12 Aug ESSEX COUNTY EXECUTIVE DIVINCENZO ANNOUNCES THE ESSEX COUNTY CORRECTIONAL FACILITY EARNS FOURTH CONSECUTIVE ACCREDITATION FROM THE AMERICAN CORRECTIONAL ASSOCIATION Prestigious Designation Signifies Essex County’s Commitment to Highest National Operational and Professional Standards
Published on August 12, 2022
Newark, NJ – Essex County Executive Joseph N. DiVincenzo, Jr. announced on Thursday, August 11th that the Essex County Correctional Facility earned accreditation from the American Correctional Association, which sets the standards for correctional facilities and detention centers in the United States, American territories and some foreign countries. The Essex County Correctional Facility scored a 100 percent rating to receive the three-year accreditation, which signifies Essex County’s commitment to maintaining high professional standards among its staff and maintaining a safe and secure atmosphere for officers and inmates. The ECCF first earned ACA accreditation in 2013 and accreditation has been maintained since then.
“Our priority at the Correctional Facility is to provide a safe and secure environment for our Corrections Officers, civilian staff and inmates. Continually earning ACA accreditation demonstrates our commitment to this mission and our continued dedication to making the ECCF the best facility it can be,” DiVincenzo said. “Obtaining accreditation is not an easy process and requires the involvement of all our offices and employees. I thank them for their professionalism and attention to detail,” he added.
“The ECCF is the largest facility of its kind in New Jersey, and I am proud to have earned accreditation for the fourth consecutive time,” Essex County Chief of Staff Phil Alagia said. “Under the County Executive’s leadership, we took our Corrections Department from being under a Federal Consent Order for over 25 years and transformed it into a first-class agency that provides custody for not only Essex County inmates, but also Union County, State and Federal Marshall’s inmates,” he added.
“When a facility is accredited by the ACA, it means the leadership and staff are meeting high standards every day. I want to thank County Executive DiVincenzo for giving our department the resources to ensure our facility can meet the demand and our Corrections staff for working as a team to ensure we maintain high operating standards,” ECCF Director Al Ortiz said.
The 62-page report submitted by the review committee included many positive observations about the ECCF and its staff. An example of these included the following:
When commenting on the intake process, the report states: “It was quite evident to the visiting committee that the booking section of the ECCF was especially attentive, at intake, to everyone received and concerned about each and every inmate’s safety and security.”
Regarding the interaction between Corrections Officers and inmates, the report states: “Overall, the visiting committee was impressed with the custody, care, and control; the firm, fair and consistent attitude; and the individual and person to person specific communication and interaction between the facility security staff, and the inmates at ECCF. The visiting committee was impressed with the professionalism, knowledge, and training of the security staff.”
Observations in the report about facility maintenance included: “The facilities Maintenance Department was obviously attentive to the physical plant operations, including emergency power water and wastewater.”
Regarding medical and health care received by inmates, the report stated: “During offender interviews, I had very little complaints related to care. It was a pleasure visiting Essex County Correctional Center; I found the staff to be hospitable, engaged, and open for suggestions that would improve the health care program.”
The ECCF also received praise for its religious services programs: “The visiting committee was especially impressed with the Director of Religious Services for her commitment and passion to bringing a variety of services and spiritual activities to this large inmate population.”
The ECCF received 100 percent compliance on the mandatory areas and 98.38 percent compliant in non-mandatory areas. The ECCF was found non-compliant in five areas based on how the facility was constructed when it was built in 1998. It received waivers for those areas of the physical plant that could not be changed. All aspects of jail operations were reviewed, including accommodations provided to inmates, medical treatment and social services available to inmates, maintenance of the facility, administrative operations and finances, visitation conditions, policies and procedures of the facility and training of officers, to name a few categories.
ACA representatives conducted their audit of the Essex County Correctional Facility from June 6 to 9. The accreditation certificate was presented to Essex County during the ACA conference in New Orleans, which was held August 4 to 7.
The American Correctional Association is the oldest and most prestigious correctional membership organization in the United States. Founded in 1870, ACA currently represents more than 20,000 correctional practitioners in the United States and Canada. ACA standards address services, programs, and operations essential to effective correctional management. Through accreditation, an agency is able to maintain a balance between protecting the public and providing an environment that safeguards the life, health, and safety of staff and offenders. Standards set by ACA reflect practical up-to-date policies and procedures and function as a management tool for over 1,500 correctional agencies in the United States.
The $416 million Essex County Correctional Facility was just 40 percent completed when DiVincenzo took office in January 2003. The County Executive restored order to the project and construction was completed in just 12 months. The transition from two antiquated jails took only three months and the 2,100 inmates were transferred into the new facility over two weekends in March 2004. The Correctional Facility was designed to house about 2,424 inmates and is equipped with cutting edge technology.
The Corrections Department has received 100 percent compliance with the New Jersey State Department of Corrections inspections every year since 2006 and has been accredited by the National Commission on Correctional Health Care and the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities since 2007.