California Code of Regulations › Title 15 - Crime Prevention and Corrections › Division 3 - Adult Institutions, Programs and Parole › Chapter 1 - Rules and Regulations of Adult Operations and Programs › Subchapter 5.1 - Inmate and Parolee Programs › Article 1 - Administrative Remedies for Inmates and Parolees › Section 3485 - Appeal Review

Current through Register 2024 Notice Reg. No. 28, July 12, 2024
(a) The
					 Reviewing Authority for the Office of Appeals shall designate at least one official
					 to assess each written appeal within one business day of receipt to determine if it
					 contains information concerning an imminent risk to personal safety, to
					 institutional security, or of sexual abuse, including acts of sexual misconduct as
					 defined by the federal Prison Rape Elimination Act and the California Sexual Abuse
					 in Detention Elimination Act. In addition, the official shall assess if the
					 grievance alleges that the claimant's Earliest Possible Release Date (EPRD) is
					 erroneous and the claimant is scheduled to be released within 90 calendar days of
					 the date the appeal was received by the Office of Appeals. In all instances
					 described above, the official shall refer the matter to the Institutional or
					 Regional Office of Grievances where the majority of the facts and circumstances that
					 gave rise to the claim occurred to be handled pursuant to subsection
					 3483(a).
(b) If the Office of Appeals determines that a
					 claim involved staff misconduct and that claim was not referred to the appropriate
					 authority to gather relevant facts according to subsection
					 3482(b), then the
					 Office of Appeals shall grant that claim and order the Centralized Screening Team to
					 refer the allegation to the appropriate authority to gather relevant
					 facts.
(c) The appeal Coordinator shall
					 acknowledge receipt of each appeal to the claimant in writing within four business
					 days of its receipt indicating the date the appeal was submitted, the date the
					 appeal was received, the calculated date for the department's response, and whether
					 the appeal was disallowed pursuant to subsection
					 3484(d)(3).
(d) The appeal Coordinator shall ensure that all
					 routine claims appealed by the claimant to the Office of Appeals are reviewed and
					 answered in accordance with this section.
(e) The full record of each claim shall be made
					 available to the Office of Appeals for purposes of conducting its reviews. The
					 record shall include the claimant's grievance, the claimant's appeal, both
					 acknowledgment letters, all related interviews conducted for the Institutional or
					 Regional Office of Grievances, any relevant documentation prepared for the Office of
					 Grievances, any records contained in the department's information technology system,
					 and all department rules and memoranda. The record shall not include any new
					 information provided by the claimant to the Office of Appeals that was not made
					 available to the Office of Grievances for their review.
(f) The Reviewing Authority shall exclude any
					 individual whose personal interaction with the claimant forms part of the claim from
					 participating in the appeal process as to that claim. If the individual in question
					 is the Associate Director of the Office of Appeals, then the Director from the
					 Division of Correctional Policy Research and Internal Oversight shall serve as the
					 Reviewing Authority for that claim.
(g)
					 The appeal Coordinator shall ensure that a written appeal decision is completed no
					 later than 60 calendar days after receipt of the appeal, unless other statutory or
					 regulatory authority requires a response in less than 60 calendar days, and contains
					 one of the following decisions as to each claim in the appeal:
(1) "Denied," meaning that:
(A) the Reviewing Authority found by a
					 preponderance of the evidence available that the decision by the Institutional or
					 Regional Office of Grievances pursuant to subsections
					 3483(g)(1) or (2) was
					 proper; or
(B) the appeal Coordinator
					 found by a preponderance of the evidence available that the decision by the
					 Institutional or Regional Office of Grievances pursuant to subsections
					 3483(g)(3) through
					 (10) was proper;