On Aug. 7th, 2008, the Department of Homeland Security Immigration and Custom Enforcement Division completed its second annual compliance audit of the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office Adult Detention Center with positive results.
On Aug. 5th, a team of five auditors from Creative Corrections in Beaumont, Texas, under contract with the Department of Homeland Security, arrived at PCSO to assess the detention facility’s compliance with the federal guidelines contained in the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Detention Operations Manual. This manual contains 38 separate standards, encompassing 646 separate performance measures.
Each of the five auditors is an expert within their respective field, most being retired Federal Bureau of Prison, State Department of Corrections Wardens or Jail Commanders with years of correctional experience. This team of correctional experts spent two and one-half days examining every facet of the facility’s operations, including administration, security, food service, medical, sanitation, transportation, etc.
During the exit briefing, Michael Ciolli, Review-in-Charge, gave great accolades to the detention staff for their professionalism, appearance and dedication. He commended the staff on the cleanliness of the facility and stated it was apparent they took pride in the facility and themselves.
“I am extremely proud of the job our detention staff does on a daily basis and expect they will continue to set an example of excellence for all detention facilities within the state of Arizona,” PCSO Adult Detention Chief Deputy Terry Altman said.
Although the audit team does not provide a rating, their report is provided to DHS Headquarters, where it is reviewed and a final rating assigned. Mr. Ciolli reported that he found no areas for which Pinal County was noncompliant with any of the 38 standards.
This audit is an annual requirement for those agencies who house Immigration detainees under contract with the Department of Homeland Security and is used to assess the operational effectiveness and efficiency of the detention facility. This is the second such audit completed since Pinal County entered into a contract to house ICE detainees in December 2006.