ECHOES OF THE PAST FROM THE ARCHIVES OF THE ATTICA HISTORICAL SOCIETY
State offers few specifics on prison fence
Attack by prison inmate puts officer in hospital
Green Haven guard stabbed 3 times, burned; inmate suspected
Guards halt gang fight at state prison
Inmates linked to riot charged and transferred
Suicide follows Five Points crash
Inmate knocks correction officer unconscious
Prison commissioner lifts freeze on Correction Officer reassignments to fill critical vacancies
Officers Stabbed at Attica
Lockdown denied after bullet found
Woman charged in prison smuggling
CONTRACT UPDATE
McGregor camp to stay open
Another reprieve for prison facility
2005 Empire Plan Basic Medical Component Deductible and Maximum Out of Pocket Expense
City man accused in guard assaults
Incorporation Papers
Recently an affidavit was posted
Recently Enacted Federal Legislation
Statue's Vital Parts Shaved By Prison Officials
Cleaning and Maintenance allowance
Updates Contract and Certificate of Incorporation

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Newsclipping from January 24, 1931

Attica Prison Mental Expert to be the Highest Paid Next to the New Warden

Good salaries will be paid to the officials and employees of the Attica State Prison, ranging from $9,000 for the warden down to $720 for the cheapest domestic help. In addition, the warden gets a well-equipped home and the expense of maintaining it. In official circles, it is accepted that the post will go to Warden William Hunt of Great Meadow.

Prison guards will be paid a little over $40 a week and sergeants and guard captains will get about $50 a week. The next highest salary to that of the warden will be a paid psychiatrist (physician who treats mental diseases), $6,000 a year. The salaries, as submitted to the Legislature by Governor Roosevelt, are: Warden - $9,000; Principal Keeper - $4,250; Bertillion Clerk -$2,280; Correspondence Censor - $2,280; Chief Clerk - $1,980; Stenographer - $1,800; Chaplain, two at $2,400 - $4,800; chaplain, Visiting - $1,000; Telephone Operator, two at $1,500 - $3,000; Chauffeur and Mechanic - $1,600; Cook - $840; Domestic - $720; Accounting and Stores Comptrollers Clerk - $2,100; Storekeeper - $2,600; Bookkeeper - $2,080; General Supervision of Prisoners Assistant Principal Keeper - $3,125; Sergeant of Guard, two at $2,500 - $5,000; Captain of Night Guard - $2,500; Guards (120) - $232,200; Kitchen and Mess Hakll Kitchen Keeper $2,500; Head Cook $2,280; Baker - $2,280; Hospital Physician - $4,000; Assistant Physician $2,400; Male Nurse - $1,800; Classification Psychiatrist $6,000; Mechanical Engineering Chief Engineer $2,500; Assistant Engineer First Grade $1,800; Fireman, 3 at $1,500; $4,500; Mechanical Repairs Yardmaster $2,500; Plumber $1,800; Truck Driver - $1,500; Educational Head Teacher - $2,080; Field Service Head Farmer including house, fuel, light and products from the farm for self and family - $1,512; Special Services $1,000.

For maintenance and operation of the Attica Prison, Governor Roosevelt has recommended the amount of $246,500 for 1931.

Researched by Arnold Sprague, Attica Historical Society Vice President

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Contracts could be awarded this summer; project may be done in '05.
By SALLE E. RICHARDS
Star-Gazette
[email protected]

A year after two murderers escaped from the Elmira Correctional Facility, the state is getting ready to take the next step toward fulfilling its promise of putting a fence around the prison.

The state Office of General Services, which handles construction projects for the state, is opening bids on the $3.3 million fence project on July 21, spokeswoman Paula Monaco said Tuesday.

The contract for the fence should be awarded in August, Monaco added.

Monaco referred other questions about details of the fence project to the state Department of Correctional Services, which operates the state prison system.

James Flateau, spokesman for the Department of Correctional Services, said the Office of General Services would have to provide information on the fence.

Monaco could not be reached after Flateau's comment.

State Sen. John R. Kuhl Jr., R-Hammondsport, said Tuesday that the fence likely would be completed next year.

Kuhl also said he did not have any other information about the fence, such as where it would be placed outside the prison and its size.

After the escape a year ago, the state said it would build a double fence with razor wire on top and motion detectors between the two segments this spring, but in March, it released a revised timetable putting completion of the fence in 2005.

Elmira Mayor Stephen M. Hughes said Tuesday that as far as he knows, the state has not purchased property at the nearby city-owned Woodlawn Cemetery along Bancroft Road that the state said it would need for the project, and prison neighbors say they have seen no signs of change outside the facility.

