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Female Offender Task Force Work Summary FY 2000

NCJ Number
215643
Author(s)
Rita Cooksey
Date Published
2000
Length
16 pages
Annotation
This report presents the activities and recommendations of the Female Offender Task Force in Oklahoma for fiscal year 2000.
Abstract
Several areas were reviewed by Oklahoma’s Female Offender Task Force with observations on current status, needed remedy, and proposed action. The areas of focus included: staff training, sexual misconduct and privacy, parity in work and programs, medical and mental health services, classification and custody decisions, contract bed space, and aftercare services. Highlights include: (1) focus was placed on staff training in the areas of specialized needs of female offenders resulting in a new lesson plan for staff entitled “Working Successfully with the Female Offender/Staff Sexual Misconduct”; (2) a legislative initiative was recommended to expand the current sodomy and sexual battery definitions to include any employee of a State, county, or municipality who had or exercised authority over any other person of any age and who engaged in sexual behavior with that person; (3) recommended amendments to three policies related to investigations, sexual misconduct with offenders and hiring and promotional practices; (4) recommendations addressing parity in female offender work and programs included examining staffing patterns to ensure appropriate same-gender supervision, developing shorter term vocational programs for women, developing on-the-job training, revamping the current inmate classification system to account for variables in female offenders, and considering legislation allowing for community corrections beds for diversion from prison for women; (5) provide baseline and routine mammograms for female prisoners over age 40; and (6) a service agreement between the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services and the Department of Corrections remains in place to assist female offenders.