|
ENFIELD PRISON/TOWN LIAISON COMMITTEE
MINUTES OF A REGULAR MEETING
JUNE 13, 2012
CALL TO ORDER
A Regular Meeting of the Enfield Prison/Town Liaison Committee was held in the Enfield Room at The Enfield Town Hall, 820 Enfield Street, and Wednesday, June 13, 2012. Ms. Pfeifer-Hall called the meeting to order at 7:01 p.m.
ROLL CALL
Present from the Town of Enfield were: Chairman Tophie Nowak, Kenneth Edgar, Gretchen Pfeifer-Hall, Nelson Rodriguez, Captain Jeffrey Golden -Enfield PD, Chief Charles Macsata- Shaker Pines FD, Tom Kienzler Counsel Liaison and Councilwoman Cynthia Mangini.
Present from the Department of Corrections were: District Administrator Angel Quiros, Warden Christine Whidden, Warden Anne Cournoyer and Warden John Tarascio.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Mr. Rodriguez motioned to approve the minutes from March 13, 2012. Mr. Edgar seconded the motion. All were in favor.
OLD BUSINESS
Report of Population Counts
Current Qtr. (03/2012)
Warden Tarascio Willard Cybulski Correctional Institute 1119 1160
Warden Cournoyer Enfield Correctional Institute 726 810
Warden Whidden Carl Robinson Correctional Institute 1472 1489
REVIEW OF SIGNIFICANT INCIDENTS OR POLICY CHANGES
Carl Robinson Update
Warden Whidden stated that they had the legislative tour this morning along with summer interns who joined the tour. They currently have 3 offenders who are working on the garden, although it is not as extensive as the Enfield garden.
Warden Whidden thanked the Enfield Police Department for their immediate assistance in their staff suicide.
Warden Whidden noted that folks may see some activity at the red barns near Taylor Road. They have added power out there and plan to be housing some horses. They do not have a set date, but are expecting it to be soon.
She looked into Ms. Brennan’s concerns for signs for people to wash their boat off when accessing it from the State side launch. There is a sign that says “Stop Aquatic Hitchhikers”.
The lake area and cabin are in much better condition than before. They’ve cleared up to the cabin and questioned if there were any other concerns.
Ms. Pfeifer-Hall stated that Ms. Brennan could not attend the meeting, but requested they look into the trees that are still in the lake. Ms. Brennan also requested that the Wardens look into a couple of fisherman who are not releasing the fish back into the lake. She thought it was a Catch and Release policy and wasn’t sure if anything was posted on the State side.
Warden Tarascio questioned where Ms. Brennan was looking at because from where they can see on the State property side, they’ve removed all of the trees out of the water.
Warden Whidden asked if the residents of Crescent Lake can confirm if it is “Catch & Release” so they can enforce it. Over the years the policy has changed a few times and she wants to make sure they are enforcing the correct policy. There used to be a sign on the property regarding catch and releasing fish, which is no longer posted.
Ms. Pfeifer-Hall said she was not sure and she would have Ms. Brennan call the Warden’s directly.
Enfield Correctional Update
Warden Cournoyer stated that they are aiming for 20,000 lbs. of produce from their gardens this season. They no longer have an overflow of 85 inmates due to a statewide drop in the inmate population.
Chairman Nowak questioned how many inmates are working on the garden.
Warden Cournoyer stated that they currently have 12 inmates who consistently work on the garden.
Chairman Nowak stated that she has not received any of the town notifications whenever there is an incident at the prisons. She thinks she may have been knocked off the system when the town converted over to Everbridge. Some of the other residents stated that they only receive part of a notification or don’t receive any notification when there is an incident.
Warden Cournoyer stated that there is the reverse 9-1-1 that the town uses, which is only if your phone number is listed in the white pages and then there is Everbridge, which Captain Joseph Carlone presented to the Prison Committee last year. With the Everbridge system, you must go onto either the Town or the State of Connecticut website to sign up for Notifications.
Councilman Kienzler confirmed that she can sign up by going to the Town of Enfield website.
Willard Cybulski Update
Warden Tarascio stated that there were no major incidents in the previous quarter. They have 12 horticultural inmates who are working on the gardens. They updated the perimeter and did some work in the basement and first floor of the prison.
Warden Whidden mentioned that the Carl Robinson inmates are working at the Traveler’s Golf Tournament.
Chairman Nowak questioned what type of feedback they get from the Golf Tournament volunteers.
Warden Whidden noted that they get very positive feedback for their efforts and it’s a good story of community service. They do a lot of work and containment on the project and spend about three months out of the year working on it.
REPORT OF CHAIRMAN
Chairman Nowak stated that she has been unable to attend the open house invitations from the Wardens and plans to attend the next time she receives an invitation. The Wardens stated that she is welcome anytime.
NEW BUSINESS
Councilwoman Mangini questioned what process the Town needs to go through to get help for the Fourth of July festival.
Warden Tarascio stated that they did receive the referral and Bill Cory is working on it.
Warden Cournoyer stated that if there is any type of project the Town needs help with, she can reach out directly to one of the Wardens and they can arrange for some workers.
Chief Macsata stated the D.O.C. donated 10 acres to the Shaker Pines Fire Department to create a new training facility for fire services.
Chairman Nowak questioned if the facility would just be for the fire department and if it would be just for the Town of Enfield.
Chief Macsata stated that it will be for the fire department for now. They hope to get other equipment to train other rescue services. They would probably open up the training facility to all of the surrounding towns.
Ms. Pfeifer-Hall questioned what they are going to do with the Shaker buildings that are on the premises.
Chief Macsata stated that he was not sure if there was any Shaker building on the premises, but they may turn it into a fire museum or something. They would have to further investigate the historical significance (if any) of the buildings that are on the property.
Warden Whidden stated that the Old Cert house is not a Shaker house. The one on the corner where they did the lead remediation and put new windows in is a Shaker house.
Chairman Nowak questioned what the impact was with repeal of the death penalty law in the State of Connecticut on current inmates on Death Row.
Administrator Quiros stated that only one inmate, Eduardo Santiago, has appealed his death sentence conviction. He does anticipate that all 11 Death Row inmates will appeal their capital punishments.
Captain Jeffrey Golden thanked the Department of Corrections for their responsiveness and information provided to the Enfield Police Department during the incident with their staff member’s suicide. Everyone was extremely corporative and helped the Police Department do their job and process the crime scene.
DATE OF NEXT MEETING
The next meeting is scheduled for September 12, 2012.
OPEN FORUM AND PUBLIC PARICIPATION: N/A
ADJOURNMENT
Mr. Edgar motioned to adjourn, Councilman Kienzler seconded the motion. The meeting stood adjourned at 7:40 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Alexis Alvarado
Recording Secretary
|