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| Fallin official: Low pay, staffing not safety issue in state prisons |
| By tulsaworld.com - Barbara Hoberock |
| Published: 12/30/2013 |
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Low staffing and low pay combined with mandatory overtime have not created safety problems in Oklahoma prisons, Gov. Mary Fallin’s general counsel said Thursday. “I don’t think we have seen any evidence that the Department of Corrections is sacrificing safety,” said Steve Mullins, the governor’s general counsel. “We don’t see that issue. Can it be done better? We believe it can be. But we don’t have the concern that safety is being compromised. The staffing ratios the DOC uses are similar to the staffing ratios used by almost all other prisons across the country.” A survey recently released by the Oklahoma Corrections Professionals indicates the state’s correctional officer-to-prisoner ratio is one of the worst in the nation. Only 60 percent of the correctional officer posts are currently filled in Oklahoma prisons, according to the Department of Corrections. “A number of the major facilities have gone to 12-hour shifts,” said Jerry Massie, a Department of Corrections spokesman. Massie declined to comment when asked if staffing and mandatory overtime have created safety issues within prison walls. Read More. |
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