug counseling instead of jail
time.
In the letter he sent in March, Mr. Madnick said a new facility would do
nothing to cut down on the number of prisoners at the jail.
He noted that in 1989 the capacity was 478 prisoners, but there were still
659 at the county jail.
When he wrote the letter in March, the capacity was 822, but the jail still
had 1,306 inmates.
“The history of the (jail) is that new buildings are filled to overflowing
levels, resulting in the same overcrowding that existed before,” Mr. Madnick
said in the letter.
Mr. Madnick warned then, too, “prisoners can not easily be transferred to
other prisons in the state because they are also overcrowded.
“The best solution is to reduce the prison sentences at the (county jail),”
he said, calling for funds for other programs, such as drug counseling, he
said will cut down on recidivism.
But jail officials and Mr. Conte said even with modern jail reform and
intensive drug counseling, there will still be a need for beds.
Most prisoners have been through the counseling process already, Mr. Conte
said, calling jail the “tail end of the system.”
“There are very few people with minor charges,” he said. “The jail is the
tail end of the system. Quite honestly, most of the people in jail have been
through the system.”
He also said there’s a scarcity of the type of drug counseling programs
inmate advocates have cited.
“That’s not going to solve the problem. The problem is critical and the
solution is more beds,” Mr. Conte said.
Contact Milton J. Valencia by e-mail at
mvalencia@telegram.com.
Friday, August 19,
2005
Judge won’t alter
prisoner transfers
By Gary V. Murray TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
gmurray@telegram.com
WORCESTER—
The fate of 40 county jail inmates
transferred to the state prison system under court order Tuesday remained
unclear yesterday, as a judge took no action on a Department of Correction
request that he rescind the ruling.
At the request of District Attorney John J. Conte, Superior Court Judge John
S. McCann issued an order Tuesday that allowed the transfer to the state
prison system of 40 pretrial detainees at the Worcester County Jail and
House of Correction in West Boylston who had previously served time in a
state prison. The district attorney sought the transfers on behalf of
Sheriff Guy W. Glodis to ease overcrowding at the county jail.
William D. Saltzman, a lawyer for the state Department of Correction, filed
a motion Wednesday asking Judge McCann to vacate the transfer order. Mr.
Saltzman said the state prison system is facing its own overcrowding
problems, and argued that the law under which the transfers were made
granted the commissioner of correction the discretion to accept or reject
such transfers.
Assistant District Attorney Ellyn H. Lazar-Moore disagreed with Mr.
Saltzman’s interpretation of the statute, and asked that the transfer order
stand. The assistant district attorney, who received a copy of Mr.
Saltzman’s motion just before Wednesday’s hearing, was given until the end
of the day to file her written opposition.
Judge McCann gave Mr. Saltzman until yesterday to file a supplemental brief
if he chose to do so.
The judge did not rule yesterday on the correction department’s request to
vacate the transfer order.
Thursday, August 18, 2005
State asks to undo jail
transfers
40 inmates moved to state prison system
By Gary V. Murray and Milton J. Valencia TELEGRAM &
GAZETTE STAFF
gmurray@telegram.com
WORCESTER—
The state Department of Correction asked a
judge yesterday to rescind his day-old order allowing the transfer of 40
inmates awaiting trial at the Worcester County Jail and House of Correction
to the state prison system to ease overcrowded conditions at the West
Boylston facility.
Judge John S. McCann took the request under advisement after a hearing in
Worcester Superior Court, saying he expected to issue a decision today or
tomorrow. He declined to stay the order, pending a ruling in the case.
The order issued Tuesday at the request of District Attorney John J. Conte
and Sheriff Guy W. Glodis allowed the transfer to the state penal system of
40 pretrial detainees at the county jail who had previously served time in
state prison. All 40 were moved into the state prison system. The transfers
were sought because the population at the jail, which was designed to hold
822 inmates, had swelled to more than 1,400 as of Monday, creating what the
sheriff called a public safety threat. Inmates were forced to sleep in
receiving rooms and the jail’s medical facility, and used layered blankets
as mattresses.
