Virginia Department of Corrections

Law enforcement agency

Virginia Department of Corrections

Uniform patch for the Virginia Department of Corrections

Abbreviation| VADOC
Agency overview
Formed| late 1700s
Employees| 11,769
Annual budget| $1,364,068,980[1]
Jurisdictional structure
Operations jurisdiction| Virginia, USA
Map of Virginia Department of Corrections's jurisdiction
Size| 42,774 square miles (110,780 km2)
Population| 8,096,604 (2011 census)
General nature|

* Civilian police

Operational structure
Headquarters| Richmond, Virginia
Elected officer responsible|

* Terrance Cole, Secretary of Public Safety

Agency executive|

* Chadwick Dotson, Director

Facilities
Facilities and Offices| 39[2]
Website
VADOC Website

The Virginia Department of Corrections (VADOC) is the government agency responsible for community corrections and operating prisons and correctional facilities in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. The agency is fully accredited by the American Correctional Association and is one of the oldest functioning correctional agencies in the United States. Its headquarters is located in the state capital of Richmond.[3]

## History

[edit]

From the time of the first settlement at Jamestown to the relocation of the state capital to Richmond in the late 18th Century, Virginia relied upon corporal and capital punishment as its penal measures. Gradually, Virginia began to use small county jails for sentences of confinement.

After the Revolutionary War, Virginia Governor Thomas Jefferson began to urge the state to construct a "penitentiary house." At that time, penitentiary houses were then beginning being used throughout Europe to confine and reform criminals. However, for more than a decade, the Virginia General Assembly ignored Jefferson's ideas.

In 1796, a wave of reform swept the General Assembly of Virginia, and the famous British-American architect Benjamin Henry Latrobe, (1764-1820), (later Architect of the Capitol) was hired to design a penitentiary house for the newly formed Virginia Department of Welfare and Institutions. Latrobe's facility was constructed on a site outside of Richmond overlooking the James River. The facility, which received its first prisoners in 1800 and was completed (with using prison labor) in 1804, (earlier than the current oldest state prison in America, the still standing Eastern State Penitentiary (1829-1971) in Philadelphia and seven years before the neighboring Maryland Penitentiary (now Metropolitan Transitional Center and centerpiece of an extensive corrections complex) began in downtown Baltimore) was known by generations of Virginians as the "Virginia State Penitentiary" or "The Pen." The structure later burned and was torn down in 1905. A new facility was built and operated continuously afterwards until it too was demolished in 1992. In 1896, a penal farm operation (James River Correctional Center) was established in Goochland County for "miscreants and the infirm." This facility closed April 1, 2011, but the James River Work Center continues to operate in that same location today.

"Community Corrections" philosophy and policy officially began being used in the Commonwealth of Virginia on October 1, 1942, designated as the Probation and Parole Services Agency, with the employees of the division referred to as Probation and Parole Officers. By an act of the Virginia General Assembly in 1944, the VADOC was officially formed out of the former Virginia Department of Welfare and Institutions, the Virginia Parole Board, and the Virginia Department of Probation and Parole Services. Today, the VADOC oversees all operations of the Commonwealth's corrections facilities.

## Organizational structure

[edit]

The VADOC is an agency of the Virginia Office of Public Safety. Virginia Secretary of Public Safety Terrance Cole oversees 12 government agencies, including the VADOC. The VADOC's department director Chadwick Dotson was appointed to the position by Governor Glenn Youngkin in September 2023 to succeed Harold Clarke, who had announced his retirement after serving as director since November 2010. Dotson, a retired judge, had previously served as the chair of the Virginia Parole Board. [4]

Underneath the director are three divisions — Operations, Re-entry & Programs and Communication, and Administration — each overseen by a deputy director.