One year ago today, Timothy A. Vail, now 36, and Timothy G. Morgan, now 27, hammered their way through the ceiling of their cell, crawled through the ventilation system and, with a collection of tied bedsheets, lowered themselves from the roof to the ground.

Vail fell 20 feet from the bedsheets to the ground during the escape, injuring an ankle and his left shoulder.

They were captured the next day near the Village Plaza in Horseheads.

Vail and Morgan later were convicted of escape and related crimes and had more prison time added to their already-lengthy sentences.

Some neighbors say they still feel safe

One year later, things look pretty much the same at prison, built in the mid-19th century to reclaim boys from lives of crime. It is still called "The Reformatory" by many longtime Elmirans.

"There used to be kids up there," said Marie Ames, of Country Club Drive in Elmira, who was delaying her exit from a nearby Subway store Monday for a brief rainstorm. "Now they are hardened criminals."

But Ames still comes regularly into the neighborhood to shop, attend club meetings and play bingo.

"I've lived here so long," she said, shrugging off the suggestion of lingering fear.

The state Department of Correctional Services conducted an internal investigation that produced a 26-page report. The report blamed sloppy procedures and inattentive correction officers at the prison.

That conclusion enraged union leaders at the New York State Correctional Officers and Police Benevolent Association, who said staffing shortages and cost cutting contributed to escape.

Richard Harcrow, president of New York State Correctional Officers and Police Benevolent Association, said Tuesday that he hopes the state acts on some of the post-escape recommendations made by the union.

"Our officers do a very good job under highly difficult and stressful conditions walking America's toughest beat," Harcrow said. "We want what's best for public safety and that of the facility's."

Mayor concerned about placement of fence

Hughes said he is upset that state Department of Correctional Services Commissioner Glenn S. Goord rejected his offer of forming a citizens advisory committee on the fence.

"They've dropped the ball on any leadership opportunities," Hughes said, noting that he knows nothing about where the fence will go or what its design will be.

"It should go close to the facility, not along Davis Street," Hughes said, adding that the city will object if the fence is put close to the tree-lined residential street.

Hughes also said he is not convinced the fence will be built.

But Kuhl says the money for the fence is available. "I've had discussions with (Goord)," Kuhl said. "It needs to be done."

Neighbors divided on value of fence

Neighbors of the prison have mixed opinions on the value of the fence. Some say they'll feel safer once it is built.

"I'll feel better once they have a fence," said Christy Gray, 25, of Hart Street.

But Shelley Porter, 40, of Kingsbury Avenue, said she doesn't think the fence will make much of a difference. And she wouldn't want the fence to be too intrusive on the neighborhood.

"You really can't tell it's a prison now. They're generally good neighbors," she said. "But a fence would make it more noticeable."

Trisha Thurston, 16, of Westside Avenue, thinks having prison staff pay more attention to details is the best deterrent to escapes.

That was an opinion shared by Goord when the prison escape report was issued in March.

Goord said the report has prompted better security procedures at the prison. It is also intended as a warning to administrators of other state prisons about the need to make sure security guidelines are being followed.

Disciplinary charges were brought against three prison employees as a result of the state report, but Flateau said in March that during the investigation that many employees from administrators to line staff admitted they had become too lax with procedures.

He stood by the conclusions of the report Tuesday.

Flateau was asked what's different about the Elmira Correctional Facility since the escape a year ago.

"Read the report," was his only comment.

Back to normal outside prison

Neighbors say things have returned to normal even without a fence. They admit the escape made them nervous before Vail and Morgan were captured.

"I'd check the house before anyone else entered," said Robert Sweet, 43, of McCann's Boulevard in Elmira Heights.

Most neighbors think anyone who escapes from the prison is interested in getting far away and is unlikely to stop in a neighborhood where many correction officers live.

"'The Hill' has never bothered me," said Joanne Coleman, 57, of Chapman Place, using a common nickname for the prison.

She thinks a fence won't do much good because the actions that led to the escape happened inside the prison.

"I bet they're a lot more vigilant now," she said.

The escape at a glance

Facts about the July 7, 2003, escape from the Elmira Correctional Facility.

- Who escaped:

Timothy A. Vail, 36, of Broome County, convicted of second-degree murder, first-degree rape, robbery and burglary for raping and killing a pregnant law office secretary in 1988 in Binghamton. Sentenced to 49 years to life.

