NCJ Number
191614
Journal
Prison Review International Issue: 1 Dated: July 2001 Pages: 57-60
Date Published
July 2001
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This article describes modernizing the security control system at a high-risk unit.
Abstract
The Washington State Corrections Center in Shelton, WA, includes an Intensive Management Unit (IMU), a housing unit for high-risk inmates requiring special management and maximum custody arrangements. Modernizing the 16-year-old electronic security control system in the IMU began with the selection of touch-screen control technology for the updated system. The system would provide in-depth data on inmate tracking, and would be integrated with a security control system. Over a 2-year period, the old and sometimes unreliable security control system was replaced with a more efficient and trouble-free one that met three major goals of the system designers: (1) a safer working environment for staff and inmates and better staff monitoring; (2) a more effective and smoothly running inmate movement program that automatically logs movement events via the touch-screen system; and (3) a streamlined and more efficient security control system that enables the control booth operator to efficiently perform required duties without the burden of paper work. Future enhancements to the system will include audio recording of communications, a statewide database, and expansion of the system throughout the facility.