A new report from the state Office of the Legislative Auditor (OLA) says the Minnesota Department of Corrections (DOC) needs to improve its data gathering practices, for the safety and welfare of prisoners and staff. The report out today says the DOC’s data on violent events in state prisons are inconsistent and incomplete. The report says chronic shortages of correctional officers and the increasing use of overtime at several prisons have affected the safety of prisoners and staff. And the report shows that at some prisons, sexual offenses against female staff by prisoners occur frequently, but are often ignored or downplayed by supervisors and coworkers. The OLA is recommending that the state legislature should require regular external oversight of prison safety
procedures–and strengthen existing “security audits.” In a letter dated February 21, 2020, Department of Corrections Commissioner Paul Schnell wrote that “we concur in whole” with the report’s findings and recommendations. You can find more from the OLA report here.