* The Chief of Corrections Operations manages the regional facilities' day-to-day operations as well as probation and parole activities. The Operations division is also responsible for ensuring VADOC compliance with the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Community Corrections is also responsible for completing risk assessments on certain sexual offenders for the courts and providing victims with information.[5]
* The Chief Deputy Director oversees Re-entry & Programs, Communication, and Victim Services.
* The Deputy Director of Administration manages the agency's core business activities, including Human Resources, Information Technology, Finance, and Virginia Correctional Enterprises.

## Re-entry initiative

[edit]

In May 2010, Governor Bob McDonnell signed Executive Order Number Eleven establishing the Virginia Prisoner and Juvenile Offender Re-entry Council. The Council was formed to tie together the re-entry initiative amongst the state agencies, local agencies, and community organizations. The Secretary of Public Safety then composed a task force to further develop the Virginia Adult Re-entry Initiative, or VARI. The plan gave directions for streamlining services, shifting some organizational practices, and establishing new ways to measure achievement while keeping with the public safety practices, which Governor McDonnell listed as top priority.

Through the Re-entry Program, offenders are evaluated upon arrival to the facility to determine the best strategy for their re-entry preparation plan. They are also tested to determine their risk for recidivism. An initial Re-entry Case Plan is developed and typically updated depending on the offender's actions. Workshops and programs are made available to prepare the offender for re-entry into the community.

As of December 2023, there were 23,604 offenders housed in VADOC facilities.[6] This was a decrease of twenty percent in the inmate population from just four years earlier when there were 29,347 inmates in the system.[7] A 2011 study showed among the 36 states that report felon recidivism — defined as re-imprisonment within three years of release — Virginia has the fourth lowest recidivism rate in the United States.[8]

## Facilities

[edit]

List of Virginia state prisons

### Dress code regulations of facilities

[edit]

The dress code for visitors includes no tube tops, halter tops, mini-skirts, leggings, form fitting clothing, and revealing necklines and/or excessive splits. No denim is allowed.[9]

### Death row

[edit]

Prior to the abolition of capital punishment in Virginia in 2021, male death row was located at the Sussex I State Prison, while females were housed at the Fluvanna Correctional Center for Women. Prior to August 3, 1998, the male death row was housed at Mecklenburg Correctional Center.[10] The execution chamber was located at the Greensville Correctional Center near Jarratt.[11][12]

Through 1990, the male death row was located at the Virginia State Penitentiary in Richmond, which began hosting executions on October 13, 1908. After the prison building was replaced in 1928, the men's death row and the execution chamber were housed in Building A.[13] The execution chamber was moved from the Virginia State Penitentiary to Greensville in 1991.[14]

## Legal issues and controversies

[edit]

### Human Rights Watch: Red Onion

[edit]

A 1999 report by Human Rights Watch raised concerns over conditions at Red Onion State Prison. The report states that "the Virginia Department of Corrections has failed to embrace basic tenets of sound correctional practice and laws protecting inmates from abusive, degrading or cruel treatment"[15] and claims that "racism, excessive violence and inhumane conditions reign inside."[16]

### ADA compliance (Minnis et al. v. Johnson et al.)

[edit]

In January 2010, complaints against the VADOC were filed in US District Court stating deaf and hard of hearing inmates could not properly communicate with friends and family outside the facility, had no visual notifications for safety announcements in the facilities, and had limited access to sign-language interpreters. In November 2010, after reviewing the complaints, the VADOC became the first corrections department in the country to install videophones, allowing deaf and hard of hearing inmates to communicate with friends and family outside the facility. In addition, sign language versions of rules, proceedings, medical appointments, meals, and events were also made available, and interpreters were brought in twice a week.

### Reading material restrictions (Couch v. Jabe et al.)

[edit]

The department permits the circulation of some softcore sexual-orientation magazines such as "Playboy". Previously, some classic literature books with erotica, such as "Ulysses" by James Joyce, "Lady Chatterley's Lover" by D. H. Lawrence, and "Fanny Hill" were banned. In 2010, as a result of a lawsuit filed by an inmate, a Federal court instructed the state corrections agency to begin permitting the circulation of the books.[17]

### Strip searches

[edit]

In December 2019, press reports indicated that an eight-year-old was ordered to strip naked in order to be searched before she was allowed to visit her father. A spokesman for the department apologized.[18]

### Tampon ban

[edit]

In September 2018, the department made headlines for banning female visitors to inmates from wearing tampons or menstrual cups in concerns over contraband being smuggled into the prisons. The ban was rescinded that same month after a public outcry and inquiry from the ACLU.

