Montana Department Corrections

Implosion Of The Montana Department of Corrections

In January, 2018 the Montana Law and Justice Interim Committee met in Helena. The meeting was particularly interesting in that a glaring deficiency was apparent. Unless Governor Steve Bullock and Department of Corrections Director Reginald Michael are truly behind the Committee it will fail and, unfortunately, it has been designed to fail. The implosion of the Montana Department of Corrections began in 2014 and continues today. Governor Bullock and previous Corrections Director Mike Batista and Bureau Chief Ron Alsbury are fully responsible.

Montana’s prisons are over capacity. The prison population increased 11 percent between FY2008 and FY2015 and is projected to continue to grow 13
percent by FY2023, requiring at least $51 million in new spending for contract prison beds.

Corrections in Montana is big business.  Really big business.  Private Corrections in Montana is really big business.  State run corrections in Montana is really big business.

By Peter Wagner and Bernadette Rabuy

January 25, 2017

Governor Bullock is term limited from being Governor for another term in Montana.  His sights are set on a national campaign.  National political campaigns are not funded by individual felons from Montana.  They are funded by big business.  This is where the implosion began and how it continues today.

In July 2014 Director Mike Batista and Bureau Chief Ron Alsbury began discussing reorganization of the Adult Community Corrections Division and changes to the sanctions grid.  The sanctions grid determines the probation/parole status of offenders and what punishments are exacted for violations, including minor and technical infractions.  The following grid was established.  Click on link below to view grid.

sj3-sanctions-flow-chart

October 9, 2014 Department of Corrections personnel received an email from Dave Armstrong, Administrator of Alternatives Inc, a private contract pre-release center, which is known as Alpha House for men and Passages for women. "So besides Cr'ing (conditional release) everyone in jail, what else?  What should we expect from the P&P grid, will be asked to hang onto drug and alcohol users?"

Probation/Parole offenders that are under normal supervision are sanctioned to jail by court authority.  Probation/Parole offenders on conditional release, under the new grid, will be sanctioned by probation/parole officers to private contract facilities without having to file with the court.  There is no money in corrections for offenders sitting in jail. There is big money for offenders sanctioned to private facilities.  Under the P&P grid all sanctions for conditional release will be made to private contract facilities without the need for interventions and court action. Put everyone sitting in jail on conditional release then probation/parole does not need to go through interventions they simply go straight to private incarceration. The plan is now in place for big business.

September 16, 2014 at a DOC meeting it was revealed that one DOC employee had a meeting with Mike Thatcher, CEO of Butte Pre-release, where it was revealed that Governor Bullock had called Mike Thatcher to his office and Governor Bullock told him to keep his mouth shut about DOC issues and to back off during the legislative session.  Without revealing his plan to Mike Thatcher Governor Bullock did not want Thatcher to disrupt his plans to increase private contractor beds to increase population in private facilities.  The plan for big business.

September 30, 2104 at a meeting with DOC personnel, concerns were expressed that the contract with PEW Charitable Trust and Dennis Schranz was "shady and would bite us in the ass."  Concern was also expressed that there was no procurement for the PEW contract and that personnel and contractors would be watching for the contract to be posted to a department or state website.  The PEW Charitable Trust is a consulting firm that was hired to assist the Montana Law and Justice Interim Committee to plan and reform criminal justice and sentencing.  The Pew Charitable Trust was hired to reduce the need for more private contract beds while Governor Bullock, Mike Batista and Ron Alsbury's plan was to increase private contract beds by sanctioning probation/parolees to conditional release, bypassing interventions and sanctioning offenders directly to contract beds.

The Law and Justice Interim Committee is being directed by The Pew Charitable Trust with a contract that was not put through the State of Montana procurement process.  The intent of the Committee is to reduce jail, prison and private contract incarceration.  Unbeknownst to the Law and Justice Committee, the Governor and the Director of the Montana Department of Corrections are acting in a complete opposite direction.  Big business requires the incarceration of individuals and Governor Bullock needs the backing of big business.  This includes corrections agencies both public and private, employees and their big business unions, health care, construction, food, utilities, clothing, phone companies, judges, prosecutors, public defenders, police and their unions, commissary and the list goes on for big business.  

The Law and Justice Interim Committee meets and listens to attractive people with agenda's purporting the good work they are doing to reduce jail, prison and private incarceration.  They tour facilities and have inmates smile at them for the good work they are attempting to do.  The real question they need to ask is how many probation/parolees are conditionally released from jails and then sanctioned to private contract facilities and prisons because under the P&P grid those on conditional release do not need to go through the intervention and court process.  They are sanctioned to incarceration because the probation and parole officers no longer have to file with the court to sanction them.  The incarceration rates continue to rise because Governor Bullock's plan undermines the work of the Committee and they don't have a clue what is really happening.

Governor Bullock needs big business to finance his national campaign.  The next question is where does the new Montana Director of Corrections Reginald Michael stand?  He was hand picked by Governor Bullock. Does he stand with Governor Bullock and the Montana Department of Corrections undermining the work of the Committee or does he stand with the Law and Justice Interim Committee?

Montana Senate Bill 63, The Constitution and The Gestapo

Montana Senate Bill 63 was introduced and passed by the 2017 Legislature by request of The Commission on Sentencing. Unfortunately, this bill will have a chilling effect on the constitutional rights of all defendants. If only the creators of this bill knew what they were actually doing, the creators of this bill would be appalled. The creators of this bill have no idea the underlying use of Senate Bill 63.

