N.H. Admin. Code § Cor 410.01 - Protective Custody
(a) The department
shall provide a protective custody status for those residents that face a
verifiable danger of being physically harmed by another resident.
(b) Protective custody may be sought by a
resident. The resident shall demonstrate during an administrative review
evaluation that he or she faces danger of being physically harmed by describing
the nature of the harm and identifying the residents who has threatened him or
her.
(c) Residents in quarantine
status shall make a request for consideration for protective custody to the
unit supervisor. These requests can be made verbally, by the resident to a
staff member, or in writing to a staff member, no special form shall be
required. The approving unit supervisor shall schedule that resident for a
protective custody review evaluation.
(d) If a resident housed in general
population has a rational fear for his or her safety, he or she shall report
his or her concern to a staff member who shall notify the shift
supervisor.
(e) The shift
supervisor shall immediately place the resident in PAR status pending
protective custody (PC) review pursuant to Cor 410.04 below. A report shall be
completed and distributed to the shift commander, the unit supervisor of the
housing area of the resident, and the classification staff before the end of
the shift supervisor's tour of duty that day.
(f) The approving unit supervisor shall
advise the case manager of the resident requesting protective custody. The case
manager shall attempt to mediate the issue and resolve it. If the case manager
is unable to mitigate the problem, the case manager shall notify the approving
unit supervisor, and document the attempted mitigation in the resident's
record, and a PC evaluation will be scheduled.
(g) The approving unit supervisor shall
schedule a protective custody review evaluation for those residents deemed as
requiring one, if one has not yet been scheduled. The resident shall be
notified 24 hours in advance of the PC review evaluation. The resident may
waive this notice.
(h) The
protective custody evaluation board shall consist of:
(1) The shift commander or designated shift
supervisor;
(2) A member of the
department's investigation bureau, who shall be the evaluation board chair;
and
(3) The approving unit's
supervisor or designee.
(i) A resident shall request in writing if he
or she chooses to preclude a specific staff member, or officer from attending
the evaluation. In addition, any witnesses, questions, or evidence to be
presented during the evaluation, by the resident, shall be requested in writing
as soon as possible, but no later than 12 hours prior to the start of the
evaluation. Requests shall be submitted on a "Request Slip" form as defined in
Cor 312, to the unit supervisor or case counselor or case manager of the
resident only.
(j) A resident may
object to the presence of a particular officer on the evaluation review board
based on a disciplinary infraction involving the officer and the resident,
which occurred within 3 months immediately preceding the evaluation. Requests
shall be completed as described within (i) above.
(k) The evaluation review board in reaching
its decision, shall consider the following to determine if a feasible,
verifiable threat of bodily harm exists and would jeopardize the safety of the
resident:
(1) What is in the best interest of
the health, welfare, and safety of the other resident's;
(2) All evidence relevant to the request of
the resident to be placed in, or to remain in, protective custody
status;
(3) Any alleged conflict
the resident might have with other residents currently confined in the
institution;
(4) Whether the
resident currently would be in any danger, should the resident be returned to
general population; and
(5) Whether
the resident being evaluated specified a verifiable danger and named the
resident or residents who he or she feared would cause him or her physical
harm.
(l) A resident
shall not be refused protective custody status or removed from such status
based on disciplinary reasons, or reasons unrelated to the resident or of other
residents in that status.
(m) The
residents shall have a right to appear at his or her evaluation, testify, call
witnesses, and present relevant evidence as directed in (i) above. However, the
protective custody review board chair as identified in (h)(2) above, shall
exclude any witness called by a resident from testifying if the presence of
that witness at the evaluation might pose a danger to prison security, or the
safety of the resident, or the testimony of the witness is irrelevant or
cumulative. In no event shall the board chair require a resident to offer
evidence that would incriminate himself or herself.
(n) The chair of the review board as
identified in (h)(2) above, shall issue a written recommendation to the
administrator of classification and client records. He or she shall make the
final decision which shall be based upon, whether evidence exists that a
feasible, verifiable threat of bodily harm is present and would jeopardize the
safety of the resident. All evaluation documentation, which shall include the
board's reported observations and the facts relied upon by the board, in
arriving at such conclusions, shall be considered by the administrator of
classification and client records when reaching his or her final
decision.
(o) If protective custody
status is recommended, the board shall recommend a housing placement based on
the nature of the threat to the resident, and the resident shall:
(1) Remain in or be returned to the same or
another housing unit in general population;
(2) Be transferred out of state;
(3) Be transferred to a county facility;
or
(4) Be transferred to a
different departmental facility.
(p) Verbal notification shall be provided to
the resident by unit staff. Due to the potential danger to the resident
involved by possessing protective custody documents, written notification shall
be provided to the resident of the administrator of classification and client
records final decision only if requested by the resident.
(q) If the resident is dissatisfied with the
decision of the review board he or she may, within 7 days, appeal to the
administrator of classification and client records on a "Request Slip" form as
defined in Cor 312, stating the reasons why this status should be granted or
revoked. During the pendency of the appeal the resident shall remain in PAR
status.
Notes
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