Ombuds for Corrections Reports
Under-resourced prisons are not serving Minnesota's public safety needs. This brief report highlights the need for Minnesota to update prison infrastructure and replace obsolete facilities to protect the health and safety of corrections staff and incarcerated people.
This 2024 annual report highlights key aspects of our work, including complaints, investigations, and their outcomes.
This report summarizes the Family and Friends of Incarcerated collaborative pilot project designed to strengthen loved ones’ positive support of incarcerated individuals, and the recommendations from this pilot.
This brief report highlights how under-resourced prisons are not serving Minnesota’s public safety needs.
The OBFC concluded an investigation into allegations during a transport and overall transport processes.
This report highlights an urgent need for fairer, less costly, and more accessible communication in jails.
The OBFC completed an investigation into shower accommodations for transgender and gender nonconforming individuals at a MN Correctional Facility.
The OBFC recently concluded a long term investigation into sexual assault allegations and related processes.
The OBFC recently worked with the DOC on better processes for following Disability Modification policy.
The OBFC recently completed investigations into two separate discipline cases.
The Office of the Ombuds for Corrections (OBFC) received a complaint from MCF-Oak Park Heights in September 2021, regarding video visiting not being permitted for incarcerated persons who fall under video visiting restrictions during times when in-person visiting is closed and the only option is by video. The OBFC found that while prohibiting unsupervised video visiting is understandable for some individuals, when video visiting is the only option for any visiting, prohibiting video visiting has an unfair impact that unnecessarily limits an activity that supports restoration and a safer correctional setting.
The Office of the Ombuds for Corrections (OBFC) received a complaint that random Point-of-Care Testing (POCT) /Urinalysis in the Challenge Incarceration Program (CIP) was leading to segregation, disruption to programming, and loss of program time based on unconfirmed test results that later turned out to be negative.
This is a report regarding investigation of an incident that occurred at MCF-St. Cloud. Complainant’s personal religious writings were discarded upon intake without him being given an opportunity to have them shipped as allowed by policy. The OBFC found that several Department of Corrections (DOC) policies were violated by staff, and some policies should be revised.
This is a report and recommendations regarding Department of Corrections grievance policies.
This is a report on supporting the families of people incarcerated in Minnesota prisons.
This report provides a summary of an OBFC investigation into a staff use of force incident at MCF-Moose Lake, OBFC's recommendations, and the Minnesota Department of Corrections response.
This report provides an overview of corrections response during the COVID-19 pandemic thus far and includes recommendations and considerations for review.
The challenges within corrections continue to grow for staff, incarcerated people, and their loved ones. This 2023 Annual Report reviews how the office continues to work to address these challenges by providing independent and impartial investigations, reports, and recommendations to resolve complaints and improve policies.
This 2022 annual report describes the work of the office as it continued to meet the challenges of being a small office with big tasks and illustrates many successes in resolving complaints and changing correctional policies.
This 2021 annual report summarizes the work of the OBFC in its second year of operations. The OBFC has continued to fulfill its important statutory role of promoting “the highest attainable standards of competence, efficiency, and justice in the administration of corrections,” and is now firmly established to continue doing so into the future.
This 2020 annual report recaps work by the OBFC over its first year of operations. The Minnesota Legislature created the OBFC anew to accept and investigate complaints regarding corrections agency actions, provide oversight, and recommend systemic improvements that promote high standards in the administration of corrections and help keep the state’s correctional facilities safe and secure.