The request for the transfers was seen as an alternative to asking the court
to release pretrial detainees on reduced bail or personal recognizance,
previously considered by jail officials as a last resort. A probation
official and the district attorney opposed that move, and on Tuesday, Mr.
Conte invoked the state law allowing for the transfer to the state system
with court approval.
During yesterday’s hearing, William D. Saltzman, a lawyer for the Correction
Department, and Ellyn H. Lazar-Moore, an assistant district attorney,
offered conflicting interpretations of the statute under which the transfers
were ordered.
Mr. Saltzman argued that the law gives the commissioner of correction the
authority to accept or reject the transfer to the state prison system of
inmates awaiting trial at a county jail who have previously served state
time.
In support of his argument that such transfers are discretionary under the
statute, Mr. Saltzman noted that the Legislature used the word “may” in
reference to transfers from a county jail to a state institution and “shall”
in reference to court-ordered transfers from one county jail to another.
While the Department of Correction has voluntarily taken pretrial jail
detainees into state custody in the past, the court lacks the authority to
order it to do so, Mr. Saltzman told Judge McCann.
Mr. Saltzman said allowing courts to decide if transfers should take place
will allow county sheriffs across the state to use the law as solutions to
their own overcrowding.
He also told the judge that the timing of the transfers, which have already
taken place, was “horrendous,” given the overcrowding problems faced by the
state system.
Accompanying the motion to vacate the order was an affidavit by Acting
Commissioner of Correction James R. Bender in which he cited “overcrowded
conditions” in the state prisons that he said were compounded by the recent
forced closure of the Department Disciplinary Unit at the state prison in
Walpole because of a malfunctioning cell-door locking system.
Ms. Lazar-Moore disagreed with Mr. Saltzman’s interpretation of the law.
When read as a whole, she said, the statute conveys to judges the authority
to order the transfer of pretrial inmates from institution to institution
“to remedy emergency situations such as the one faced by the (county) jail
currently.”
Because the assistant district attorney did not receive Mr. Saltzman’s
motion until just before yesterday’s hearing, Judge McCann gave her until
the end of the day to file her written opposition. In the meantime, the
Department of Correction has accepted the county jail’s 40 detainees to
abide by Judge McCann’s initial order.
Sheriff Glodis has complained of overcrowding at the jail before, and sought
help from Mr. Conte’s office Monday after the population swelled to 1,402
inmates, the highest the population has been at the jail. The sheriff said
the increase was a sudden spike and the transfers were an emergency.
The jail’s population was 1,350 on Thursday night. By Friday night, it
increased to 1,392. And by Monday, it was 1,402. Sheriff Glodis said he was
told by the previous administration that the jail was in critical stages
when it has 1,330 inmates.
The sheriff has worked to reduce the jail’s population since taking office
in January, placing more inmates in community corrections programs and
mental health facilities. He has also sent letters to area trial judges
asking them to consider the jail’s population when setting bail or
sentencing an inmate, saying there should be consideration for home
confinement or other probation measures.
The sheriff and Mr. Conte have also called for expanding the jail, saying
that even with home confinement measures and jail reform efforts, such as
more drug counseling programs, more space will be needed. The last expansion
of the jail was 11 years ago, and officials have said the West Boylston jail
is the most overcrowded in the state.
In 1989, a consent decree was approved in federal court capping the number
of inmates that can be housed at the county jail, the result of a civil
rights case brought on behalf of inmates.
Jeffrey Turco, deputy superintendent of the jail, said the decree is
antiquated because it was approved before the expansion 11 years ago and
covers only a fraction of the current facility. He said jail officials plan
to petition the federal court to modify or vacate the decree.
Still, he acknowledged yesterday that the jail has not followed the decree,
and that some of the units covered under the federal agreement now house
double their capacity. There’s still no space, he said.
