A Spillman Technologies White Paper

correctionsAchieving a high-performance jail management software system

Spillman Technologies: Corrections Management

Table of Contents:

Introduction ........................................................................................................................page 1

What is a Jail Management or Corrections System?

Who Uses a Corrections System?

How Does a Corrections System Work?

Primary Industry Challenges ......................................................................................page 4

Inmate Separation

Inmate Movement

Software Usability

Imaging

Data Sharing

Population Management

Booking Procedures

Spillman Overcomes Industry Challenges ...........................................................page 5

Maintaining Inmate Separation

Tracking Inmate Movement

Simplifying Software Design

Improving Imaging

Securing Shared Data

Managing Jail Population

Utilizing a Booking Checklist

Spillman’s Corrections System ...................................................................................page 8

Jail Management

Imaging

Commissary Management

Commissary Bar Coding

Final Note ..............................................................................................................................page 9

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corrections 1

introduction

From small holding facilities to the largest county jails, corrections agencies need a software system

that is reliable and easy to use. The system should allow agencies to maximize resources while helping

to create a safe environment for inmates and personnel. It should also enable personnel to streamline

booking procedures and access information from local, state and national databases.

What is a Jail Management or Corrections System?

A traditional jail management or corrections system is a comprehensive software application

designed to record information about inmates, track commissary items, and assist with inmate

booking and movement. It may also allow jail personnel to store billing information and use

an electronic jail log. In addition to automating the processes of entering and storing data, a

modern corrections system assists jail personnel in creating a safe, efficient facility. Many systems

help personnel note critical inmate information such as medical conditions, security alerts, and

gang affiliations. Advanced methods of tracking inmate movement allow officials to easily and

safely move inmates in groups or one-by-one. The most modern systems also have data-sharing

mechanisms and powerful searching capabilities that allow jail personnel to access the information

needed to make informed decisions, conduct investigations, and manage their inmate populations.

Traditional Corrections Components

The size of a jail largely determines the hardware and software requirements to support a

corrections system. However, the following elements are typically included in a corrections system:

Hardware:

Networked computers

Wireless routers

Computer monitors

Optical storage

Bar-coding equipment

Printers

Photo ID wristbands

Fingerprinting system

Network digital camera

Software:

Access to local databases

Local, state, and national data queries

Imaging

Inmate booking and assessment

Facility management

Scheduled events

Billing

Medical records

Jail Log

Commissary Management

Inmate Cash Accounts

Fingerprinting

Bar coding

Spillman Technologies: Corrections Management

Who Uses a Corrections System?

Arresting and Booking Officers create arrest and offense records for each inmate they arrest,

book inmates, and store fingerprints.

Data Entry Clerks record an inmate’s possessions, issue property, and check to see if an inmate

has previous fines, arrests, or warrants.

Medical Assessment Personnel conduct medical assessments on inmates, distribute

medications, and track conditions and illnesses.

Risk Assessment Personnel check for gang affiliations among inmates, evaluate criminal

histories, and assign locations based on those factors.

Corrections Officers scan inmate bar codes, monitor inmate movement, oversee jail events, and

transport inmates to and from court.

Jail Administrators bill, track, and view disciplinary problems, as well as manage inmate cash

accounts.

Investigators solve cases by viewing an inmate’s associations, criminal history, and other related

data.

How Does a Corrections System Work?

A corrections system helps jail personnel process inmates, collect and organize data, manage

appointments and jail events, and create electronic logs.

Inmate Booking Procedure

1. An inmate is brought into the facility.

2. An inmate name record is created in the corrections software, if none already exists.

3. The inmate’s cash is put into an account and the inmate’s personal property is taken.

4. Clothing, bedding, and other jail property are issued to the inmate.

5. Arrest and offense information for the inmate is entered into the software.

6. Mug shots are taken and attached to the inmate’s electronic name record.

7. The inmate is fingerprinted.

8. Assessments are conducted to determine if the inmate has any medical conditions or

poses any safety risks. Any required medications are then entered into the system.

9. Housing is assigned for the inmate.

10. The inmate’s sentence and bail is entered into the system.

11. The inmate is moved to the assigned housing.

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Information about jail incidents, activities, inmates’

visitors and gifts, and daily events are recorded on jail

logs within the system.

Inmate movement is recorded in the system by

scanning inmate identification wristbands or manually

entering inmate names into the software system.

Events and appointments are entered into the system,

along with their corresponding times, dates, inmate

names, and other details.

Assessments are conducted to evaluate an inmate’s

medical condition and determine whether an inmate

should be placed in minimum security or under more

intensive supervision.

Financial transactions and billing requirements for

inmates and other agencies are recorded in the

corrections software.

Commissary items are recorded in the software, along

with current balances, unit size and cost. Each inmate’s

account balance and purchase history is documented.

Jail Management:

Spillman Technologies: Corrections Management

primary industry challenges

Many public safety agencies share common concerns when it comes to implementing a corrections

system. The following are some of the key challenges that keep agencies from benefitting from

streamlined jail management operations and automated corrections processes.