Timothy G. Morgan, 27, of Fulton County, N.Y., convicted of second-degree murder and first-degree robbery in the 1998 killing of a cab driver in Gloversville, N.Y. Sentenced to 25 years to life.

- How they did it: The men used a stolen sledgehammer to chip an 8-inch-by-12-inch hole into the ceiling of their top-tier cell, climbed into the ventilation system and escaped to the roof. They used a 61-foot rope of tied bedsheets to descend the outer wall of the prison on July 7.

- How they were captured: The men stole a white Dodge van around 7 p.m. July 8 from the P&C Foods parking lot on Lake Road in the town of Horseheads. Police quickly spotted the van and stopped it on Gardner Road in the village of Horseheads, next to the Village Plaza. The men surrendered without resisting.

- Where they are now:

Morgan pleaded guilty to multiple charges on Sept. 19 and was sentenced Oct. 31 to 15 additional years in prison. The charges: first-degree escape, second- and third-degree burglary and fourth-degree grand larceny. He won't be eligible for parole until 2038. Morgan is in Auburn Correctional Facility.

Vail pleaded guilty Jan. 29 to first-degree escape. A plea deal satisfied an indictment that had charged Vail with criminal trespass, fourth-degree grand larceny and first-degree escape. He was sentenced on March 19 to 3½ to seven more years in prison. He won't be eligible for parole until 2041. Vail is in the Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemor

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April 15, 2004
Stormville

A state correction officer was admitted to St. Francis Hospital in Poughkeepsie last night after he was attacked by an inmate at the Green Haven Correctional Facility in Dutchess County, authorities said.

State police are investigating the attack on the officer, which happened at about 12:30 p.m. The officer, identified by a union official as a 30-year-old Columbia County man, suffered burns to his head and face when he was hit with hot cooking oil. He also was stabbed through the left arm and twice in the back with a 9½-inch sharpened steel rod, said the state Department of Correctional Services.

"He's resting now – it looks like he's going to be OK, but they're keeping him overnight for observation," said Larry Flanagan, Hudson Valley vice president for the New York State Correction Officers and Police Benevolent Association.

The inmate accused in the attack, Corey Ford, 30, is serving 12½ to 25 years for crimes that include kidnapping and attempted murder.

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GREENHAVEN -- An inmate allegedly stabbed a prison guard with a sharpened 9-inch steel rod Wednesday at the maximum-security Green Haven Correctional Facility, officials said.

Corey Ford, 30, charged out of his open prison cell at the guard around 12:30 p.m., throwing a cup of hot liquid on him and stabbing him repeatedly, according to the Department of Correctional Services in Albany. The guard sounded a personal safety alarm, and three officers tackled Ford to the ground.

The guard was treated for two stab wounds in the back and one in the left arm, as well as burns on the left side of his face, officials said. The injuries are not life-threatening.

Ford was moved to disciplinary housing. Besides criminal charges, he could face a 23-hour-a-day confinement.

Ford is serving 12 1/2 to 25 years for convictions for second-degree attempted murder, third-degree criminal possession of a weapon and second-degree bail jumping and second-degree kidnapping. Ford, a member of a Bronx drug ring, took part in the torture and murder of a City of Poughkeepsie man in 1994. The victim was dumped on the side of the Taconic State Parkway.

There have been 143 inmate attacks on staff in New York state prisons in the first three months year. At Green Haven, which houses 2,068 inmates, there were 37 such assaults in 2003.

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A fight between about 20 members of the Cryps and Bloods gangs Tuesday afternoon at Mohawk Correctional Facility in south Rome was broken up by guards, according to two union officials.

The two members of the union representing corrections officers, including a labor official in Albany, said they think Mohawk and other state prison need more guards to prevent such melees, and possible injuries.

Officials from the state Department of Corrections did not return phone calls seeking information about Tuesday's incident.

No shots were fired, and no guards were hurt in Tuesday's fight. Some inmates received minor injuries and were treated at the facility, according to the union officials. Both union members asked that their names not be used, for fear of retaliation against the union or themselves.

According to the officials, about 20 inmates got into a fight in the east recreation yard at Mohawk at about 3:30 p.m. Tuesday. There were some sharp homemade objects used during the fight, including a pen that had been made into a weapon, they said. There were about 350 inmates in the yard at the time, and three officers. The officers do not carry guns. There was also a tower officer watching, who is armed with a rifle.

Other officers had to be called in to the area to quell the fighting, which was brought under control in about 10 minutes.

