Policy Text
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MJ/RCCC/WRD
OPERATIONS ORDER
Grievances
The purpose of this Order is to standardize procedures for inma tes to formally grieve
any condition of confinement at the Main Jail (MJ) and the Rio Cosumnes
Correctional Center (RCCC) , or conditions of work pr oject supervi sion or home
detention by the Work Release Division (WRD).
I. Policy
Correctional Services shall prov ide a written process that allo ws inmates to grieve
specific conditions. All written grievances shall receive a wr itten response within a
reasonable time limit and will be resolved at the lowest approp riate staff level.
II. Definition
A. Grievance - A grievance is a c omplaint by an inmate regardin g any
condition of confinement , act, rule or polic y, written or unwri tten, in which
an inmate contends that there is an infringement upon his or he r personal,
human or constitut ional rights.
1. A grievance may include comp laints against the substance of
policies or rules, as we ll as their application.
2. A grievance may include complaints about disciplinary and
classification actions or rulings.
3. Decisions or actions by other agencies or departments are no t
subject to this grievance procedure.
B. Conditions of confinement, wor k project supervision or home detention
include but are not limited to:
1. Medical care
2. Classification actions
3. Disciplinary actions 4. Program participation
5. Telephone and Mail
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MJ/RCCC/WRD 6. Visiting Procedures
7. Food, Clothing, Bedding
C. Custody staff includes Department personnel assigned to MJ or RCCC .
Housing unit staff includes personnel at MJ or RCCC specifically assigned
to the housing location where t he inmate is housed. Supervisin g staff
includes Work Release Division personnel assigned to supervise the
inmate’s work project acti vities or home detention.
III. Grievance Procedures
A. An inmate should first direc t his/her issue to custody or su pervising staff
as the issue should be resolved at the lowest appropriate staff level.
1. If custody or supervising sta ff is unable to resolve the iss ue, the
inmate may file a formal written grievance.
B. The inmate has the right to f ile a grievance within five cal endar days
following the occurrence of, or a fter the inmate became aware o f a specific
incident regarding any condition o f confinement, work project s upervision
or home detention.
1. A grievance regarding Departmen t policy may be filed at any time.
2. Only one issue may be includ ed in the grievance. If an inma te
wishes to challenge se veral issues, each is sue must be set fort h on
a separate grievance.
C. When an inmate requests a griev ance form, custody or supervi sing staff
shall provide the form.
D. Once an inmate completes a g rievance, the grievance must be turned into
any housing unit staff assigned to the inmate’s housing locatio n or staff
assigned to supervise the inmate’s work project or home detenti on
activities.
E. When an inmate submits a grie vance, housing unit or supervis ing staff
shall accept the grievance.
1. The receiving housing unit or supervising staff shall print and sign
his/her name, badge num ber, date and time of the acceptance of
the grievance and return a copy to the inmate.
F. Housing unit or work release officers shall review the griev ance and
resolve it if possible. Any action taken or resolution offered by housing
unit or work release officers s hall be documented in the grieva nce reply
section or on a separate grievance reply form.
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MJ/RCCC/WRD G. All grievances, with a reply or not, shall be turned in to the Compliance
Unit (RCCC-grievance box located outside the ADA/PREA Complianc e
office in the RCCC Booking building; MJ - grievance mailbox on 2nd floor;
Administrative Super visor’s box of the WRD ).
H. Once the grievance has been recorded, scanned and assigned a
grievance number, it w ill be distributed to the area of concern for
resolution.
1. ALL grievances and replies s hall be forwarded to administrat ion.
Grievances shall NOT be discarded simply because the issue has
been resolved.
2. Compliance Unit will log the grievance, scan it into the fac ility
grievance tracking system and di stribute unresolved grievances to
the appropriate supervisor(s) for review.
IV. Supervisor Responsibilities
A. The supervisor assigned to handl e the grievance shall review the
grievance and all pertinent docum ents, reports, records and fil es related to
the grievance. The supervisor ma y distribute the grievance to appropriate
staff for resolution.
1. If the appropriate staff pers on was not able to resolve the problem
or the inmate wishes to appeal , the supervisor will take the
appropriate action necessary to r esolve the probl em. This acti on or
supervisor reply will be documen ted in the griev ance reply sect ion
or on a separate grie