Greenhaven Prison Operating Without Important Services

Greenhaven Correctional Facility in Stormville, New York has been operating without "must-have" services for weeks.

It appears that one of the Hudson Valley's biggest jails has been operating over the last few weeks without any emergency medical services according to News 12.

After receiving a tip from a prison employee, News 12 contacted the New York State Correctional Officers & Police Benevolent Association Mid-Hudson region (NYSCOPBA) to see if the jail was operating without any emergency medical services.

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Greenhaven Jail Operating Without EMS Services

According to NYSCOPBA Mid-Hudson Vice President Chris Moreau, Greenhaven, located in Dutchess County hasn't had any emergency ambulance service since August. Moreau told News 12 that no ambulances have responded to any of the correctional facility calls since August and because violence is up 35% at the facility, he believes the facility's calls have become a burden to local EMS.

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The town of Beekman along with the ambulance corps Empress, have handled the emergency medical services at Greenhaven, which holds over 2000 inmates in the past.

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How Does Greenhaven Handle an Emergency?

It's a question that correction officers, prisoners, and families of anyone who has to spend any time at the prison have been asking.

NYSCOPBA Mid-Hudson Vice President Moreau told News 12,

"If an issue arises and emergency medical aid is needed at the moment, we put whoever it is in a state van and get them to the nearest area hospital as soon as possible. We have the clinics in every facility, but they don't provide the same type of medical care that a hospital would."

Not having the ability to call for an ambulance is obviously not ideal for the maximum security prison. The Department of Community Corrections and Supervision is aware of the issue and told News 12 that they are in the process of working with private EMS providers to immediately restore services.

Director of Public Information Thomas Mailey said,

"DOCCS was notified by the Beekman Fire District that they would no longer provide EMS services to support the Green Haven Correctional Facility and is currently contacting private ambulance companies when the need arises. We are in active negotiations with the Beekman Fire District to restore services which we anticipate will happen in the near future."

This is a developing story and as more information becomes available we will update this article.

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These 7 Prisons Are The Most Violent In New York State

New York released a report with the most recent number of violent assaults on inmates in state prisons. There were 134 inmate deaths noted in the report, although it doesn't break down the prisons where each death occurred or who caused them. Here's a look at some of the general violent incidents reported for 2020, which is the most recent data reported by the state. Compared to 10 years ago, inmate assaults have almost doubled. In 2011 there were 666 and in 2020 there were 1,205 reported. These numbers do not include inmate assaults on staff members. Overall, the number of unusual incidents includes things like assaults, deaths, accidents, sexual misconduct, and disruptive behavior. According to the state,

"The number of unusual incidents has increased 132% from 5,980 in 2011 to 13,870 in 2020. These higher incident numbers were largely due to increases in assaults on incarcerated individuals (+81%), assaults on staff (+86%), contraband (+130%), disruptive behavior (+372%), and staff use of weapons (+1,035%)."

In 2020, 1,836 weapons used to cut or stab, including ice picks, razor blades, can lids and shanks were discovered in state prisons around New York.