SAFETY FIRST — PEF steward V. Antonio Perez speaks out at the Bronx arraignment of a parole violator. — Photo by Richard Dillard Parole members call DOCS merger hostile By SHERRY HALBROOK It would be difficult to find a more stressful and dangerous job than supervising convicted felons released on parole. Lately, the stress and danger have been escalating, according to five PEF members testifying before the state Assembly Committee on Correction at a hearing November 11 in Albany. Committee Chair Jeffrion Aubry of Queens held the hearing to get a progress report on the merger of the state Division of Parole with the state Department of Correctional Services into the new Department of Corrections and Community Services (DOCCS). Aubry got an earful, especially from the PEF members who testified about disrupted chains of command, lack of training, closed worksites, new programs and rising parole caseloads – all aimed at reducing prison populations and costs. The PEF members said they are concerned their safety and that of the public is increasingly at risk.   The testimony came just nine days after 113 parole officers demonstrated at the Bronx arraignment of a parolee who allegedly injured and tried to kill parole officers in September when they arrested him for parole violations. PEF Division 236 Council Leader John Walters, a parole officer in the Syracuse area, cited “an inherent conflict of interest between the two agencies” and said, “The take-it-or-leave-it attitude of DOCCS management has resulted in employees of the former Division of Parole viewing this as a hostile takeover, rather than a merger.” It was a sentiment echoed by all of the PEF members who testified. State Corrections Commissioner Brian Fischer and Parole Executive Director Andrea Evans testified the merger was progressing and focused on how it was reducing costs. Fischer said the state has 38,000 felons in New York communities. Walters said the state has just 855 parole officers left to supervise them, after losing 49 officers in the past 11 months. No new officers have been hired in four years.   Although the officers are the public’s first line of defense from rogue parolees, Walters said the merger has reduced officers and other vital staff while leaving top management ranks unscathed. Fischer touted two new computerized systems being introduced to standardize and quantify data presented to the state Parole Board when it decides whether to release inmates, and to assess the risk to public safety each parolee poses when they are released. That risk assessment is used to assign the inmate to a parole officer. The lower the risk, the higher the officer’s caseload, up to 160 parolees. “Our goal is to keep the offender on the street as long as possible without jeopardizing public safety,” Fischer said. PEF members said the new system, which is being piloted in Buffalo, is flawed. The risk assessments are locked and can’t be adjusted when parolees violate their paroles or exhibit other dangerous behavior. Fischer said he is trying to consolidate worksites to save money. But PEF members testified savings are offset by much higher travel costs and wasted time. Aubry said the state budget assumes the merger will save at least $6.5 million and he had heard it might go as high as $17 million.

The Communicator Letters policy We welcome letters to the editor about union issues and events relevant to PEF's diverse membership. All letters are subject to editing for space, fairness and good taste. Please keep them brief (up to one page, double-spaced or a maximum of 250 words), and please include your name and phone number for verification. Send letters to thecommunicator@pef.org: The Communicator Public Employees Federation P.O. Box 12414 Albany, N.Y. 12212-2414 Email to Sherry Halbrook, Editor or Darcy Wells, Editor-In Chief