Before Tuesday’s hearing, jail officials initially proposed personal
recognizance for 20 inmates held in lieu of relatively low cash bail while
awaiting trial, or to have their bail reduced. The list of potential
candidates for release included inmates charged with crimes ranging from
disorderly conduct to breaking and entering in the nighttime with intent to
commit a felony.
However, the proposal was opposed by Mr. Conte and a probation official who
were concerned about placing inmates ordered incarcerated on probation
instead because of overcrowding.
Hearings similar to the one jail officials initially proposed were common in
Worcester Superior Court in the early 1990s, when crowded conditions forced
then-Sheriff John M. Flynn to routinely ask that pretrial detainees be set
free so that the jail could remain in compliance with the consent decree.
Some inmates released at that time were later charged with committing new
offenses while out of custody, including one who was charged with murder.
Wednesday, August 17, 2005
Jail sends 40 to state
prison
Law cited to reduce
crowding
By Gary V. Murray and Milton J. Valencia TELEGRAM &
GAZETTE STAFF
gmurray@telegram.com
WORCESTER—
Sheriff Guy W. Glodis and District Attorney
John J. Conte invoked state law yesterday to transfer 40 county jail inmates
still awaiting trial to the state prison system, to ease overcrowding the
West Boylston facility.
The sheriff’s office first proposed reducing bail or considering personal
recognizance for inmates charged with minor crimes, to release them to free
space in the Worcester County Jail and House of Correction.
It was considered a final option after the state Department of Correction
refused to voluntarily accept inmates, citing its own overcrowding. But Mr.
Conte, opposing the release of any inmates ordered held on bail, cited state
law giving his office and the jail the right to seek a court order for the
transfer.
Judge John S. McCann allowed the request without a hearing.
“They’re incarcerated for a reason,” Mr. Conte said.
Under the law, a person in custody awaiting trial who has previously served
a state prison sentence for a felony may be transferred by the commissioner
of correction to a state institution.
When yesterday’s request was made, 40 pretrial detainees met the criteria,
and their transfer was approved. However, the Telegram & Gazette learned
last night that the Department of Correction plans to appeal the order.
State officials asked the jail to transfer only 20 inmates last night, so
accommodations could be made for the other 20 and while the appeal is
pending.
Still, jail officials said the law is clear and they expect to transfer the
remaining 20 inmates today. Also, the sheriff’s office expects to continue
working with the district attorney to transfer any inmate who comes to the
county facility and meets the criteria under the law.
At issue is a recent spike in inmates awaiting trial being sent to the
county jail. Sheriff Glodis has raised concerns of crowding before, but said
the population Monday night was 1,402, the highest ever at the jail and
close to double its capacity of 822 inmates.
Since taking office in January, the sheriff has worked to reduce the jail’s
population, placing more inmates in community corrections programs and
mental-health facilities. In January, there were 14 inmates in the community
corrections program — where inmates are supervised by a citizen sponsor and
wear monitoring bracelets — and now there are 52. Inmates have been added to
a work release program, too. And the sheriff has sent letters to area trial
judges, asking them to consider the jail’s population when setting bail or
sentencing an inmate.
Still, the sheriff has stressed the overcrowding continues and creates a
public safety threat, lumping inmates together and creating a tense
atmosphere. A fight that led to an inmate’s death recently was blamed in
part on overcrowding, with the sheriff saying inmates are stressed from
being crammed into cells and facilities are understaffed.
The sheriff has pushed for the construction of new facilities, saying that
even with the implementation of programs typical of modern jail reform, such
as drug counseling for inmates and an increase in community corrections for
minor offenders, there will still be a need for new beds.
“We need emergency action now,” the sheriff said yesterday. “It’s a very
dangerous environment, and becoming more and more of a public safety
crisis.”
