Cite Subsequent Decline
Rise in Jail Violence Is Seen As a Blip

By REUVEN BLAU

The Correction Department asserted last week that the two-month increase in slashings and stabbings in city jails over the summer was an aberration rather than a threat to the agency's overall success driving down jail violence in recent years.

NORMAN SEABROOK: More staff would help.

"We just had that two-month spike, which is significantly responsible for that bump that shows up in the Mayor's Management Report," said department spokesman Stephen Morello. "We are doing a close analysis of where they were occurring, when they are happening, and what kinds of weapons are involved."

Summer Eruptions

According to the Mayor's report, from July through October 2006, compared to the same period in the previous year, stabbings and slashings jumped 67 percent, from 12 to 20. There were eight assaults in July and seven in August.

The department noted that in the preceding and subsequent months, there have been only two or three attacks. There were only seven stabbings and slashings from November 2006 through January.

"We are going to get variations from month to month and year to year," Mr. Morello said. "The good news is the violence continues to be significantly down from a prior era, and the jails continue to be safer than they once were."

In fiscal year 2006, there were 37 slashings and stabbings involving inmate-on-inmate attacks. By contrast, there were 1,093 in 1995.

"The Department of Correction is a victim of our own success," said Sidney Schwartzbaum, president of the Assistant Deputy Wardens'/Deputy Wardens' Association. "Uniformed staff has done a remarkable job over the years in reducing inmate-on-inmate violence."

'Inmates Unpredictable'

Ronald W. Whitfield, president of the Correction Captains' Association, said it's difficult to pinpoint why the brief increase occurred. "Our Captains along with the Correction Officers are conducting searches every day to reduce the violence," he said in a statement. "However, inmates are extremely unpredictable and dangerous; that's what makes the Captains' job as dangerous as it is."

Norman Seabrook, president of the Correction Officers' Benevolent Association, declined to comment on the latest figures. "We need more staffing levels," he said Feb. 20 following an officer graduation. "The reason it is so bad is because of the starting salary; $26,000 to start isn't what I would call a primary career."

DOC Commissioner Martin F. Horn called July and August "monster months," and said it may have been related to the blackout and the old facilities on Rikers Island.

"One of the many advantages to reducing our dependence on Rikers Island is that we will have modern, safe facilities with the latest design," Mr. Morello said. "Presumably, inmates will be less able to fashion weapons from the material that they find."

The DOC has a comprehensive $650-million plan to build and renovate jails in Brooklyn and The Bronx, which will help cut inmate transportation time to courts, place them closer to their families, and create contingency housing.

Segregate Miscreants

Mr. Schwartzbaum called the summer increase in violence an "aberration" and said the department responded appropriately in targeting security risk groups for searches. "The one area I am critical of the department is in allowing hundreds of inmates who are convicted of institutional infractions to linger in the jails for months without being placed in punitive segregation," he added. "Justice delayed is justice denied, and a serious morale-killer for uniformed staff."

Based on the Management Report, other areas of violence rose over the first part of this year as well. Those figures showed increases in assaults on staff, use-of-force incidents, and weapons recovered.

According to Mr. Morello, use-of-force incidents rose because officers are using chemical sprays such as MACE to interrupt inmate fights before they escalate. "While the number of uses of force may trend up, they are resulting in fewer injuries because we are using the spray in our interventions," he said.