Congratulations to our 2018 Holiday Card Contest winners! Please consider downloading the PDF (by clicking on the image) to print out and send to your friends, loved ones, and those who are spending the holidays incarcerated. The inspirational images used on these cards were created by very talented incarcerated artists within the Utah Prison or Jail system. Please consider … [Read more...]
A new Clinical Power of Attorney form promises to give inmates more control over when and how medical information can be shared with their families
For years, families have looked on from afar in frustration as their incarcerated loved one suffered due to poor clinical practices. If they called the prison to find answers, they were met with an excuse such as, “Due to your son’s right to privacy, we cannot discuss his medical condition with you.” Because of the clamor of inmates and their families for a way that medical … [Read more...]
Utah Office of the Legislative Auditor General Completes the Audit of the Sex Offender Treatment Program (SOTP)
by Mike McAinsh and Molly Prince SOTP Audit Finds Utah Department of Correction's Program Was Poorly Managed With Weak Oversight The Legislative Audit of Utah State Prison’s Sex Offender Treatment Program (SOTP Audit) was released to the public on April 3, 2017. The audit report was presented to the Legislative Audit Subcommittee by Lead Auditor August Lehman, CFE. Also … [Read more...]
Meet Maria Peterson: UDC’s New Public Information Officer
UDC Gets a New Public Information Officer Maria Peterson became the new Public Information Officer (PIO) for the Utah Department of Corrections in October. I had the privilege of meeting her during her first week with the DOC during the Kids' Day for the Fathers in the ConQuest program. Maria has a wealth of experience in this field and is approaching this position with … [Read more...]
Authorization to Verbally Discuss Health Information
UPAN is please to announce that the Utah Department of Corrections has finished their process of developing the new "Authorization To Verbally Discuss Health Information" for inmates to use when they want to give a third-party person permission to speak with the Clinical Services Bureau (Medical) about their health information. The third-party person would be a family member or … [Read more...]
A Message from UPAN President Molly Prince – February 2016
Things Are a Bit Busy in the Area of Criminal Justice in Utah this Legislative Session There are several bills that relate to several areas of criminal justice in Utah. While most of these are narrowly defined, they are still important for those of us who have people we love involved in any facet of Utah’s system. These include (but are not limited to): HB 16 sponsored … [Read more...]
Guidelines for Mailing Holiday Cards and Letters
In preparation for the upcoming holiday season and the UPAN Holiday Card Program, I called the Mail Room in Draper to learn about any new mailing rules or recommendations the prison has to expedite our incarcerated loved ones receiving their holiday mail. I spoke with Lynette, who was very helpful and informative. This information will apply to both Draper and Gunnison prisons. … [Read more...]
Legislative Audit of the Utah Board of Pardons and Parole is Underway
UPAN Families Can Help Gather Information The Legislative Audit Subcommittee has been assigned the task of performing an audit of the Utah Board of Pardons and Parole. We have no idea when the Board was last audited, or if it ever has been. But we are pleased this is occurring now! The audit process began in July and will take a few months to complete. The audit committee has … [Read more...]
Hunger Strike at Utah State Prison
There's been a media frenzy over the past few days about a current hunger strike happening at the Utah State Prison. UPAN organizers have been hard at work fielding questions and interviews with reporters on the matter as well as gathering the facts. On Friday, July 31st a group of 42 inmates housed at the maximum-security Uinta 2 facility at the Utah State Prison refused … [Read more...]
A Proposal for Meaningful Reform
During our June 8th UPAN Monthly Meeting held at the Hunter Library in West Valley City, our guest speaker Miriam Greenland and her husband shared their experience with the Utah criminal justice system and the proactive steps they've taken to advocate reform. She also covered methods of evidence-based computerized assessments other state board of pardons are using to form … [Read more...]
