FIRST REGULAR SESSION
SENATE BILL NO. 378
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
INTRODUCED BY SENATOR MOSLEY.
0049S.01I KRISTINA MARTIN, Secretary
AN ACT
To amend chapter 217, RSMo, by adding thereto five new sections relating to the oversight of
department of corrections facilities.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Chapter 217, RSMo, is am ended by adding thereto 1
five new sections, to be known as sections 217.950, 217.955, 2
217.960, 217.965, and 217.970, to read as follows:3
217.950. As used in sections 217.955 to 217.970, the 1
following terms mean: 2
(1) "Department", the departmen t of corrections; 3
(2) "Family member", includes a grandparent, parent, 4
sibling, spouse or domestic partner, child, aunt, uncle, 5
cousin, niece, nephew, grandchild, or any other person 6
related to an individual by blood, adoption, marriage, or a 7
fostering relationship; 8
(3) "Office", the office of the state ombudsman for 9
inmates in the custody of the department of corrections; 10
(4) "Ombudsman", the state ombudsman for inmates in 11
the custody of the department of corrections. 12
217.955. 1. There is hereby established within the 1
department of corrections the "Office of State Ombudsman for 2
Inmates in the Custody of the Department of Corrections", 3
for the purpose of helping to assure the adequacy of care 4
received by inmates and to improve the quality of life 5
experienced by them. 6 SB 378 2
2. The office shall be administered by the state 7
ombudsman, who shall devote his or her entire time to the 8
duties of his or her position. 9
3. The office shall establish and implement procedures 10
for receiving, processing, responding to, and resolving 11
complaints made by or on behalf of inmates in the custody of 12
the department of corrections relating to action, inaction, 13
or decisions of department staff or contractors which may 14
adversely affect the health, safety, welfare, or rights of 15
such inmates. 16
4. The office shall establish and implement procedures 17
for the resolution of complaints. The ombudsman or 18
representatives of the office shall have the authority to: 19
(1) Provide information, as appropriate, to inmates, 20
family members of inmates, representatives of inmates, 21
department of corrections employees and contractors, and 22
others regarding the rights of inmates; 23
(2) Monitor conditions of confinement and assess 24
department of corrections compliance with applicable 25
federal, state, and department rules and regulations as 26
related to the health, safety, welfare, and rehabilitation 27
of inmates; 28
(3) Provide technical assistance to support inmate 29
participation in self-advocacy; 30
(4) Establish a statewide uniform reporting system to 31
collect and analyze data related to complaints received by 32
the department, and data related to the following: 33
(a) Deaths, suicides, and suicide attempts in custody; 34
(b) Physical and sexual assaults in custody; 35
(c) Number of people placed in administrative 36
segregation or solitary confinement, and duration of stay in 37
such confinement; 38 SB 378 3
(d) Number of facility lockdowns lasting longer than 39
twenty-four hours; 40
(e) Number of staff vacancies at each facility; 41
(f) Inmate to staff ratios at each facility; 42
(g) Staff tenure and turnover; and 43
(h) Numbers of in-person visits to inmates that were 44
made and denied at each facility; 45
(5) Inspect each department facility at least once 46
each year and at least two times each year for each maximum 47
security facility and each facility where the office has 48
found cause for more frequent inspection or monitoring; 49
(6) Publicly issue annual facil ity inspection reports 50
and an annual report with recommendations on the department 51
facilities and a summary of data and recommendations arising 52
from any complaints investigated and resolved pursuant to 53
section 217.965; 54
(7) Monitor all decisions o f the parole board. 55
5. The office shall be directed by an ombudsman, who 56
shall be appointed by the governor, and shall serve a term 57
of six years. The ombudsman shall not be a current or 58
former employee or contractor of the department, and the 59
ombudsman's spouse or domestic partner, parents, 60
grandparents, children, or siblings shall not be a current 61
employee or contractor of the department. 62
6. The ombudsman shall have the authority to hire 63
staff, contractors, and unpaid volunteers. 64
7. (1) The office shall have reasonable access, upon 65
demand in-person or in-writing and with or without prior 66
notice, to all department facilities, including all areas 67
which are used by inmates, all areas which are accessible to 68
inmates, and to progr ams for inmates at reasonable times, 69
which at a minimum shall include normal working hours and 70 SB 378 4
visiting hours. This authority includes the opportunity to 71
conduct an interview with any inmate, department employee or 72
contractor, or other person. 73
(2) The office shall have the authority to meet and 74