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6/3/2004 AUBURN

(AP) - Ten former Auburn Correctional Facility inmates have been indicted on charges of riot, gang assault and conspiracy in the attack that hurt eight guards almost a year ago.

The inmates have been moved to other prisons, authorities said. Five pleaded not guilty Tuesday in Cayuga County Court. They are Alfredo Davis, 20; Gary Foster, 31; Labre Fulcher, 28; David Ratliff, 27; and Arrello Barnes, 25.

Two are now at Attica prison in Western New York - Davis on a burglary conviction and Barnes for murder and robbery. Three are at Upstate Correctional Facility in Malone in northern New York - Foster for drug sale and weapon possession, Fulcher for murder and Ratliff for weapon possession.

The other five inmates will be arraigned next week.

According to the indictment, shortly before 3:30 p.m. last June 14, three groups of 10 to 15 inmates converged at a guard post in the main prison exercise yard, and 10 inmates attacked officers. Other guards with batons came to their defense and two warning shots were fired before order was restored at the prison.

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By DENISE M. CHAMPAGNE

ROMULUS — A Five Points Correctional Facility officer died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound Tuesday following a collision at the prison’s gate.

Mark V. Mullen, 44, of 300 Halseyville Road, Ithaca, was pronounced dead at the scene by Seneca County Coroner Allen Hawker.

Sheriff’s deputies reported Mullen was driving a prison pickup truck east out of Five Points around 1 p.m. when he crashed into a town of Hector tractor-trailer driven by Lynn R. Williamee, 46, of 5963 Route 227, Trumansburg.

The impact caused Mullen’s vehicle to spin off the road and hit a utility pole. The tractor-trailer went off the west side of the road and overturned.

Witnesses told deputies Mullen got out of the truck, walked around it out of sight, and then they heard a gunshot. Mullen was found unconscious next to the vehicle with a handgun lying next to him, deputies said. An autopsy showed he died from a single self-inflicted gunshot wound.

“It’s unfortunate,” said Jim Flateau, a spokesman for the state Department of Correctional Services, who noted Mullen had been with the department since 1982.

Originally from Poughkeepsie, Mullen was raised in Wappinger’s Falls and worked for the Downstate Correctional Facility in Fishkill for 17 years before coming to Romulus.

He and his wife, Laurie, have two daughters, and an education fund has been set up for them. Donations can be sent to Tompkins Trust Co., Attn: Tracy Vanderzee, P.O. Box 702, Trumansburg, 14886.

Williamee was taken by South Seneca Ambulance to Geneva General Hospital, where he was treated for minor injuries and released.

Deputies were helped by state police and investigators from the state Inspector General’s Office.

Both vehicles had to be towed from the scene. The investigation is continuing.

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A correction officer was knocked unconscious during an altercation involving an inmate and several officers at Wende Correctional Facility, union officials said.

The incident began about 9:30 a.m. last Tuesday when Trevis Moore, serving a life sentence for murder at the maximum-security prison, refused to follow a correction officer's instructions to go to the gym.

Moore lunged at officers, knocking one unconscious to the ground before being subdued, according to the New York State Correction Officers & Police Benevolent Association.

Two officers, whose names were not released, were hospitalized in Buffalo overnight after being treated for cuts, bruises and back injuries.

Grant Marin, vice president of the union's western region, said charges were expected against the inmate, who has been imprisoned since 1986.

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Some staff will move closer to home as transfers balance vacancies as ‘down-sizing’ continues

State Correction Officers have through Aug. 5 to file for reassignment to their facilities of job preference before those seniority-based preferences are re-ranked on Aug. 6, Commissioner Glenn S. Goord announced today, and the results used to begin a phased-in filling of 408 vacant positions at 61 of the state’s 70 prisons.

Those vacancies are at prisons north and west of Albany, while prisons in the lower mid-Hudson valley have approximately 160 excess staff. The excess staff consists of newer Officers who, when their training was completed, were assigned to prisons that lacked seniority-based transfer-in lists.

With backfills, hundreds more Officers could exercise their seniority rights and choose to relocate to more preferred facilities before the process is concluded this summer. While the re-ranking also impacts the 1,809 Sergeants and Lieutenants, the major impact of the re-ranking will fall among the 19,106 Officers.

