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Conference Session: Session II—Professionalism in Corrections and the Need for External Scrutiny

Speaker(s): A.T. Wall, Director, Rhode Island Department of Corrections (Moderator)

Martin Horn, Commissioner, New York City Department of Corrections

Kathleen Dennehy, Commissioner, Massachusetts Department of Corrections

Andrew Coyle, Founding Director, International Centre for Prison Studies, Kings College, London, and former executive-level prison administrator, British Prison Service

Bill Collins, former Assistant Attorney General, Washington State, and author of “Jail and Prison Legal Issues: An Administrator’s Guide”

Date:

Length: 103 minutes

Description: This roundtable discussion, featuring some of the country’s leading corrections executives and internationally known prison experts, focuses on the ways in which external scrutiny can benefit correctional administrators. Roundtable participants examine the relationship between professionalism, leadership, and outside oversight, and talk about ways that increased transparency and accountability help agencies avoid complacency. Marty Horn speaks of the tremendous power held by corrections officials and how that leads to a responsibility to be self-reflective in their work. The group also discusses the perceived increased risks that come with expanded scrutiny, including the potential for liability, but the participants observe that not opening agencies to outside scrutiny contributes to a cultural code of silence among staff. The roundtable is followed by a lively audience discussion.

The statements made here represent the speakers' own thoughts. Neither the LBJ School of Public Affairs, The University of Texas at Austin, nor any organization providing support for this effort necessarily endorses the views and statements included here.