Chapter 10 – Adult Programs

The Department shall make a reasonable effort to provide for the religious and spiritual welfare of all interested inmates.

The purpose of this Section is to provide guidelines for the religious program.

Wardens are responsible for the religious programs in the institution and conservation camps. They shall meet quarterly with staff chaplains and Native American Spiritual Leaders.

The Chief Deputy Warden or an AWAssociate Warden, shall provide supervision of the staff chaplains, intermittent chaplains, and part-time chaplains.

Staff chaplains shall develop, supervise, and operate their assigned religious programs.

The pastoral duties of a chaplain and Native American Spiritual Leader shall consist of the following:

• Conducting worship:

  • Regular daily and/or weekly worship services, special religious services on religious and national holidays, interfaith services, memorial services, and funeral services.

• Administering Sacraments:

  • Baptism, Confession, Communion, Confirmation, Sacrament of the Sick and Marriage.

• Pastoral visiting:

  • Hospital, work programs, visiting areas, housing units, camps, group activities, and families of inmates.

• Religious education:

  • Scripture studies, liturgy, history, comparative religion, religious values, contemporary issues, and sacred music.

• Counseling:

  • Individual, family, marital, prerelease planning, and other pertinent counseling issues.

See DOMDepartment Operations Manual 51070, Death, for procedures.

Clergy have the right to privileged communication in the performance of their duties to the extent that the information in no way threatens or hinders inmate lives, staff lives, or in any way breaches the security of the facility.

The staff chaplain is responsible in his ministry to the source of his ecclesiastical endorsement and to the Wardens. This dual role shall not impose upon the institution a program in conflict with good correctional management.

Staff chaplains may officiate at the marriage of inmates. However, the staff chaplain, by virtue of religious affiliation, shall establish the criteria consistent with the provisions of DOMDepartment Operations Manual 101070, which shall be met by the candidates, if the staff chaplain is to officiate. Staff chaplains shall provide their supervisors with these criteria.

See DOMDepartment Operations Manual 101070 for procedures.

Chaplains and Native American Spiritual Leaders may, with authorization of the Warden, conduct or coordinate funerals and/or memorial services for deceased inmates and/or their families.

Staff chaplains and Native American Spiritual Leaders may minister to parolees and their families with the approval of the Warden and the RPARegional Parole Administrator of the P&CSDParole & Community Services Division (see DAPO).

Staff chaplains and Native American Spiritual Leaders may minister to employees who make personal requests.

Staff chaplains and Native American Spiritual Leaders shall be responsible for management of their offices, preparing and submitting reports, incoming and outgoing correspondence, and record keeping.

Staff chaplains and Native American Spiritual Leaders shall:

• Budget

  • Be required to submit their budgetary requests in writing through their supervisors.

• Facility Emergencies

  • Be available to assist as required in institutional emergencies as far as the dignity of their office and conscience will permit.

• Serve on Various Committees

  • Staff chaplains and Native American Spiritual Leaders may be called upon to serve on the institution classification committee, be a member of various institution committees, attend institutional staff meetings, and serve on departmental committees or task forces.

• Working Hours and Training

  • They may be required to work irregular hours due to the nature of their profession, attend religious retreats and conferences to maintain ordination and certification status, develop training opportunities for clergy, theological students, and religious volunteers where such programs provide a helpful service to the religious activities of the institution.

• They are not required to participate in firearm or physical training.

The religious programs shall include activities that will encourage inmate participation. The activities may include the following:

• Regular and special religious worship services.

• Special religious observances of the faith group.

• Religious education.

• National commemorative services.

• Interfaith services.

• Meditation services.

• Religious literature distribution.

• Outside religious group participation.

• Self study religious courses.

• Speech forums.

• Service projects.

• Religious interest groups.

• Religious societies and organizations.

• Participation in community betterment programs.

To implement the religious activities program, the Wardens may obtain the following qualified persons:

• Muslim, Jewish, Catholic, Protestant chaplains and a Native American Spiritual Leader on a full-time, part-time, or intermittent basis.

• Volunteer non-paid community clergy and/or religious or spiritual leader representatives.

• Inmates.

Chaplains and Native American Spiritual Leaders shall be responsible for:

• Organizing, scheduling, and conducting the worship services and religious programs appropriate to their faith.

• Approving the scheduling and conducting of worship services and religious programs by volunteer community clergy and volunteer religious representatives.

Reasonable time for religious services, in keeping with institution security and other normal and necessary operations and activities within the institution, shall be allowed.

Insofar as possible, other institutional activities shall not be planned which will conflict with or disrupt scheduled religious services.

Inmates may assist in conducting worship services and in the religious programs or as” Sweat Leaders.”

In the event an officially ordained chaplain of a particular faith cannot be obtained to conduct services within the institution for that faith, the Warden may at his/her discretion, and subject to such controls as are reasonably required for institution security, designate a qualified inmate to minister to the religious needs of that particular faith.

In determining the qualifications of an inmate to conduct such services, the Warden shall, wherever possible, seek the advice and counsel of outside religious leaders of that faith.

No inmate shall be assigned as a minister or as a religious counselor on a full-time basis in lieu of regular institution work and program assignment, nor shall any inmate who is approved to minister to the religious needs or interests of other inmates be considered as a state employee or be paid by the state for his or her services.

Inmate attendance in the religious program shall be voluntary. Institution heads shall make every reasonable effort to provide for the religious and spiritual welfare of all interested inmates, including, but not limited to, affording inmates a reasonable accommodation to attend a scheduled Religious Service if they are unable to do so due to conflicting work/education assignments. Reasonable accommodation may include, but is not limited to, modified work schedule, use of accrued time or allowable breaks, granting of a job/assignment change, changes of regular days off, etc. Use of regular accommodation shall in no way adversely impact an inmate’s credit earning status. The use of excused time off (ETOExcused Time Off) for routine religious services shall be limited to instances where it is not possible to change the conflicting work/education assignment.

