The Three Forbidden Acts in Arizona Prisons

The Three Forbidden Acts in Arizona Prisons

On March 27, 2014, Director Charles L. Ryan implemented a new director’s Instruction memo tagged as DI 236 that handles maximum custody inmates in conjunction with other department orders already written and followed. In this directive he added his own “three strikes and you are out” rule only you don’t need three events for it to apply but rather, just one of these forbidden acts will land you in maximum custody according the outline. 

Generally speaking this means that if you were to commit all three of the forbidden acts, your chances of being in maximum custody are good that you will serve your remaining time there as well as released from these special housing units designed for behavioral modification treatment and mental health care.

The directive defines the Three Forbidden Acts – Serious assaults on staff, serious inmate on inmate assaults with a weapon and multiple inmates assaulting an inmate with serious injury.” The purpose as written shows the Arizona Department of Corrections employees are being directed to adhere to a new maximum custody management system that was implemented to  facilitate a process that requires inmates in maximum custody to work through a program utilizing a step system providing the opportunity to participate in jobs, programs and other out of cell activities.

Based on behavior and programming, inmates may progress from controlled based housing to open privilege base housing where movement outside a cell is without restraint equipment. This modifies the concept of programming maximum custody inmates involved in commission of one the Forbidden Three Acts (see definition) and the Guiding Principles (see definition) developed by the Association of State Correctional Administrators (ASCA).

The guiding principles are:

1. Provide a process, a separate review for decisions to place an inmate in maximum custody;

2. Provide periodic classification reviews of inmates in maximum custody every 180 days or less;

3. Provide in-person mental health assessments, by trained personnel within 72 hours of an inmate being placed in maximum custody and periodic mental health assessments thereafter including an appropriate mental health treatment plan;

4. Provide structured and progressive levels that include increased privileges as an incentive for positive behavior and/or program participation;

5. Determine an inmate’s length of stay in maximum custody on the nature and level of threat to the safe and orderly operation of general population as well as program participation, rule compliance and the recommendation of the person(s) assigned to conduct the classification review as opposed to strictly held time periods;

6. Provide appropriate access to medical and Mental Health staff and services;

7. Provide access to visiting opportunities;

8. Provide appropriate exercise opportunities;

9. Provide the ability to maintain proper hygiene;

10. Provide program opportunities appropriate to support transition back to a general population setting or to the community;

11. Collect sufficient data to assess the effectiveness of implementation of these guiding principles;

12. Conduct an objective review of all inmates in maximum custody by persons independent of the placement authority to determine the inmates’ need for continued placement in maximum custody;

13. Require all staff assigned to work in maximum custody units receive appropriate training in managing inmates on maximum custody status.