After the seniority re-ranking and voluntary staff reassignments, the Commissioner will know how many of 215 Officers chose to remain in temporary positions that they know are targeted for elimination at Collins prison in Erie County, Orleans in the county of the same name, Marcy in Oneida County, Cape Vincent and Watertown in Jefferson County and Riverview in St. Lawrence County. The temporary positions were created when the prisons were double-bunked in the 1990s. Since the planned elimination of these top bunks was first announced as part of the prison “down-sizing” plan in 2000, employees have known that staffing levels at these prisons were being reduced to reflect the decrease in inmates and work load. In fact, there has been sufficient attrition at these six prisons to allow the 231 most senior Officers in these temporary positions to be made permanent. Officers remaining in the 215 excess temporary positions after the re-ranking will be required to return to their permanent positions.

The state budget will determine the future assignments of 152 Officers at three facilities that the Department has targeted for closure: Camp Pharsalia in Chenango County, the minimum-security camp attached to the Mt. McGregor Correctional Facility in Saratoga County and the Fulton work release facility in the Bronx. It is expected some of those Officers will opt to move to other prisons under the re-ranking. There are sufficient prison beds upstate and in New York City to relocate inmates now housed in these prisons.

“My original plan,” Commissioner Goord said, “was to await a final state budget before initiating this re-ranking and reassignment of staff across the system. That would have provided all employees, especially those at the nine affected facilities, a clearer picture of their options. Everyone would have then been on an equal footing. But the safety and security of our prisons require that we start transfers to fill some critical vacancies and balance the rest of them across the system. It is also time to resume allowing staff movement to more preferential facilities, which generally means closer to their homes.”

Commissioner Goord emphasized that he would use the re-ranked list only to allow transfers to fill vacancies he considered critical. “There will still be no attempt to complete all moves and fill all vacancies before a budget is passed. We will balance out the vacancies in the system while awaiting a budget that shows us the complete picture of our needs.”

He added, “Until that picture develops, I intend to maintain some vacancies in the four prisons in Oneida County to offer jobs closer to home to some of the staff to be displaced at Camp Pharsalia. I will also hold some vacancies at four to five prisons in the greater Albany region to accommodate some of the staff being displaced at Mt. McGregor’s camp. There are sufficient vacancies in New York City prisons to accommodate most of the Fulton staff.” The Commissioner explained that, while employees in excess posts at six facilities have known for 3-1/2 years that their jobs were targeted and have had ample opportunity to reassign, those at the three prisons targeted for closure only learned of those initiatives six months ago.

The last re-ranking was conducted in November 2003. The planned May 2004 re-ranking was delayed in hopes it would occur after this year’s state budget was finalized. Commissioner Goord noted that in a letter dated July 8, 2004, the statewide August re-ranking and the reassignment of staff in excess temporary positions were supported by the New York State Correction Officer and Police Benevolent Association, the bargaining unit for the Department’s Officers and Sergeants, who make up two-thirds of the agency’s work force.

Transfers into most facilities have been sharply limited to the most critical vacancies since a “down-sizing” plan began in October 2000 to vacate 6,600 surplus inmate beds at 36 prisons and to attrit Correction Officer as well as other uniformed and civilian positions associated with them. Most employees have known since that time which jobs were targeted. In most cases, employees have already attrited out of those positions.

The prison population has declined from 71,538 inmates in December 1999 to today’s 64,695. Correction Officer staffing has thus far declined over the same period from 20,158 positions to 19,106.

Here is a breakdown of the remaining impact on the six prisons with Officers in temporary positions:

• Cape Vincent has 102 Officers in temporary positions, 73 of whom are excess. It needs to vacate 240 beds, but it already has 246 empty beds. This will result in 221 Officers and a capacity for 882 inmates.
  
  
• Collins has 54 Officers in temporary positions, seven of whom are excess. It needs to vacate 59 beds, but now has 70 empty beds. This will result in 364 Officers and a capacity for 1,228 inmates.
  
  
• Marcy has 85 Officers in temporary positions, 26 of whom are excess. It needs to vacate 120 beds, and now has 119 empty beds. This will result in 281 Officers and a capacity for 1,282 inmates.
  
  
• Orleans has 91 Officers in temporary positions, 24 of whom are excess. It needs to vacate 150 beds, and now has 149 empty beds. This will result in 249 Officers and a capacity for 1,082 inmates
  
  
• Riverview 78 Officers in temporary positions, 62 of whom are excess. It needs to vacate 240 beds, but now has 253 empty beds. This will result in 221 Officers and a capacity for 882 inmates.
  
  
• Watertown has 36 Officers in temporary positions, 13 of whom are excess. It needs to vacate 83 beds, but now has 87 empty beds. This will result in 222 Officers and a capacity for 670 inmates.