communicate privately and confidentially with individuals 75
regularly, both formally and informally, by telephone, mail, 76
electronic communication, and in -person. 77
(3) The office shall have the author ity to access, 78
inspect, and copy all relevant information, records, or 79
documents in the possession or control of the department 80
that the office considers necessary in an investigation of a 81
complaint filed pursuant to section 217.970, and the 82
department shall assist the office in obtaining the 83
necessary releases for those documents which are 84
specifically restricted or privileged for use by the office 85
no later than thirty days after the office's written request 86
for such records. If the records reque sted by the office 87
pertain to an inmate death, threat of death or bodily harm, 88
sexual assault, or the denial of necessary medical 89
treatment, the records shall be provided by the department 90
within five days unless the office consents to an extension 91
of time no longer than thirty days. 92
8. The office shall establish confidentiality rules 93
and procedures for all information maintained by the office 94
to ensure that the identity of a complainant is not known to 95
department employees or contractors or o ther inmates. The 96
office may disclose identifying information for the sole 97
purpose of carrying out an investigation. 98
217.960. 1. As used in this section, "covered issues" 1
shall mean: 2
(1) Sanitation in prison facilities; 3 SB 378 5
(2) Access to proper nutrition and a clean and 4
adequate water supply; 5
(3) Livable temperatures in prison facilities; 6
(4) Physical or sexual abuse from fellow inmates; 7
(5) Physical or sexual abuse from department of 8
corrections staff or contractors; 9
(6) Credible threats against an inmate from other 10
inmates, prison staff, or contractors; 11
(7) Neglect of prison staff or contractors that 12
results in physical or sexual trauma; 13
(8) Denial of rights afforded to inmates under federal 14
or state law; 15
(9) Access to visitation and communication with family 16
and legal representation; 17
(10) Any instance in which the office determines an 18
action or behavior to be such that it constitutes abuse or 19
neglect against an inmate. 20
2. The office shall conduct at least one inspection 21
each year of each department of corrections facility and at 22
least two times each year for each maximum security facility 23
to monitor the status of all covered issues pursuant to this 24
section. The office shall conduct an inspection of each 25
department facility and release a public report pursuant to 26
section 217.965. 27
3. An inspection of a department facility shall 28
include an assessment of all of the following: 29
(1) All policies and procedures in place by the 30
facility related to the care of inmates; 31
(2) Conditions of confinement; 32
(3) Availability of educational and rehabilitative 33
programming, drug and mental health treatment, and inmate 34
jobs and vocational training; 35 SB 378 6
(4) Review of hourly wages of inmates; 36
(5) All policies and procedures related to visitation; 37
(6) All medical facilities and medical procedures and 38
policies; 39
(7) Review of lockdowns at the facility in the time 40
since the last inspection ; 41
(8) Review of staffing at the facility, including the 42
number and job assignments of correctional staff, the ratio 43
of staff to inmates at the facility, and the staff position 44
vacancy rate at the facility; 45
(9) Review of physical and sexual a ssaults at the 46
facility in the time since the last inspection; 47
(10) Review of any inmate or staff deaths that 48
occurred at the facility in the time since the last 49
inspection; 50
(11) Review of the department staff recruitment, 51
training, supervision, and discipline; and 52
(12) Any other aspect of the operation of the facility 53
that the office deems necessary over the course of an 54
inspection. 55
217.965. 1. Upon completion of an inspection, the 1
office shall produce a report to be made available to the 2
public on the office's website, and to be delivered to the 3
governor, the attorney general, the president pro tempore of 4
the senate, the speaker of the house of representatives, and 5
the director of the department. The report shall include: 6
(1) A summary of the facility's policies and 7
procedures related to care of the inmates; 8
(2) A characterization of the conditions of 9
confinement; 10 SB 378 7
(3) A catalogue of available educational and 11
rehabilitative programming, drug and mental health 12
treatment, and inmate jobs and vocational training; 13
(4) A summary of visitation policies and procedures; 14
(5) A summary of medical facilities and medical 15
procedures and policies; 16
(6) A summary of the lockdowns revi ew by the office; 17
(7) A summary of the staffing at the facility, 18
including policies relating to staff recruitment, training, 19
supervision, and discipline; 20
(8) A summary of physical and sexual assaults reviewed 21
by the office; 22
(9) A summary of any inmate or staff deaths that 23
