HAGERSTOWN, Md. (AP) — Gov. Martin O’Malley met with correctional officers yesterday to discuss concerns about health, shift lengths and the state’s process for investigating internal affairs.
Mr. O’Malley, a Democrat, said he is open to changing state requirements that disciplinary action must be taken within 30 days of an incident. Correctional officers are criticizing the system because, they say, it forces the state to take disciplinary action before a full investigation can be completed. Twenty-three officers were fired in a brutality probe.
“I think most of us agree that there’s probably a better and more reasonable way to strike the balance” for due process, Mr. O’Malley said after the meeting at the Maryland Correctional Training Center, in Hagerstown.
Fifteen of the officers were from the medium-security Roxbury Correctional Institution, near Hagerstown. The other eight were from the North Branch Correctional Institution, near Cumberland.
The correctional officers also discussed concerns about a staph infection called MRSA, which sent a correctional officer to the hospital last month.
Mr. O’Malley said the administration will work to raise awareness of the problem and improve communication about prevention measures.
“I think what we need is just better communication, information, on how to guard against it and some follow-up when suspected incidents are reported,” he said.
John Colmers, the state health secretary, said a second MRSA bacteria was found in the nose of another correctional officer, but it did not cause an infection. Mr. Colmers also said a third case had been reported but not confirmed.
Mr. O’Malley also said the administration will be open to discussions about changes in shifts, about which correctional officers are concerned. The administration is considering expanding shifts from eight to 12 hours.
The meeting lasted for about 30 minutes and was closed to the news media. Mr. O’Malley and union representatives described the meeting to reporters afterward.
Before the meeting, Mr. O’Malley pledged to help protect correctional officers. One step he mentioned was purchasing stab-proof vests.
“I do want to work with you,” he said. “We’re not done yet.”
Warden Ken Horning pointed out that it was Mr. O’Malley’s second visit to the facility in his first 16 months in office.
MCTC employs about 620 people. It is the second-largest prison in the state, housing about 2,500 inmates.
Hagerstown has three medium-security prisons, and representatives from all three attended the meeting. Together, they employ about 1,600 people and house about 7,000 inmates.
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