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ATTICA - Three corrections officers were hospitalized with stab wounds Thursday after an inmate at Attica State Correctional Facility attacked them with a homemade knife, the state Department of Correctional Services said.

The attack happened just before 5 p.m. as guards were moving prisoners from a cell block to the cafeteria for dinner, Correctional Services Department spokesman James Flateau said

When guards opened Shondell Paul's cell, he sprang at one guard with a 7¹/2-inch knife, which was taped to his wrist, Flateau said. Paul, 23, stabbed the officer several times in the chest and upper back, Flateau said. Two more officers were stabbed when they tried to subdue the inmate.

The three officers were taken to United Memorial Medical Center in Batavia, Flateau said. No information was available on their condition and their names were not released.

Paul, from Onondaga County, is serving 92 years to life for second-degree murder, robbery, assault and burglary, Flateau said. He has been in the state prison system since 2001.

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By LOU MICHEL
News Staff Reporter
8/5/2004

State prison officials have denied a request to lock down Collins Correctional Facility after a .22-caliber cartridge was found on the grounds last week, union officials representing correction officers said Wednesday.

"We wanted the facility to conduct a more thorough and complete search of the entire compound to ensure safety," said Joseph Green, business agent for the New York State Correction Officers and Police Benevolent Association.

The live round was found Friday morning in the ground beside a dumpster near the vehicle-processing gate where visitors enter the prison, authorities said.

Union officials say they are worried because of recent intelligence indicating that inmate gangs want to increase violence against guards.

James B. Flateau, spokesman for the state Department of Correctional Services, said officers conducted a search using a metal detector and did not find any additional cartridges on the ground or in the adjacent buildings.

"State Police said the round was corroded and had been in the ground for some time," Flateau said.

The spokesman also said that attacks on prison guards are on the decline, with 568 incidents in 2003 - the fewest since 1981, when there were 430. Gang activity in prison, he added, has also declined, from 1,896 incidents in 1998 to 1,016 last year.

After local prison officials denied the union's request to lock down the facility and conduct a search, Green said he appealed to Deputy Commissioner of Corrections Lucien J. Leclare.

"He hasn't even acknowledged our request," Green said.

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FORT ANN -- A 35-year-old Buffalo woman was arrested Friday charged with smuggling a high-strength plastic knife into Great Meadow Correctional Facility, prompting a five-day prison lockdown two weeks ago.

Mari Kowalczyk Stratton, wife of the inmate who was found in possession of the knife in the prison on July 29, was charged with first-degree promoting prison contraband, a felony.

Prison officials were concerned because the knife -- made of a strong plastic resin -- was able to slip through a metal detector without triggering it.

The inmate initially told corrections officials that the knife, along with another one just like it, had been smuggled inside the walls during a family picnic on the grounds that relatives of prisoners attended.

The potential for a second such weapon in the prison prompted a five-day lockdown and search of the prison.

James Flateau, a spokesman for the state Department of Correctional Services, said further investigation by corrections officials found that the prisoner, identified as Daniel Stratton, 37, had apparently gotten the weapon from his wife during one of her visits to the prison. It was also the only one that was brought in, he said.

Mrs. Stratton was taken into custody by officers from the Inspector General's Office of the Department of Correctional Services when she arrived at the prison to visit her husband, officials said.

She then apparently cut herself with a small metal object she found while in a bathroom at the state police station, officials said. The cut was not in the area of her wrist and Flateau said it was apparently not a suicide attempt. Officials said she said in her statement that she typically cuts herself when she is stressed.

State police Sgt. Daniel Symer said the Granville Rescue Squad was called to the station to treat the superficial "abrasion." Mrs. Stratton was not transported to the hospital.

Symer said the incident was under investigation, but state police were not involved in the case.

Bob Hartung, chief sector steward at Great Meadow for the New York State Correctional Officers and Police Benevolent Association, the union that represents state corrections officers, praised the work of the corrections officers and sergeants involved in the inquiry.

He said the incident should serve as a warning for those trying to smuggle contraband into prison.

"If they think they're going to come in here and smuggle in dangerous contraband, they're mistaken," he said. "The officers here are professional and do a good job."

Daniel Stratton, who is serving a 25-years-to-life sentence for second-degree murder, has not been charged.

He was being held in the maximum-security prison's special housing unit as of Friday, and the Washington County district attorney's office said a grand jury will review his case in the coming weeks.

Mari Kowalczyk Stratton and was sent to Washington County Jail without bail after being arraigned before Fort Ann Town Justice Ruth Cartier.

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On August 6, 2004 we completed our second mediation session with the Director of Conciliation and Mediation at PERB Richard Curreri.

