Code of Massachusetts Regulations › 103 CMR - DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTION › Title 103 CMR 430.00 - Inmate Discipline › Section 430.05 - Definitions

Current through Register 1525, July 5, 2024
Aggravated Assault
. An assault where
				aggravating factors exist including, but not limited to: use of a weapon;
				biting; use of a shod foot; multiple participants involved in the assault;
				seriousness of bodily injury; or, any other factors that manifest extreme
				indifference to life.
Automatic Discovery
. Evidence which
				the Disciplinary Officer shall provide to the inmate automatically, and without
				request by the inmate, prior to the disciplinary hearing.
Business Day
. Monday through Friday,
				excluding holidays.
Central Inmate Disciplinary Unit
				(CIDU)
. The centralized unit responsible for the oversight,
				implementation and auditing of all inmate disciplinary functions within the
				Department.
Commissioner
. The Commissioner of
				Correction.
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.
Deputy Commissioner of the Prison Division (Deputy
				Commissioner)
. The executive staff person who reports to the
				Commissioner, and whose duties include, but are not limited to, the management
				of: Assistant Deputy Commissioner(s) of the Prison Division, the Central Inmate
				Disciplinary Unit, and the Office of Communication and Administrative
				Resolution.
Director of Inmate Discipline (Director or
				Director of Discipline)
. The administrative manager appointed by
				the Commissioner to oversee all inmate disciplinary functions within the
				Department, excluding Placement Reviews and conditions of confinement in the
				DDU.
Disciplinary Detention
. The
				Restrictive Housing of an inmate who has been found guilty of a serious
				violation of
				103 CMR
				430.00. Such sanction shall not exceed 15 days for one
				offense and no more than 30 days for all violations arising out of the same or
				substantially connected incident(s), unless specifically authorized by the
				Commissioner. Disciplinary detention does not refer to inmates sanctioned to a
				DDU.
Disciplinary Restrictive Housing
. A
				placement of an inmate in Restrictive Housing in a state correctional facility
				for disciplinary purposes to serve a Disciplinary Detention or DDU sanction
				after a finding has been made that the inmate has committed a breach of
				discipline.
Disciplinary Officer
. An officer of
				supervisory rank or function appointed by the Director in minimum and
				pre-release security level institutions, or the Superintendent, in consultation
				with the Director, in medium and maximum security level institutions.
				Disciplinary Officers shall oversee disciplinary processing functions at the
				institutional level and shall directly report to their appointing authority;
i.e
., the Director or Superintendent.
Exculpatory Evidence
. Evidence that
				is potentially helpful to the inmate in either proving innocence or in
				establishing lesser responsibility for the offense(s) as charged.
Exigent Circumstances
. Circumstances
				that create an unacceptable risk to the safety of any person.
Hearing Officer
. An officer of
				supervisory rank who is appointed by and reports to the Director to conduct
				disciplinary hearings.
Inmate Management System (IMS)
. The
				Department's automated information system that provides processing, storage and
				retrieval of inmate-related information needed by Department personnel and
				other authorized users within the criminal justice system.
Intimate Act
. An act that suggests
				overly familiar behavior,
e.g
., kissing, caressing or other
				related acts, excluding acts that are defined as sexual abuse in 103 DOC
				519.00:
Sexual Harassment/Abuse Response and Prevention Policy
				(SHARPP)
.
Offer of Proof
. A brief description
				of expected testimony or evidence.
Placement Review
. A multidisciplinary
				examination to determine whether Restrictive Housing continues to be necessary
				to reasonably manage risks of harm, notwithstanding any previous finding of a
				disciplinary breach, exigent circumstances, or other circumstances supporting a
				placement in Restrictive Housing.
Placement Review Committee
. A
				multidisciplinary group which shall include, but may not be limited to:
(a) member of the security staff;
(b) member of the programming staff; and
(c) one member of the mental health staff.
This Committee may include the Superintendent, Deputy
				Superintendents, Director of Security, Director of Classification, Restrictive
				Housing Unit Captain, or their respective designees, and such other staff as
				deemed necessary to determine whether Restrictive Housing continues to be
				necessary to reasonably manage risks of harm, notwithstanding any previous
				finding of a disciplinary breach, exigent circumstances or other circumstances
				supporting a placement in Restrictive Housing.
Preponderance of Evidence
. A belief,
				formed after weighing the evidence, that the proponent's contention is more
				likely true than not true.
Proponent
. The staff member seeking a
				guilty finding against an inmate, or supporting a disciplinary report against
				an inmate.
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 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
				430.00, 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.
Secure Adjustment Unit
. A highly
				structured unit that is not Restrictive Housing and that provides access to
				cognitive behavioral treatment, education, programs, structured recreation,
				leisure time activities and mental health services for those inmates diverted
				from or released from Restrictive Housing.
Secure Treatment Unit
. A maximum
				security residential treatment program that is not Restrictive Housing and that
				is designed to provide an alternative to Restrictive Housing for inmates
				diagnosed with serious mental illness in accordance with clinical standards
				adopted by the Department of Correction. Secure Treatment Units consist of the
				Secure Treatment Program and the Behavioral Management Unit.
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 neurodevelopmental 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;
(h) severe personality disorders; or
(i) 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.
Special Disciplinary Officer
. A
				person appointed by the Commissioner, Superintendent or the Director to oversee
				any disciplinary matter or class of disciplinary matters, or an officer of
				supervisory rank or function appointed by the Director to oversee disciplinary
				processing functions for matters approved for a DDU disciplinary hearing. The
				Special Disciplinary Officer shall report directly to the appointing authority
				unless otherwise directed by the Commissioner.
Special Hearing Officer
. A Hearing
				Officer appointed by the Commissioner to conduct DDU disciplinary hearings who
				shall report directly to the Director.
Stalking
. The willful and malicious
				engagement in a knowing pattern of conduct or series of acts over a period of
				time directed at a specific person which seriously alarms that person and would
				cause a reasonable person to suffer substantial emotional distress.
Superintendent
. The chief
				administrative officer of a state correctional institution.