Inside CDCR

For the second consecutive year, Avenal State Prison incarcerated artists painted skateboards for Fresno Skateboard Salvage. Thanks to their creativity, $10,500 was raised to help children.

Governor Gavin Newsom announced the following appointments on April 14: Katie James as Chief of the Office of Victim and Survivor Rights and Services; Giselle “Gigi” A. Matteson as Warden at California State Prison, Solano; and Matthew Atchley as Warden at Salinas Valley State Prison.

Incarcerated artists at Avenal State Prison gave the Facility B visiting room a facelift. Now kid-friendly, the children’s area will be more welcoming for young family members during visits.

CDCR has made Cyber High available to students at all 35 prisons. Students who have 40 units or left to complete receive priority to enroll in high school courses. CDCR’s goal is for all students to leave prison one day, prepared for college and a career readiness for successful reentry into the communities. The Office of Correctional Education hopes to increase the number of high school diplomas earned statewide from 266 in FY 2018/19 to 500 in 2022/23.

CDCR has embarked on an innovative program to help remove barriers for those in our care. Reduced and free telephone phone calls, combined with access to tablets statewide, will give incarcerated people the ability to communicate with family, access rehabilitative information and learn new technology.

It wasn’t a typical Valentine’s Day for Matt and Andrea Jones when the CDCR employees came across a car sinking into a canal. Their story is another example of CDCR employees going above the call to help those in need.

The day seemed like any other Friday, but Correctional Counselor Ross Scott soon had to put his training to the test. He was sitting in his office at California Institution for Women (CIW) on Feb. 26 when he heard cries of help coming from the nearby dayroom.

It was 1 p.m. Dec. 19, 2020, when Sgt. Veronica Escamilla and her spouse spotted the accident. Two damaged vehicles were pulling to a stop on the side of the road. Wisps of smoke curled out from under the hood of one of the more damaged cars.

Not only is Ronald De Jesus passionate about his daily duties as a Correctional Officer at California Health Care Facility (CHCF), he’s also racked up years of wins at motocross events. At just 13, he started racing and still hits the off-road tracks every chance he gets. “I will keep racing until my limbs stop working,” he said.

Lt. Jason Anderson has worked for CDCR for more than two decades. After suffering two strokes, he made a decision to find ways to reduce stress. Inside CDCR caught up with Lt. Anderson to discuss his hobbies and life beyond the badge.

For more than two decades, Brian Coates has worked for the department. Currently, he’s Associate Warden for CDCR’s Contract Bed Units. Coates recently penned a book, “A Gladiator’s Journey,” and says he’s preparing for the next chapter of his life — retirement.

The first female correctional officers were hired to work in California’s male prisons in the early 1970s. But, women have held other positions or supervised incarcerated females for well over 100 years. In honor of Women’s History Month, Inside CDCR takes a closer look at some of the early female staff.

Revisit this 1987 story originally published in Correction News. — When Daniel J. McCarthy first became a correctional officer in 1949, the California Department of Corrections prohibited women from working inside a prison. In fact, women weren’t even allowed to tour prisons.

Since establishing the state prison system in the 1850s, good-hearted neighbors have voluntarily stepped inside to help the incarcerated population. Without recognition or fanfare, they’ve improved the lives of countless people living in the state’s penal institutions.