Inmate Separation

Agencies need to be able to separate high-risk members of the inmate population from one

another. They must also be able to identify which inmates have been given privileges and

which are restricted to specific areas of the jail. It can be difficult to track gang affiliations and

“keep separate” factors for all inmates.

Inmate Movement

Knowing where each inmate is located at all times is a crucial part of a corrections agency’s

safety measures. At many agencies, personnel must manually enter each inmate’s name into

the system every time the inmate moves from one location to the next.

Software Usability

Difficulty understanding the software system is one of the most common problems agencies

face. Many systems are not intuitive and require each person at the agency to undergo a

complete computer training course. The difficulty is compounded by the fact that many

corrections facilities have high turnover, requiring new personnel to undergo extensive

training.

Imaging

Mug shots and other images are an important part of an agency’s database. Importing the

images one-by-one can be a time-consuming process. Agencies are often required to purchase

a separate software system to edit photos to meet National Institute of Standards and

Technology (NIST) requirements.

Data Sharing

An agency often has to re-enter a name record or other information already recorded by other

branches of their department or neighboring jurisdictions. This lack of data sharing creates the

risk of data errors and increases workload. Agencies may be unable to share sensitive data with

specific personnel while restricting viewing privileges from others.

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Population Management

Many agencies struggle to achieve the optimal inmate population for their facility. For example,

too few inmates can be a waste of resources, while too many inmates may create discipline

problems. Without accurate statistics, an agency cannot determine at what population level

discipline problems begin.

Booking Procedures

Booking inmates can be a time-consuming and labor-intensive process for agencies.

Correctional officers must complete information about an inmate’s name, physical description,

and offenses. They must also record any property taken from the inmate and take the inmate’s

mug shot and fingerprints. A facility’s booking procedure may also include documenting

an inmate’s medical condition, conducting a risk assessment, and assigning housing for the

inmate. Often multiple jail personnel participate in an inmate’s booking, making it difficult to

document which booking steps have been completed and which have been left unfinished.

Spillman overcomes industry challenges

Spillman’s Corrections Management solutions help alleviate the challenges that prevent agencies from

implementing an efficient and effective jail software system. Common system concerns are answered with

convenient, easy-to-use features that streamline jail operations.

Maintaining Inmate Separation

With Spillman, it is easy to isolate specific inmates from each other. The Keep Separate feature in

Spillman’s Jail Management module displays an on-screen warning to alert jail personnel if a security

restriction will be violated by moving inmates. Agencies can also include an expiration date and

narrative for each Keep Separate record. For example, if two inmates are fighting, jail personnel

can create a keep separate record set to expire in 30 days. Personnel can add notes to the record to

describe why the inmates should be separated.

Tracking Inmate Movement

Inmate movement information is gathered in one convenient place within the Spillman system.

The Inmate Movement Log records the time inmates are moved in and out of a location. It also

warns users when gender, juvenile, maximum capacity, or security restrictions will be violated

by moving inmates. The Spillman system ends cumbersome duplicate entry of inmate data by

allowing users to track inmates by simply scanning their bar-coded wristbands each time an

inmate enters or leaves an area. Inmate movement can also be recorded by simply using a mouse

to drag and drop one or more inmate names onto a location name. The system will then create

the appropriate logs associated with the event.

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Spillman Technologies: Corrections Management

Simplifying Software Design

Spillman’s corrections software features an updated user interface with contrasting, vibrant

colors, easy-to-understand symbols, aligned columns, and a streamlined workflow that helps

guide users from one process to the next. The Jail Main Menu gives users a quick overview of

jail statistics and recent bookings. System administrators can remove unnecessary fields and

make other fields required to help ensure that personnel do not put in more information than

is needed or miss critical fields. Administrators can also customize field names to follow agency

naming conventions. For example, a system administrator could change the term “area” to

“zone,” if that is what the agency commonly uses.

Improving Imaging Spillman’s Imaging module gives agencies the ability to import, organize, edit, and share digital

photos in one place. The convenient Import feature allows users to drag and drop multiple images

into the appropriate record. A live video feed and NIST guidelines let personnel quickly and

accurately take uniform mug shots. Personnel can use the module to automatically create lineups

based on the age and physical characteristics of a suspect. Electronic lineups prevent victims

from having to interact with suspects face-to-face. The Imaging module also saves jail personnel

time, eliminating the need to manually search the database for mug shots, and then copy and

crop the images into the lineup one-by-one.

Securing Shared Data

All records created in the Spillman system are stored in the system’s Integrated Hub. The

records are instantly accessible from all other system tables. This means that an arresting

officer can instantly see if a suspect has been arrested before in that jurisdiction, view the

suspect’s convictions, and find out if that person has any outstanding warrants. Spillman

allows users to send secure emails and instant messages to other users on the server. For

example, jail personnel can send and receive secure messages with dispatch personnel,

investigators, police officers, and others on a shared Spillman server. In addition, Spillman

InSight™ enables agencies to link with other neighboring agency databases, enabling an

agency to search for information outside its jurisdiction. InSight uses data encryption to

protect agency information during transmission. Keeping records stored in a central database

eliminates the need for duplicate entry, which can compromise the integrity of an agency’s

database. Data is protected through user privileges that define which users can access the

information. System administrators can define which users have the ability to view, modify, or

delete records, and can set specific viewing privileges for individual records.

