Assessing the Situation

Once the disturbance has occurred, team members assigned to the facility should gather and assess the situation as soon as possible. Although a disturbance may have only begun, some thought should be given to its aftermath. In order to assess the situation, team members will want to know about the following.

Status of Officers and Other Corrections Personnel

• Gather information about the status of corrections officers and other corrections personnel, including whether any have been injured or killed, and if anyone has been taken hostage.
• Account for all employees within the prison.
• If there are hostages, complete a profile that includes the number of hostages as well as the following information on each hostage:
  • name;
  • medical condition;
  • home address;
  • family members, including children; and
  • location within the prison.

Inmate Profile

• Team members will also want to develop an inmate profile that includes the following information:
  • inmates' location(s);
  • weapons or tools possessed by inmates;
  • inmates' capacity to make tools and weapons; and
  • identity of inmate leaders.

Additional Information

• The union should be briefed on and kept apprised of:
  • contact established with inmate leaders;
  • the demands of inmate leaders;
  • when management intends to brief employees;
  • any plans for removing non-security employees;
  • whether the facility’s tactical team is in place; and
  • arrangements to move inmates to other areas of the facility or to transport them to other facilities.
• In this last event, the team can alert local leadership affected by this decision. Using its communication network, the union can also communicate with members at the institutions that will be receiving inmates from the site of the disturbance.

Aftermath

• Even when the disturbance has just begun, consider what will occur in its aftermath, including the following.
  • Who will provide the necessary counseling services for hostages and their families?
  • Who will debrief employees after the disturbance?
  • How will the union be involved in the post-disturbance effort to ensure against the recurrence of such a disturbance?