 The State made the following counter proposal on compensation:

1. 1. For all employees on the payroll April 1, 2004, $800 lump sum not added to base;
2. 2. Effective 4/1/04, 2.5% for all employees in the bargaining unit, added to base;
3. 3. Effective 4/1/05, 2.75% for all employees, added to base;
4. 4. Effective 4/1/06, 3% for all employees, added to base.
5. 5. Effective 4/1/07, $800 added to base, to reflect the cash originally paid on 4/1/04.

 Date    Downstate Adjustment (New) Mid-Hudson Adjustment*

4/1/04       $1230 $615

4/1/05       $1264 $632

4/1/06      $1302 $651

*In Orange, Dutchess & Putnam Counties

The negotiating committee unanimously voted to reject the offer and directed the filing of a Petition for Arbitration. The Petition for Arbitration was filed on August 12, 2004. To date we have not received any response from the State. (No news is good news!) In the immediate future we expect to hear from PERP concerning selection of the Three Member Panel for Arbitration.

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Corrections department to find money in current budget
BY ANNE KUMAR

WILTON -- Savings within the state Department of Correctional Services budget will allow the minimum-security camp at the Mount McGregor Correctional Facility to stay open, according to a department spokesman.

The fate of the prison has been on a see-saw since January, when the department announced plans to eliminate 556 positions in prisons across the state by closing several minimum-security prisons. But the prisons, including Mount McGregor in Wilton, seem to be safe for now.

"The commissioner is saying, 'I understand this is a tight fiscal year and I believe I can save enough money in my budget to keep the prisons open without the additional $12 million,'" department spokesman James Flateau said.

Earlier this month, members of the state Senate and Assembly passed legislation restoring $12 million to the Department of Correctional Services' $2 billion budget to keep the three facilities open.

But that $12 million was among the 195 vetoes of the state budget issued by Gov. George Pataki last week.

The Mount McGregor camp, which employs 84 people, offers soon-to-be released prisoners a structured environment to prepare them for the transition back into the community.

Flateau said that corrections Commissioner Glenn Goord wanted to work with the legislators who wanted to keep the prison camps open.

"In the interest of working with Sen. (Hugh) Farley (R-Schenectady), who has been a tremendous supporter of this department over the years, the commissioner said, 'Let's see if we can give a shot at maintaining the prisons with the savings generated through the department,'" Flateau said.

The number of inmates statewide is less than anticipated this year. And for the past five years, the lower number of inmates has generated significant savings for the department, Flateau said.

There are 856 fewer inmates in prisons statewide than anticipated this year, so the department has been saving money on services to prisoners, he said. Services like food, clothing and medical care cost about $5,000 a year for each inmate, he said.

So far this year, the prison system is expecting a savings of about $4 million, Flateau said.

"We're not going to skimp at all on maintaining safety and security," he said.

State Sen. Elizabeth Little, R-Queensbury, was among the legislators pushing to keep the Wilton prison camp open.

"I'm glad they have found the money within their budget," she said.

Little said keeping the prison camp open is important because if it were closed, 84 jobs would have been eliminated at the Mt. McGregor camp alone.

Assemblyman Roy McDonald, R-Wilton, said he's grateful to the department for finding the money.

"We just hope for the best," he said. "But I don't want to do any end zone dances yet."

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Wilton-- Savings in budget will allow Mount McGregor camp to remain open until April

By DENNIS YUSKO, Staff writer
First published: Thursday, August 26, 2004

Trimming the state Department of Correctional Services' annual budget will keep the Mount McGregor Correctional Facility open until at least April 1, a department spokesman said.

Corrections Commissioner Glenn Goord proposed scouring the department's annual $2 billion budget for $12 million in internal savings to keep the Mount McGregor camp and two other state minimum-security prisons open until the next state fiscal year, department spokesman James Flateau said.

"The commissioner thinks he can find the non-security economies to do this," Flateau said.

This winter, the state targeted Mount McGregor, Camp Pharsalia in Chenango County and the Fulton work release facility in the Bronx for closure to save money. About 556 prison positions across the state, including 84 from Mount McGregor, would have been relocated under the plan.

Gov. George Pataki recently vetoed a provision in the state Legislature's budget that would have restored $12 million in funding to keep the prisons open.

But Flateau said Wednesday that the idea of cutting costs gained speed after the department reported 856 fewer inmates on July 31 than what it had budgeted. That alone is expected to save about $4 million in food, clothing and medicine costs, Flateau said.

