Today’s Headlines – Rockport woman killed in Sharon car crash; AAA Northeast challenging Peabody ruling against tow truck terminal; Shaw’s in Lynn to close next month; Judge denies Gloucester’s bid to toss lawsuit; Governor proposing new taxing in budget plan, Essex County Sheriff’s Department receives accreditation (Story Below)
Update: Rockport Woman Identified – The woman who died following a crash on Route 95 in Sharon yesterday has been identified as GEORGANNA ELHENEIDY, 73, of Rockport.
North Shore Today newscast with Bill Newell and Rick Moore
Monday Night Event – “Conversations on Race: Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Legacy,” 7 p.m. Abbot Public Library main level reading room, 235 Pleasant St., Marblehead, MA – Complete post and Details – Click Here
Saturday Event – Ice Cream for Breakfast Day at Cherry Farm Creamery, 8 a.m. to noon. Conant Street. Waffle sundaes, maple bacon ice cream and more. Portion of proceeds will be donated to Boston Children’s Hospital.
Possible snow Tuesday evening
ESSEX COUNTY SHERIFF’S DEPARTMENT RECEIVES ACCREDITATION FROM THE AMERICAN CORRECTIONAL ASSOCIATION
Essex Sheriff Kevin F. Coppinger is pleased to announce that both the Middleton Correctional Facility and the Women in Transition (WIT) facility in Salisbury have again been accredited by the American Correctional Association (ACA). An ACA Audit team conducted intense audits late last year. The Audit Committee reported that the Middleton Facility had met 100% of the mandatory standards and 98.7% of the non-mandatory standards. This rating is the highest score ever achieved by Department since it became accredited in January of 2000. In addition, the Women in Transition (WIT) facility in Salisbury achieved an overall score of 100 from the auditors.
The Accreditation Commission reviewed the Audit reports at the ACA Winter Conference held this past weekend in New Orleans, Louisiana, and held a hearing on each facility with members of the Sheriff’s staff before voting to issue accreditation to both facilities. The Audit Chairperson, Nancy Dobbs, retired after 37 years of correctional experience with the Arkansas Department of Corrections, stated during her closing remarks, “Your facility is clean, your staff are professional, and your policies, procedures and practices are sound.” She went on to comment of the “high staff morale” and how “well trained they are.”
Sheriff Kevin F. Coppinger noted that this distinguished accreditation is “directly attributed to the hard work and professionalism of the staff of the entire department. These scores reflect the level of commitment to the persons under our care. We continually strive for a safe and secure facility to accomplish the mission of care, custody and control of the inmates within Essex County.”
The ACA, which was founded in 1870, is a private, non-profit, non-governmental trade association and accreditation body for the corrections industry, the oldest and largest such organization in the world. It accredits more than 1,300 facilities across the United States and the world. These include federal, state, local and private facilities of all types and sizes under ACA standards.
According to the ACA, “accreditation is intended to improve facility operations through adherence to clear standards relevant to all areas/operations of the facility, including safety, security, order, inmate care, programs, justice and administration.”
The Middleton facility was first accredited in January 2000 and the WIT which opened in 2001 was first accredited in 2005. Every three years this accreditation must be renewed. Last Fall, auditors spent three days at the Middleton facility and two days at the WIT. The audit involves assessment of administration and management; the physical plant; institutional operations and services; and inmate programs. The audit team spoke with numerous staff and inmates, reviewed stacks of files and gathered extensive data which they needed to compile their lengthy, comprehensive report for the audit panel hearing members to review. The Auditors also make detailed reviews of medical services; food services; sanitation; use of segregation and detention; incidents of violence; and overcrowding.
The benefits of ACA accreditation include: a safer environment for staff and offenders; improved staff morale and professionalism; and reduced liability insurance costs. The jail spent three years preparing for the audit and compiling information that the committee would use to supplement their own on-site inspection
Commissioner Myra Walker, Superintendent Aaron Eastman, Sheriff Kevin F. Coppinger, Chairperson Dr. Michelle Staples-Horne, Lt. Karen Paluzzi, Asst. Superintendent Michael Donaher, Commissioner Ervin Toliver, Commissioner Michael Graziano
