New DOCCS Directives on Community Supervision.
The New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) has issued several new and updated Directives on community supervision.
This Directive provides DOCCS "staff with the operating procedures for the application of the COMPAS Case Supervision Review instrument for parolees." Parole officers must complete the Case Supervision Review instrument (CSR) for each person on parole who has had 12 months of unrevoked community supervision and every 12 months thereafter, except for registered or discretionary sex offenders, Office of Mental Health designated Level 1, 1S, 2, and 2S cases (severe mental illness), and individuals in non-report status.
The CSR, which consists of 23 questions, is used to determine whether to raise, lower, or maintain an individual's current COMPAS Supervision Level. There are four levels, with Status 1 being the most intensive and Status 4 being the least intensive. According to Northpointe Inc., the developer of COMPAS, the CSR "is automatically scored and produces a suerpvision adjustment recommendation. The instrument is intended to be an objective decision support tool to guide adjustments in the current supervision level."
This Directive, which supersedes Department of Parole Manual Item 9204.09, addresses the $30 monthly supervision fee imposed on individuals who "are supervised on presumptive release, parole, conditional release or post-release supervision." Correction Law 201(9)(a). The Directive provides an outline of the circumstances under which DOCCS will waive all or part of such fee and details regarding the fee payment process.
This Directive introduces a new project that "will focus on the most high risk parolees returning from prison to the community. Interventions will include implementation of risk reduction tools such as Global Positioning System (GPS) monitoring and behavior change strategies such as focused 'call-ins.'"
This Directive establishes a grievance procedure for individuals under the supervision of DOCCS Community Supervision staff, including individuals paroled, conditionally released, released to a period of post-release supervision, released to the community via an order of strict and intensive supervision and treatment, and granted discretionary release under Penal Law 70.40(2). Only a person personally affected may file a grievance and class action grievances will not be accepted.
Many DOCCS Directives are posted on the DOCCS
website
. Categories of Directives that may be of particular interest to defenders include program services; health services; security services; temporary release; community supervision; and executive clemency, foreign nationals and prosecution.