Union members at Toledo Correctional Institution expect the prison will house an increased share of the state’s more threatening inmates.
Ryan Jones, president of the union representing corrections officers, said prison officials informed him more level-four inmates will come to the North Toledo facility. Inmates classified at one level lower are leaving through attrition and transfers, he said.
On-site construction of additional extended restrictive housing is also anticipated, Mr. Jones said.
Inmate classifications range statewide from levels one through five. It’s based in part on their behavioral history, mental stability, and criminal record.
Toledo’s inmate population currently divides into 20 percent level four, 62 percent level three, 1 percent level two, and 17 percent level one. Figures from last year were not immediately available.
RELATED CONTENT: State probes theft of gun from local prison ■ North Toledo residents speak out death row inmate move
Level four inmates include gang leaders and those who do not obey prison’s rules, Mr. Jones said. Corrections officers will ensure they are secure, but the work is more intensive, he said.
“You’re basically getting some of the worst of the state,” Mr. Jones said.
Mr. Jones said he believes the state department is looking to Toledo because its prison was originally built as a high-security facility. Staff members have proven themselves with these inmates as well, he said.
“They are more violent, but the community really doesn’t have anything to worry about,” Mr. Jones said.
Mr. Jones said administrators informed him to better prepare unionized employees. State administrators have not yet made the move official, and a timetable is unknown, he said.
Reaching this point of extended restrictive housing typically comes after inmates act inappropriately while incarcerated, Mr. Jones said. Many are housed at Southern Ohio Correctional Facility near Lucasville and Ohio State Penitentiary in Youngstown.
According to the state, this housing separates inmates from the general population. They are restricted to their cells for 22 hours or more each day for at least 30 days.
JoEllen Smith, an Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction spokesman, declined Wednesday to specifically address Mr. Jones’ comments.
She released a statement this week that said, “The future mission of the Toledo Correctional Institution is currently being evaluated.”
The state previously announced death row housing would relocate from Chillicothe to Toledo.
Officials in June said instead it will not occur in the foreseeable future. Ms. Smith would not say whether this has changed. The death-row inmates are not classified by levels.
Contact Ryan Dunn at rdunn@theblade.com, 419-724-6095 or on Twitter @rdunnblade.
First Published August 3, 2017, 4:00 a.m.