## See also

[edit]

* Virginia portal

* List of United States state correction agencies
* List of law enforcement agencies in Virginia
* Prison

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "VADOC FY 2020 Annual Report" (PDF). VADOC FY 2020 Annual Report. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
2. ^ McGeehee, Warren. "Population Summary - December 2023" (PDF). Virginia Department of Corrections. Retrieved 9 February 2024.
3. ^ "Victim Input Program Archived 2010-01-07 at the Wayback Machine." Virginia Department of Corrections. Retrieved on December 7, 2009.
4. ^ "VADOC — Chadwick Dotson Named Director of Virginia Department of Corrections".
5. ^ "Procedures Archived 2012-12-24 at the Wayback Machine." Virginia Department of Corrections. Retrieved on August 14, 2012.
6. ^ McGeehee, Warren. "Population Summary - December 2023" (PDF). Virginia Department of Corrections. Retrieved 9 February 2024.
7. ^ McGehee, Warren. "Monthly Population Summary - December 2019" (PDF). Virginia Department of Corrections. Retrieved 9 February 2024.
8. ^ "State of Recidivism Archived 2012-10-20 at the Wayback Machine." The Pew Center on the States. Retrieved on August 15, 2012.
9. ^ "Virginia Prisons Ban Visitors From Wearing Tampons, Citing Contraband Concerns". NPR.org. Retrieved 2018-09-24.
10. ^ "Facts about Virginia's Death Row" (Archive). NBC4 Washington. Tuesday November 10, 2009. Retrieved on May 29, 2012.
11. ^ Iovino, Jim. "Facts about Virginia's Death Row." NBC4 Washington. Date unstated. Retrieved on July 13, 2016.
12. ^ Virginia governor signs death penalty repeal bill
13. ^ Edds, Margaret. An Expendable Man: The Near-Execution of Earl Washington, Jr.. NYU Press, October 1, 2006. ISBN 0814722393, 9780814722398. p. 4.
14. ^ Richardson, Selden. The Tri-State Gang in Richmond: Murder and Robbery in the Great Depression (True Crime Series). The History Press, 2012. ISBN 1609495233, 9781609495237. p. 203[permanent dead link].
15. ^ Red Onion State Prison. "Human Rights Watch." Retrieved on June 11, 2012.
16. ^ "At Va.'s Toughest Prison, Tight Controls". Washington Post. April 18, 1999. p. C1. Retrieved January 16, 2010.
17. ^ Dougherty, Kerry. "Va. prisons in brawl over smutty books vs. racy mags." "The Virginian-Pilot". September 5, 2010. Retrieved on October 14, 2010.
18. ^ Balk, Tim (5 December 2019). "Girl, 8, strip-searched at Virginia jail during visit to see her dad: report". New York Daily News. Retrieved 6 December 2019.

## External links

[edit]

* Virginia Department of Corrections
* Virginia Department of Corrections at the Wayback Machine (archive index)
* "Up the Ridge", a documentary film about the Virginia state prison system

