NEWS

Tennessee prison assaults soar under new definitions

Dave Boucher
USA TODAY NETWORK - Tennessee
New data show a combined 22 assaults on staff and inmates at West Tennessee State Penitentiary since Jan. 11. The state implemented new definitions for assaults that day, and argues it's "impossible" to compare new assault data with data from previous years.

Since Jan. 11, there have been 70 assaults with a weapon against Tennessee correctional officers. An additional 49 assaults over the same period didn't involve a weapon.

Those 119 assaults put the Tennessee Department of Correction on pace to more than double the number of assaults on staff recorded in 2015, according to figures obtained from the department through a request by The Tennessean.

The seemingly drastic increase comes after Tennessee prison officials changed the definitions of assault on officers and inmates amid continued scrutiny from officers, inmates and the organization the department relies on to inspect its facilities and policies.

Prison chief: New definitions mean assault totals to rise

For months, officers, inmates and their families complained of increases in violence in the Tennessee prison system. However, department Commissioner Derrick Schofield and Gov. Bill Haslam downplayed those concerns, pointing to data they said showed the number of assaults on staff had consistently decreased since 2012.

After continued complaints about those definitions, and a recommendation from the American Correctional Association, the state changed its definition for assaults. There are now four categories: assaults on offenders with and without a weapon, and assaults on staff with and without a weapon.

Ramsey 'adamantly opposed' to corrections oversight committee

Haslam spokeswoman Jennifer Donnals didn't comment on whether the new data accurately reflect the level of violence in Tennessee prisons.

"The (ACA) report also made a recommendation, and the department reviewed it, implementing a new policy. It’s not appropriate to compare numbers from two different policies," Donnals said in an emailed statement Wednesday.

Also noting the ACA report, Schofield spokeswoman Neysa Taylor said the national organization never said the definitions it recommended ditching were "inadequate." Like Donnals, Taylor argued it's "impossible" to compare statistics compiled under the old definition.

"These broader definitions make it impossible to effectively and accurately compare previous disciplinary numbers to where we are today. This year will be spent establishing a new baseline from which future numbers can be compared," Taylor said in an emailed statement.

Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey, R-Blountville, has been critical of Schofield and the way the department has handled issues pertaining to safety, scheduling and pay. In a statement Wednesday, he says the new data validate the concerns about violence in the prison system.

“When issues at the Department of Correction first arose last year, our Senate State and Local Corrections Subcommittee conducted exhaustive hearings resulting in important changes like these definition adjustments. This new data reveals that the concerns expressed were, in fact, real," Ramsey said in an emailed statement.

Sen. Jeff Yarbro, D-Nashville, also has criticized the department's previous approach to how it tracks violence and assaults in state prisons. He echoed Ramsey's statement Wednesday, saying the "spike" in assaults reflected in the new data shows assaults in the past have been "misclassified and underreported."

"When corrections officers are assaulted with a weapon once a day on average, the administration's assurance that our prisons are safe rings pretty hollow. The administration and the legislature have a legal and moral obligation to confront this festering problem and do something about it," Yarbro said in a statement.

Critics: Puncture wound case illustrates prison reporting issues

In January, Schofield told The Tennessean he expected the new definitions would result in more recorded assaults.

"The numbers will naturally go up. We broadened that definition, we took out the one that kind of gave some buffer there. We want to make sure we added the clarity, took out the subjectivity, and so we will see a tick up," Schofield said after a legislative hearing.

"But what will happen is that there's still the ability to count assault with injury, minor injury. So we'll still have that, just like we counted in the past. That doesn't go away."

Bill to re-establish corrections oversight progresses

The new data show 66 assaults on inmates during the same time period. The bulk of the total assaults, 99, happened in February, the only full month during which the new definitions were in effect.

Northwest Correctional Complex, West Tennessee State Penitentiary in Henning and the Hardeman County Correctional Center each had more than 20 assaults of all kinds since Jan. 11. Although Northwest and Hardeman each had more than 2,000 inmates at their facilities during February, there were only 1,057 at West Tennessee by the end of the month.

Inmates and correctional officers have repeatedly said West Tennessee and Northwest are two of the most dangerous facilities in the state system. There were a combined 28 assaults on staff at these two facilities alone since Jan. 11; 17 of those involved a weapon.

Accuracy is extremely important in crafting effective policies, said House Democratic Caucus Chairman Mike Stewart, D-Nashville. A constant critic of Schofield and the department, Stewart applauded Haslam's proposed pay increase for correctional officers — something Donnals noted in her statement. He described the new data as a possible first step toward accurately reflecting what happens inside Tennessee prisons.

"What I’m hopeful is that it represents a department that is making a more comprehensive effort to properly categorize assaults on staff, which has been such a problem," Stewart said.

"Understanding what the reality is that is faced by our correctional officers is the first step to trying to protect them more effectively."

Stewart and advocates — including a prisoner rights organization and the state employee association — argued the definitions used by the state to arrive at assault numbers published in the past were flawed: An offender who hit an officer in the face with urine might be charged with assault, but if the inmate hit the officer in the chest with the urine, then it could be filed as a "staff/inmate provocation."

Stewart and others also have noted numerous incidents in which officers were hit with bodily fluids or other items in the face that were later deemed "staff/inmate provocations."

The new definitions clearly outline what constitutes an assault with or without a weapon. A weapon could be "any object as a weapon, including any liquid or solid substances thrown on or otherwise projected on or at such person, regardless of whether contact is made," according to the new definition. It specifically notes teeth also may count as a weapon.

Any assault on a guest or visitor also falls under the definition of assault on staff, according to the new definitions.

Reach Dave Boucher at 615-259-8892 and on Twitter @Dave_Boucher1

New assault data

In data obtained by The Tennessean, the Tennessee Department of Correction outlines the number of assaults recorded in state prisons after implementing several new definitions. Here's a snapshot of some of the newly released data, looking at incidents between Jan. 11 and March 6.

Facilities with most assaults (on offenders and staff) 

Northwest Correctional Complex: 25

West Tennessee State Penitentiary: 22

Hardeman County Correctional Center: 21

Assaults on staff (2016 data use new definitions):

2016: 119

2015: 350

2014: 499

2013: 704

Assaults on offenders (2016 data use new definitions): 

2016: 66

2015: 391

2014: 395

2013: 443