The following are Sheriff Andrews’s responses to the grievances raised by the inmates of The First Five Grieving Committee. (Read their 9 grievances about the Durham County jail here). The Sheriff’s response was emailed to Inside-Outside Alliance.

From: Parker-Evans, Michelle <mpevans@dconc.gov>
Date: Tue, May 3, 2016 at 1:48 PM
Subject: FW: Jail Grievance Response

Gentlemen,

Please see the responses from the Sheriff regarding the questions you raised yesterday at the Worksession.

Michelle,

I am writing to provide my response to the recent questions raised during the work session:

1. Recreation for inmates who are administratively segregated from general population inmates must receive recreation separate from other inmates for safety and security concerns. Accordingly, the number of inmates who can be released from their cells from 9:00 p.m. -10:45 p.m. is limited. Additional staffing may allow employees to facilitate recreation for more inmates during additional times.
2. The Office of the Sheriff does not have authority over bond amounts. Rather, bonds are solely within the discretion of judicial authorities. Any questions related to bond amounts should be directed to Chief District Court Judge Marcia Morey.
3. Religious programming has not been restricted on Sunday.
4. All inmates, regardless of their legal representation, have access to legal resources.
5. The education initiative is aimed at youthful offenders to align with the Sheriff’s and County’s commitment to improve outcomes for disconnected youth. While the agency would appreciate the opportunity to broaden this effort for all inmates, this is a new program that is still being evaluated and any service increase would incur a substantial cost.
6. Evaluation of the mattresses is an ongoing responsibility. All mattresses are replaced when they reach the end of their life cycle or become damaged. During the previous two years, 420 mattresses have been replaced.
7. Each inmate’s complete clothing, which includes the orange colored clothing and white clothing, is laundered in his/her specific laundry bag. These items are laundered together in each inmate’s bag to ensure that all items are returned to the proper inmate.
8. Questions related to health care should be directed to the Department of Public Health, which manages the health care contract.
9. Inmates are classified and housed based on several considerations. Primarily, state statute does not permit male inmates to contact female inmates. However, they can communicate through the mail.

 

Please feel free to contact me if I can be of further assistance.

 

Regards,

MIKE ANDREWS  |  Sheriff

510 South Dillard Street 3^rd Floor / PO Box 170

Durham, North Carolina  27701

Office (919)560-0853 | FAX (919)560-0854

MAndrews@DurhamSheriff.org