Code of Massachusetts Regulations › 103 CMR - DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTION › Title 103 CMR 179.00 - RESTRICTIVE HOUSING OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE › Section 179.05 - Definitions

Current through Register 1525, July 5, 2024
Administrator
. The chief
				administrative officer of a county correctional facility.
Commissioner
. The Commissioner of
				Correction.
Correctional Facility or Institution
.
				Any building, enclosure, space or structure used for the custody, control and
				rehabilitation of committed offenders and of such other persons as may be
				placed in custody therein in accordance with law.
County Correctional Facility
. Any
				correctional facility owned, operated, administered or subject to the control
				of a county of the Commonwealth.
Department Disciplinary Unit (DDU)
. A
				restricted area or areas designated by the Commissioner to which an inmate has
				received a sanction recommended by a Special Hearing Officer in accordance with
				103 CMR
				430.00:
Inmate Discipline.
Disciplinary Restrictive Housing
. A
				placement in restrictive housing, which includes the DDU, in a state or county
				correctional facility for disciplinary purposes after a finding has been made
				that the inmate has committed a breach of discipline.
Inmate
. A committed offender or such
				other person as is placed in custody in a correctional facility in accordance
				with law.
Qualified Mental Health Professionals
.
				Treatment providers who are psychiatrists, psychologists, psychiatric social
				workers, psychiatric nurses, and others who by virtue of their education,
				credentials and experience are permitted by law to evaluate and care for the
				mental health needs of patients.
Restrictive Housing
. A placement for
				disciplinary or non-disciplinary purposes that requires an inmate to be
				confined to a cell for at least 22 hours per day for the safe and secure
				operation of the facility. For purposes of 103 CMR 179.00, restrictive housing
				shall not include the following: any placement ordered by a medical or mental
				health provider, including but not limited to, the placement of an inmate in a
				Health Services Unit; the placement of an inmate in a hospital; the placement
				of an inmate in a medical setting where treatment is being provided; or the
				placement of an inmate on a mental health watch.
Restrictive Housing Oversight
				Committee
. The Restrictive Housing Oversight Committee,
				hereinafter "Committee," that is established pursuant to M.G.L. c. 127, §
				39G, consisting of: the Secretary of the Executive Office of Public Safety and
				Security or a designee, who shall serve as chair; the Commissioner of the
				Department of Correction or a designee; the Commissioner of Mental Health or a
				designee; and nine members appointed by the Governor, one of whom shall be a
				correctional administrator with expertise in prison discipline or prison
				programming, one of whom shall be a member of a correctional officers union,
				one of whom shall have significant and demonstrated experience in criminal
				justice or corrections policy research, one of whom shall be the president of
				the Massachusetts Sheriffs Association, Inc. or a designee, one of whom shall
				be a former judge designated by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Judicial
				Court, one of whom shall be the Executive Director of Disability Law Center,
				Inc. or a designee, one of whom shall be the Executive Director of Prisoners'
				Legal Services or a designee, one of whom shall be the Executive Director of
				the Massachusetts Association for Mental Health, Inc. or a designee, and one of
				whom shall be a licensed social worker designated by the Massachusetts chapter
				of the National Association of Social Workers, Inc.
Serious Mental Illness (SMI)
. A
				current or recent diagnosis by a Qualified Mental Health Professional of one or
				more of the following disorders described in the 5th
				edition of the
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental
				Disorders:
(a) schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders;
(b) major depressive disorders;
(c) all types of bipolar disorders;
(d) a neuro-developmental disorder, dementia or other cognitive
				disorder;
(e) any disorder commonly characterized by breaks with reality
				or perceptions of reality;
(f) all types of anxiety disorders;
(g) trauma and stressor related disorders; or
(h) severe personality disorders; or a finding by a Qualified
				Mental Health Professional that the inmate is at serious risk of substantially
				deteriorating mentally or emotionally while confined in restrictive housing, or
				already has so deteriorated while confined in restrictive housing, such that
				diversion or removal is deemed to be clinically appropriate by a Qualified
				Mental Health Professional.
Sheriff
. The individual elected to the
				office of Sheriff for a county in accordance with M.G.L c. 37, § 1 and
				M.G.L. c. 54, § 159.
State Correctional Facility
. Any
				correctional facility owned, operated, administered or subject to the control
				of the Massachusetts Department of Correction.