The McGregor camp is located on the grounds of the 544-bed, medium-security Mount McGregor Correctional Facility. Nonviolent prisoners at the camp frequently provide dozens of hours of free community labor around the town and Saratoga County as a means toward preparing them for life after prison.

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TO: NYSCOPBA Chief Sector Stewards
FROM: Sharon Smiths Health Benefits Specialists

DATE: August 23, 2004

RE: 2005 Empire Plan Basic Medical Component Deductible and Maximum Out of Pocket Expense

As you know, per Articles 12.7(a) and 12.7(b) of NYSCOPBA's collective bargaining agreement, the Empire Plan Basic Medical Component Deductible and Maximum Out of Pocket Expense increase by a percentage amount equal to the percentage increase in the medical care component for the CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, All Cities (CPI W), for the period July 1 through June 30 of the preceding year. For the period July 1, 2003, through June 30, 2004, the percentage increased by 4.7%.

As a result of the above, the Basic Medical Component deductible for year 2005 will be $309 and the maximum out of pocket expense will be $1,145, calculated as follows:

4.7% x $295 (2004 deductible) = $13.87 ($14.00 rounding up to the nearest full. dollar): $295 t $14 = $309

4.7% x $1,094 (2004 maximum out of pocket expense) = $51.42 ($51.00 rounding down to the nearest full dollar): $1,094 + $51 = $1,145

Please inform your membership of this increase; and should you have any questions, feel free to contact me.

cc: NYSCOPBA Joint Committee on Health Benefits NYSCOPBA Executive Board

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Inmate Shondell Paul is serving 92 years in Attica for two murders in 2000.

Saturday, July 31, 2004
By Jim O'Hara
Staff writer

A Syracuse man serving 92 years to life in state prison for a pair of murders here four years ago is facing new allegations he attacked three state prison guards with a home-made knife Thursday.

Shondell Paul, 23, was under guard at the Erie County Medical Center Friday, where he is being treated for injuries he suffered in the incident, according to state Correctional Services Department spokesman James Flateau. Flateau declined to elaborate on Paul's condition. According to Flateau, Thursday's attack at Attica happened just after 5 p.m. as guards were moving prisoners from a cell block to the mess hall for dinner.

When guards opened Paul's cell, he sprung at one with a 71/2-inch knife that was taped to his right wrist, Flateau said. Paul stabbed the officer several times in the chest and upper back, Flateau said, adding that two more officers were stabbed when they tried to subdue Paul.

Another four guards were finally able to take Paul to the floor and handcuff him, Flateau said. The three injured guards were treated and released from a Batavia-area hospital Thursday night.

Flateau declined further comment Friday on the officers or the nature of their injuries. He said the investigation was continuing.

"Once our investigation is completed, he (Paul) will be charged appropriately," Flateau said.

The local prosecutor who sent Paul to prison said the case points up the dangers of having someone like Paul in prison with the state's death-penalty law under attack by the state's highest court.

"What more can the system do to someone like him?" Chief Assistant District Attorney Patrick Quinn asked, noting that with the Court of Appeals' recent decision undermining New York's 1995 capital punishment law, there is nothing to deter someone serving a lengthy prison sentence for murder from committing another murder in prison.

"He was a stone-cold guy. He had no real moral substance," Quinn said of Paul, who is serving the long prison sentence for his role in a pair of April 2000 robberies at a South Side gam- bling house, including one in which two men were shot to death during the holdup.

Flateau said the filing of criminal charges against Paul in the attack would be left to the Wyoming County District Attorney's Office. Quinn said the incident could result in felony assault, weapons possession and prison contraband charges based on the circumstances of what reportedly occurred.

Quinn said Paul was someone with "poor impulse control" as reflected in his criminal past here.

Killed during the April 21, 2000, robbery at 222 Burt St. were Henderson Griffin, 62, and Vernon Griffin, a 39-year-old not related to Henderson. A third man, Robert Anderson, 47, was critically injured by a gunshot to the back during the heist.

Paul, 19 at the time, was one of five men prosecuted in the case. Authorities conceded he did not fire any of the fatal gunshots during the holdup, but he was convicted as charged of second-degree murder and a battery of other charges in the fatal robbery and an earlier holdup at the same house eight days earlier.

Authorities contended Paul and his older brother, Tajuan, robbed the house the first time and then recruited three companions to join them for the repeat robbery that resulted in the two victims' deaths.

"This was absolutely predatory conduct," County Judge Joseph Fahey said in sentencing the Paul brothers in May 2001.

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