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Sharing Data with Spillman’s Correction Solution:

The Spillman system makes it easy for officers, corrections personnel, detectives, and prosecutors

to share crucial data about inmates and add new information to records.

When arresting a suspect, an officer searches to see if a name record for that person exists in the

agency’s Integrated Hub. The officer can then add arrest information to the existing record, or

create a new record if needed.

Jail personnel can access the information, allowing them to simplify booking and evaluate the

inmate. The person conducting the booking can see if the inmate has alerts or warning flags

attached to his record from previous bookings. Information such as assessments, mug shots,

fingerprints, sentences, and property takes can be added to the inmate’s record.

Managing Jail Population

The Spillman system makes it easy for agencies to see if their facilities are under-populated

or over-populated. Personnel can compare the number of inmates in a facility to disciplinary

problems, allowing them to determine the ideal inmate capacity for each housing area. The

information can be exported to a Microsoft Excel® spreadsheet and used to create analytical

graphs. Spillman also helps users save time by allowing them to create one jail log for

multiple inmates. For example, a meal served to several inmates can be recorded on one log,

eliminating the need to create a separate log for each inmate.

Utilizing a Booking Checklist

Spillman software helps agencies book inmates quickly and efficiently. The Start Booking

screen allows personnel to search for an existing name record and create an inmate record

automatically, if needed. A checklist allows users to see exactly which booking procedures have

and have not been completed for a specific inmate, allowing multiple persons to participate in

booking an inmate while minimizing the possibility of missing steps in the booking process.

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Detectives can

access arrest and

booking information,

mug shots, and

fingerprints while

investigating a case.

If the suspect is apprehended

again, the arresting officer

can view the terms of his

probation or bail, flags and

warnings, outstanding warrants,

and previous arrests.

Prosecutors can view

an inmate’s arrest

history and booking

information.

Spillman Technologies: Corrections Management

Spillman’s corrections system

Spillman’s Corrections Management System helps agencies manage their jail facilities safely and

efficiently. A wide range of software features makes it easy to conduct vital corrections functions like

booking procedures, inmate tracking and assessment, agency billing, and commissary maintenance.

Software Modules

Jail Management:

Spillman’s Jail Management module automates an agency’s inmate booking process from start to

finish. In addition to allowing step-by-step booking, the module enables agencies to customize

inmate assessment procedures, flag an inmate’s record to note a warning or specific instructions,

manage an inmate’s cash account, and compile a comprehensive medical history for each inmate.

Inmate movement can be easily tracked using inmate logs, bar-coded wristbands, and tracking

tools featured in Jail Management. Jail facilities can use the software to easily track the amount of

money owed to them by agencies, print reports for billing, and bill multiple agencies at different

rates. This module also simplifies jail activity logs and scheduled events, and helps keep specific

inmates separated from one another.

Imaging:

The Imaging module makes it easier than ever for agencies to import, edit, store, and share

high-quality images. Agencies can control camera functions through Spillman software, enabling

personnel to capture uniform mug shots that meet eye-level and face-width guidelines. Multiple

images can be added to a single record. Personnel can import image files one-by-one or capture

multiple images at the same time. The Imaging module also automates the process of creating a

lineup based on the physical characteristics of a suspect.

Commissary Management:

Accurately tracking inmate purchases is convenient with the Commissary Management module.

In addition, jail personnel can easily post and cancel orders, track inventory, and store information

about each commissary item. The module allows agencies to see which commissary items have

been approved for individual inmates, quickly view a comprehensive list of inmate purchases, and

access records for each commissary supplier.

Commissary Bar Coding:

The Commissary Bar Coding module allows agencies to track commissary items using bar

codes. Personnel can track items using the item’s original bar code or a bar code generated in

the Spillman system. Commissary Bar Coding makes it easy to calculate purchases and create

lists of inmate orders.

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final note

Reliable software is an essential tool for managing a corrections facility. It is vital that jail personnel

have a software system that is intuitive and easy for new employees to use, yet provides the advanced

tools needed to keep the facility running smoothly. In addition, agencies need software that will help

maintain a safe facility by giving jail personnel a way to evaluate inmates, log jail events, and easily

monitor the whereabouts of each inmate.

Spillman has developed a comprehensive software system designed to help agencies operate safely

and efficiently. At Spillman, we are committed to designing quality corrections software that allows

public safety professionals to securely manage data and safely operate jail facilities.

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Spillman Technologies: Corrections Management

4625 West Lake Park Blvd.Salt Lake City, UT 84120Toll-free: 800.860.8026FAX: 801.902.1210E-mail: info@spillman.comwww.spillman.com

about spillman

Spillman Technologies meets the individual needs of public safety professionals with a full suite of software solutions. The software is installed at more than 750 agencies nationwide.

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Microsoft and Excel are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countriesCopyright © 2009, Spillman Technologies, Inc. All rights reserved. Specifications are subject to change without notice. Rev. 01.06.09