He said the jail was recently forced to cram inmates into receiving rooms
and the jail’s medical center. Inmates slept on layers of blankets over the
weekend until mattresses were brought in from the Middlesex County sheriff’s
office on Monday.
The jail’s population was 1,350 on Thursday night. By Friday night, it was
1,392. And by Monday, it was 1,402.
“We take the population as it comes,” said Jeffrey Turco, deputy
superintendent of the jail. He said the problem was taken to Mr. Conte’s
office Monday.
Jail officials initially proposed personal recognizance for 20 inmates held
in lieu of relatively low cash bail while awaiting trial, or to have their
bail reduced. The list of potential candidates for release that was provided
to the court included inmates charged with crimes ranging from disorderly
conduct to breaking and entering in the nighttime with intent to commit a
felony. The list was forwarded to Mr. Conte and Thomas A. Turco III, chief
probation officer in Worcester Superior Court, for their review before the
scheduled hearing.
However, the proposal met opposition from Mr. Conte and Mr. Turco of
probation.
It was anticipated that at least some of the inmates chosen for release
would be placed on pretrial probation, a move that Mr. Turco said would put
a strain on his department, as well as other probation departments in
Worcester County that would be responsible for their supervision. He noted
the conditions placed by judges on pretrial probationers were often more
stringent than those imposed on people who are put on probation after being
convicted.
Mr. Conte opposed releasing people charged with crimes, and said the state
law that was invoked was favorable to all aspects of the criminal justice
system.
“The alternative is to release these criminals to the streets,” he said,
“and I don’t think anybody wants that.
“We in the district attorney’s office oppose the release of criminals back
to the community who have been incarcerated.”
Ronal Madnick, head of the Worcester Chapter of the American Civil Liberties
Union of Massachusetts, said he opposes the transfer to state prison,
because detainees face a harsher system, particularly because those
transferred still haven’t been sentenced.
He said the ACLU has pushed for more drug counseling sessions and programs
and lower bail for nonviolent offenders. Also, he opposes the construction
of new jails, saying they will be overcrowded as quickly and there will be
no effort to address the long-term problem of drug and alcohol abuse that
led to incarceration.
August 1, 2002
Court blasts Worcester DA for
failing to imprison rapist
by Jack Sullivan
The state's highest court yesterday lambasted Worcester
District Attorney John J. Conte for botching the case of a convicted rapist who
has not spent a day in prison despite being sentenced in 1988 to 10 years behind
bars.
In the ruling denying a motion by the victim in the case asking that
her attacker be forced to serve his time, the Supreme Judicial Court said James
J. Kelly should have been imprisoned while his appeal was running its course.
But the court laid the blame for the delay squarely in Conte's lap, citing
the ``tortured procedural history of the case.''
``The record provides no plausible excuse for a delay,'' Justice Robert Cordy
wrote in the opinion. ``(I)t is incumbent on the Commonwealth to take some
action to resolve the case. The rights of the victim and the public to finality
demand more than the Commonwealth has produced here.''
Debra Hagen, the victim who now lives in Florida, said she felt vindicated
that the SJC rapped Conte's office for how they treated her while coddling the
defendant.
``It infuriates me,'' said Hagen, who was raped 16 years ago by Kelly, her
uncle through marriage and her father's best man. ``I'm glad (the SJC) at least
said (Conte) did wrong. They did mess up, badly. I really hope this doesn't
happen to anybody else.''
Assistant District Attorney Harry D. Quick III said he did not see the
criticism directed specifically at Conte's office but rather the entire court
system. Quick said prosecutors have accepted some blame for the delays in the
appeal as well as the case getting ``lost in the cracks'' for three years and
the lapse in filing to revoke the stay of execution.
Kelly, 73, of Leominster was convicted in October 1987 of raping Hagen in a
cemetery after driving her there under the guise of visiting his father's grave.
He was sentenced to two concurrent 10-year terms and a five-year term at
MCI-Concord.
Kelly, whose attorney did not return a call for comment yesterday, c |
