Documents show corrections chief interfered in investigation
COUNCIL SAYS OZMINT ‘TAINTED’ PLANNED SURVEY
The State newspaper is reporting that they have obtained documents showing the head of South Carolina’s prison system interfered with an investigation of his department stemming from allegations of by allegations of “lax security, inmate abuse and a politicized, hostile work environment.” Department of Corrections chief Jon Ozmint is accused of tainting a planned survey of prison system employees by the Legislative Audit Council.
In a newsletter and e-mail sent to Corrections employees in mid-June, Ozmint criticized the Audit Council’s plan for a survey of prison system employees, calling it a “one-sided” attempt to blame administrators for the prison system’s woes.
Subsequently, the Audit Council scrapped its plan to survey prison system employees, saying Ozmint’s comments had rendered any results invalid.
The state prison system has been underscrutiny since last summer. That was when a state Senate panel began looking into allegations that included:
• Covering up the sexual assault of an employee
• Using inmate labor and prison equipment for hunting and fishing trips
• The number of legal judgments against the agency, including a $600,000 award in an inmate-beating case [JOHN O'CONNOR - The State]
Beyond those things, Ozmint has also covered up names and facts in a pornography e-mail investigation and has been a strong opponent of a plan to keep criminals off the streets. But, in his defense, he was successful at making some of the inmates wear pretty pink uniforms.
Unfortunately, that’s pretty much Ozmint’s only accomplishment. The State noted figures from the Southern Legislative Conference’s annual comparison of 16 Southern state prison systems which yielded that South Carolina was well behind most other states.
And am I the only one noticing the trend of improprieties within Gov. Mark Sanford’s cabinet getting worse? Because this stuff is starting to get out of control.
What is actually out of control is your desire to work that issue in your last link into every single post that you write.
Take your pick, they’re all in shambles.
South Carolina Office of the Governor
Cabinet Agencies
Department of Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Services
W. Lee Catoe, Director
(803) 896-5555
Department of Commerce
Joe Taylor, Secretary
(803)737-0400
Department of Corrections
Jon Ozmint, Director
(803)896-8500
Department of Health and Human Services
Emma Forkner, Director
(803)898-2500
Department of Insurance
Scott Richardson, Director
803-737-6227
Department of Juvenile Justice
Bill Byars, Director
(803) 896-9749
Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation
Adrienne Youmans, Director
(803)896-4300
Department of Motor Vehicles
Marcia Adams, Director
803-896-5000
Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism
Chad Prosser, Director
(803)734-0166
Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services
Sam Glover, Director
(803)734-9220
Department of Public Safety
Mark Keel, Director
(803)896-7839
Department of Revenue and Taxation
Ray Stevens, Director
(803)898-5040
Department of Social Services
Kathleen Hayes, Director
(803)898-7601
Department of Transportation
H.B. “Buck” Limehouse, Secretary
(803)737-1302
State Law Enforcement Division
Reggie Lloyd, Chief
(803)737-9000
http://www.scgovernor.com/cabinet/
Gee, with Quinn candidate Mike Fair lodged up Ozmint’s ass full time - you would think that the Department of Corrections would be a well-oiled machine.
To add insult to injury, I take it Ozmint didn’t gasp and swoon at Henry’s platform for Governor.
You’re a joke McLovin - a ridiculous joke.
Hey,
Lay of the Folgle…he is the man.
John
PS…Sanford never set out to govern. He set out to make a name for himself, and to become a player on the national stage.
he did just that by talking and talking and talking. ..by telling us what we wanted to hear. he just never governed.
It’s not just the cabinet…. hang on. Give it a week or two and……..
Fair has his head up Ozmint’s ass! I was wondering what that protruding ridge on his forehead was…no wait a minute someone get the smithsonian on the line…I think we found something.
Another Sanford DISAppointee.
“Prisons employee accuses agency officials of retaliation”
“A veteran Corrections Department employee is seeking $5 million in a federal lawsuit that claims agency officials retaliated against her for reporting corruption to state senators.”…
http://www.thestate.com/statewire/story/499734.html