Constitution of United States of America 1789 (rev. 1992)

In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defence.

CONSTITUTION
of the
STATE OF MONTANA
PREAMBLE
We the people of Montana grateful to God for the quiet beauty of our state, the grandeur of our mountains, the vastness of our rolling plains, and desiring to improve the quality of life, equality of opportunity and to secure the blessings of liberty for this and future generations do ordain and establish this constitution.

ARTICLE II
DECLARATION OF RIGHT

Sectn 24. RIGHTS OF THE ACCUSED. In all criminal prosecutions the accused
shall have the right to appear and defend in person and by counsel; to demand the nature and cause of the accusation; to meet the witnesses against him face to face; to have process to compel the attendance of witnesses in his behalf, and a speedy public trial by an impartial jury of the county or district in which the offense is alleged to have been committed, subject to the right of the state to have a change of venue for any of the causes for which the defendant may obtain the same.

The heart of Senate Bill 63 is an act allowing the early termination of remaining portions of deferred or suspended sentences. In the case of deferred sentencing, the offender can be released from supervision after serving two years or one-half of the sentence, whichever is less. In the case of a suspended sentence, the offender can be released from supervision after serving 3 years or two-thirds of the time suspended, whichever is less. Conditional release can be granted as soon as the probationer has completed 9 months. This sounds really good!! The caveat to this bill is the defendant has to pay all restitution and court-ordered financial obligations in full. This caveat will be used as a tool to induce defendants to plead guilty or accept a plea bargain rather than exercise their constitutional rights to a trial, wherein they could be found not guilty. Let me explain how this bill is nothing but a tool for prosecutors.

A defendant that exercises their constitutional right to a trial will, through the arbitrary decision of the judge or request of the county attorney, be charged for the cost of the trial. These costs include the time of the county attorney, witness fees and expenses, investigator costs, jury costs, the cost of the judges' time and defense attorney charges and expenses. This can amount to thousands and thousands of dollars. The prosecutor comes in like the Gestapo and, with steel-toed boots, uses this Senate Bill to induce the defendant, with provisions of an early release from supervision, to plead guilty and not incur the expenses of paying for a trial. If they request a trial the defendant can never get early release from supervision because they can't pay all court-ordered financial obligations. The cost of exercising constitutional rights can amount to a lifetime sentence because the county attorney then places liens on all property of the defendant to pay for the trial. You choose, early release because there are no court-ordered financial obligations or a lifetime of paying court-ordered financial obligations and no chance of early release. This is the choice offered by Senate Bill 63.

Senate Bill 63 has only provided a tool to prosecutors. Defendants can exercise their constitutional right to a trial and get a lifetime sentence paying for the cost of the trial. Or, they can figuratively be kicked with steel-toed Gestapo boots into accepting a plea for early release of supervision as provided by Senate Bill 63 because there are no court-ordered financial obligations.

The creators of this bill have no idea of the underlying use of this bill. The underlying use will be used to induce defendants to plead guilty, waive their constitutional rights and, in many cases, innocent people will be convicted. All with the promise of early release and no court-ordered financial obligations.

Senate Bill 63 ushers in the Gestapo and disposes of this preamble:
CONSTITUTION
of the
STATE OF MONTANA
PREAMBLE
We the people of Montana grateful to God for the quiet beauty of our state, the grandeur of our mountains, the vastness of our rolling plains, and desiring to improve the quality of life, equality of opportunity and to secure the blessings of liberty for this and future generations do ordain and establish this constitution.

Montana Corruption – Profit in Private Corrections

Montana Department of Corrections contracts with private tax exempt corporations for correctional facilities. These private facilities are not accountable to Montana tax payers for exorbitant salaries paid to executive officers. See what your tax dollars are paying for.

Here are some facts about private corrections in Montana. All information is obtained from Form 990 Department of Treasury IRS as filed by each charitable organization.

Community Counseling and Corrections Inc (Butte Pre-Release) Executive Salaries based on 40 hour work week.
Mike Thatcher - $247,901.00
Perry Hawbaker - $121,917.00
Steve McArthur - $130,729.00
TOTAL $500,547.00

Boyd Andrew Community Services Executive Salaries based on 40 hour work week.
Amy Tenney - $124,431.00
Sue Carroll - $164,326.00
Michael Ruppert - $371,475.00
Boyd Andrew Management Service - $953,981.00
TOTAL $1,614,213.00

Missoula Correctional Services Executive Salaries based on 40 hour work week
Sue Wilkins $121,228.00
TOTAL $121,228.00

Alternatives Inc. Executive Salaries based on 40 hour work week except Donna Clinger who works 25 hours per week.
Nancy Good - $140,261.00
Jorge Diaz - $112,128.00
Fresia Skoczypec - $105,995.00
Donna Clinger - $67,592.00
TOTAL $425,976.00

Great Falls Pre-Release Services Executive Salaries based on 40 hour work week
Paul Corey - $81,210.00
TOTAL $81,210.00

COMBINED TOTAL FOR EXECUTIVE SALARIES FOR 5 PRIVATE CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES: $2,743,174.00. This total does not include staff salaries, just the executives.

These exorbitant salaries are paid by Montana tax payers. Private corrections is profiting from human suffering with exorbitant salaries paid to a few. There is nothing charitable or not for profit about these tax exempt corporations. We must stop this travesty of the lies of charitable good works. Stop private corrections in Montana and stop the lies concocted to keep these facilities operating for the good of a few.

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