For inmates with work assignments outside prison grounds, a reasonable accommodation to attend religious programs shall be limited to an assignment change. Certain assignments may only permit the granting of a job/assignment change as a means of providing reasonable accommodation. This would apply when permitting an inmate to leave the job site is not practical and is unduly burdensome to program operations. Examples include, but are not limited to the following assignments:

• Conservation Camps during the course of firefighting efforts.

• Community Work Crews.

• Other Off Reservation Work Details.

Religious services/programs may be conducted in special areas of the institution when an individual or a group of inmates cannot participate or attend the regular institution religious services/programs.

The staff chaplain and Native American Spiritual Leader shall be responsible for establishing religious services and instruction for individual inmates housed in a special housing unit. These services shall be coordinated through the unit captain and approved by the associate Warden.

Chapel facilities are designated for daily religious uses and programs. Use of the chapels for other than religious activities shall require the approval of the Warden.

Wherever feasible, multi-faith chapels or individual chapels for faith groups represented by a substantial number of inmates shall be provided at each facility.

Where only one chapel is available, a schedule for the use of the chapel shall be prepared by the staff chaplains and approved by the Warden or designee.

Where chapels are not available, the Warden shall designate a suitable area for the religious services and approve the scheduling of services in such temporary facilities.

The designated area in which the American Indian Sweat Lodge is situated is to be considered sacred. The sanctity must be observed and preserved, not only by inmates, but staff as well.

The designated pipe holder, volunteer spiritual persons or the leader of the religious group are responsible for organizing and conducting the sweat ceremonies.

A sacred pipe is used during sweat ceremonies and prayer offerings. It shall be retained by a designated pipe holder, who shall be responsible for the protection of the pipe and pipe bag.

All sacred items used in the sweat lodge ceremony may be acquired from the Native American community or from an approved vendor of Native American supplies. Only those items approved by the Warden or his/her designee shall be permitted.

The Sweat Lodge ceremonies consist of, but are not limited to, the use of the following sacred items.

• Sacred pipe and pipe bag.

• Kinnikinnick.

• Mixture of red willow bark, cedar, tobacco, bear berries, yellow willow bark, and herbs.

• Eagle feathers.

• Sage.

• Sweet grass.

• Buffalo or deer skull.

• Antler.

• Lava or river rocks.

• Water.

• Non-metallic dipper and non-metallic bucket.

Wine and religious artifacts approved by the Warden for sacramental and worship purposes may be brought into the institution.

Chaplains shall have prior written approval to purchase and bring into the institution the sacramental wine.

The approval, signed by the Warden or designee, shall accompany the wine through the normal security processing of each given facility.

The sacramental wine shall be maintained in a specified secured location inaccessible to inmates. The applicable chaplain shall remove the wine on the day of use and maintain control of the wine until the religious ceremony is concluded. The applicable chaplain will then return the unused portion and/or the empty container to the designated secured location.

Religious artifacts are those items which American Indians wear on religious/ceremonial occasions and include their tribal designations, personal and religious totems and items which have spiritual significance in their lives. The items may be distinguished by tribal colors and tribal totems.

• These items include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Choker.

  • Eagle feathers.

  • Headband.

  • Wristband.

  • Medicine bag.

    • Medicine bags shall be small, constructed of soft leather or other natural material without lining, and shall not exceed 1 1/2 inches in diameter. They are usually worn around the neck or hung from the belt.

    • After inclusion of the individual’s medicine in the bag, it may be either sewn shut or closed with a drawstring in the presence of staff. The medicine bag must be closed in such a manner that will allow for subsequent inspection of its contents.

The religious artifacts are not to be confused with items worn strictly for ornamental reasons. The religious leader from the community, the group chairman and the pipe carrier shall submit, in writing to the Warden for approval, the religious artifacts worn by their group.

Wearing of the artifacts at times other than during religious occasions, sweat days, and special ceremonies requires approval of the Warden or his/her designee.

Searches shall be conducted with dignity and due respect to the sanctuary and sweat lodge. When practical, the chaplain or Native American Spiritual Leader will be present.

Staff chaplains shall arrange through their supervisor for certain criteria to be met by custodial staff when conducting searches of the chapel facilities or sweat lodge.

Handling of a medicine bag, sacred items, sacred pipe, and pipe bag by staff is limited to those occasions when there is reasonable cause to believe it may contain unauthorized or dangerous items or substances.

Medicine Bag Search

• Any routine search of the medicine bag shall be accomplished by having the owner turn the bag inside out in the presence of staff.

• Spiritual leaders, volunteers, and visitors entering an institution, are subject to searches of their personal medicine bag in the same manner as described above.

Sacred Pipe and Pipe Bag Search

• Handling of the sacred pipe and pipe bag will be limited to the designated pipe holder unless there is reason to believe they may contain unauthorized items or substances.

• When a pipe bag search is necessary, the designated pipe holder shall remove the contents of the bag and spread it out for staff to visually inspect.

See DOMDepartment Operations Manual 54080.10 for information.

The Deputy Director, Division of Community Partnerships, or designee shall ensure that the content of this Section is accurate and current.

CCRCalifornia Code of Regulations §§ 3210-3213.

Public Act 95-341, American Indian Religious Freedom Act.

ACAAmerican Correctional Association Standards 2-4466, 2-4463, and 2-4468.

DOMDepartment Operations Manual §§ 51070, 53010, and 54080.