* v
* t
* e

Virginia Department of Corrections prisons

State prisons|

* Augusta Correctional Center
* Baskerville Correctional Center
* Bland Correctional Center
* Brunswick Work Center
* Buckingham Correctional Center
* Caroline Correctional Unit #2
* Central Virginia Correctional Unit #13
* Coffeewood Correctional Center
* Cold Springs Correctional Unit #10
* Deep Meadow Correctional Center
* Deerfield Correctional Center
* Dillwyn Correctional Center
* Fluvanna Correctional Center for Women
* Green Rock Correctional Center
* Greensville Correctional Center
* Halifax Correctional Unit #23
* Haynesville Correctional Center
* Haynesville Correctional Unit #17
* Indian Creek Correctional Center
* Keen Mountain Correctional Center
* Lunenburg Correctional Center
* Marion Correctional Center
* Nottoway Correctional Center
* Patrick Henry Correctional Unit #28
* Pocahontas State Correctional Center
* Powhatan Reception Center
* Red Onion State Prison
* River North Correctional Center
* Rustburg Correctional Unit #9
* St. Brides Correctional Center
* Sussex I State Prison
* Sussex II State Prison
* Virginia Correctional Center for Women
* Wallens Ridge State Prison
* Wise Correctional Unit

Private|

* Lawrenceville Correctional Center (operated by GEO Group)

Closed|

* Brunswick Correctional Center
* Culpeper Correctional Facility for Women
* James River Correctional Center
* Mecklenburg Correctional Center
* Southampton Correctional Center
* Virginia State Penitentiary

* v
* t
* e

Incarceration of adults in the United States

This template pertains only to agencies that handle sentenced felons (with sentences over 1-2 years). In many states, pre-trial detainees, persons convicted of misdemeanors, and felons sentenced under state law to less than one year are held in county jails instead of state prisons.

Federal Bureau of Prisons|

* United States federal prisons
* Federal Prison Industries

Corrections by States|

* Alabama
* Alaska
* Arizona
* Arkansas
* California
* Colorado
* Connecticut
* Delaware
* Florida
* Georgia
* Hawaii
* Idaho
* Illinois
* Indiana
* Iowa
* Kansas
* Kentucky
* Louisiana
* Maine
* Maryland
* Massachusetts
* Michigan
* Minnesota
* Mississippi
* Missouri
* Montana
* Nebraska
* Nevada
* New Hampshire
* New Jersey
* New Mexico
* New York
* North Carolina
* North Dakota
* Ohio
* Oklahoma
* Oregon
* Pennsylvania
* Rhode Island
* South Carolina
* South Dakota
* Tennessee
* Texas
* Utah
* Vermont
* Virginia
* Washington
* West Virginia
* Wisconsin
* Wyoming

Corrections by Federal district|

Felons: Federal Bureau of Prisons, Misdemeanants: District of Columbia (incarcerated long-term felons until year 2001)

Corrections by Insular areas|

* American Samoa
* Guam
* Northern Mariana Islands
* Puerto Rico
* U.S. Virgin Islands

Military prisons|

* United States military prisons
* Guantanamo Bay

State prisons|

* United States state prisons

See also|

* Civil confinement
* Immigration detention in the United States

* Category
* Commons
* United States portal

* v
* t
* e

State agencies of Virginia

Boards|

Commonwealth Transportation Board

* Virginia Parole Board
* Virginia State Board of Education

Commissions|

* Virginia Employment Commission
* Marine Resources Commission
* State Corporation Commission
* Workers' Compensation Commission

Departments|

* Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
* Department of Conservation and Recreation
* Department of Corrections
* Department of Education
* Department of Elections
* Department of Emergency Management
* Department of Energy
* Department of Environmental Quality
* Department of Forensic Science
* Department of Forestry
* Department of Health
* Department of Historic Resources
* Department of Housing and Community Development
* Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services
* Department of Labor and Industry
* Department of Medical Assistance Services
* Department of Motor Vehicles
* Department of Rail and Public Transportation
* Department of Social Services
* Department of Taxation
* Department of Transportation
* Department of Wildlife Resources

Law Enforcement|

* Virginia Capitol Police
* Virginia Conservation Police
* Virginia Marine Police
* Virginia Port Authority Police
* Virginia State Police

Other|

* Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority
* Virginia Information Technologies Agency
* Library of Virginia
* Virginia Lottery
* Virginia Retirement System
* Virginia Port Authority

Authority control databases

International|

* ISNI
* VIAF

National|

* United States

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template