occurred at the facility; and 24
(10) Recommendations made to the facility to improve 25
safety and conditions within the facility. 26
2. The department shall submit a report to the office 27
within thirty days of t he office's inspection report which 28
shall include a corrective action plan for each 29
recommendation of the office. 30
217.970. 1. The office may initiate and attempt to 1
resolve an investigation upon its own initiative, or upon 2
receipt of a complaint from an inmate, family member, 3
representative of an inmate, a department employee or 4
contractor, or others, regarding any of the following that 5
may adversely affect the health, safety, welfare, and rights 6
of inmates: 7
(1) Abuse or neglect; 8
(2) Conditions of confinement; 9
(3) Department decisions or administrative actions; 10
(4) Department inactions or omissions; 11
(5) Department policies, rules, or procedures; 12 SB 378 8
(6) Alleged violations of law by department emplo yees 13
or contractors that may adversely affect the health, safety, 14
welfare, and rights of inmates; or 15
(7) Decisions of the parole board. 16
2. The office shall decline to investigate a complaint 17
if the inmate has failed to first utilize the depa rtment 18
policies and procedures regarding resolution of inmate 19
grievances. If the office does not investigate a complaint, 20
the office shall notify the complainant in writing of the 21
decision not to investigate and the reasons for the decision. 22
3. Any action or lack of action on a complaint by the 23
office shall not be deemed an administrative procedure 24
required for exhaustion of remedies prior to bringing an 25
action pursuant to the Prison Litigation Reform Act, 42 26
U.S.C. Section 1997e, et seq. 27
4. The office may not investigate any complaints 28
relating to an inmate's underlying criminal conviction. 29
5. The office may not investigate a complaint from a 30
department employee or contractor that relates to the 31
employee or contractor's employm ent relationship with the 32
department unless the complaint is related to the health, 33
safety, welfare, and rehabilitation of inmates. 34
6. The office may refer the complainant and others to 35
appropriate resources or state, tribal, or federal agencies. 36
7. The office may not levy any fees for the submission 37
or investigation of complaints. 38
8. The office may investigate any complaint regarding 39
a parole decision. 40
9. At the conclusion of an investigation of a 41
complaint, the office shall r ender a public decision on the 42
merits of each complaint within ninety days of the filing of 43
the complaint, except that the documents supporting the 44 SB 378 9
decision are subject to the confidentiality provision of 45
section 217.955. The office shall give a decis ion in 46
writing to the inmate, if any, and to the department. The 47
office shall state its recommendations and reasoning if, in 48
the office's opinion, the department or any employee or 49
contractor thereof should: 50
(1) Consider the matter further; 51
(2) Modify or cancel any action; 52
(3) Alter a rule, practice, or ruling; 53
(4) Explain in detail the administrative action in 54
question; or 55
(5) Rectify an omission. 56
10. If the office so requests, the department shall, 57
within thirty days, inform the office in writing about any 58
action taken on the recommendations or the reasons for not 59
complying with the recommendations. 60
11. If the office finds, based on the investigation, 61
that there has been or continues to be a significant i nmate 62
health, safety, welfare, or rehabilitation issue, the office 63
shall report such finding to the governor, the attorney 64
general, the president pro tempore of the senate, speaker of 65
the house of representatives, and the director of the 66
department of corrections. 67
12. In the event that the department conducts an 68
internal disciplinary investigation and review of one or 69
more of its staff members as a result of an office 70
investigation, the department's disciplinary review may be 71
subject to additional review and investigation by the office 72
to ensure a fair and objective process. 73
13. The department and its employees and contractors 74
shall not discharge, retaliate against, or in any manner 75
discriminate against any person because such person has 76 SB 378 10
filed any complaint or instituted or caused to be instituted 77
any investigation under section 217.970. 78
(1) Any alleged discharge of, retaliation against, or 79
discrimination against a complainant may be considered by 80
the office as an appropriate subject of an investigation. 81
(2) Any department employee or contractor who believes 82
that he or she has been discharged or otherwise retaliated 83
against by any person in violation of this chapter may, 84
within thirty days after such violation occurs, file a 85
complaint with the attorney general. 86
(3) If the complainant has suffered abuse or any other 87
violation of this chapter after he or she filed a complaint, 88
there shall be a rebuttable presumption of retaliation. 89