Senator to investigate procedure when a crime is committed in prison system

By THE STAR STAFF

Who assumes responsibility and under what procedure is a crime committed within a correctional institution in Puerto Rico investigated?

That is one of the questions that Arecibo District Sen. Brenda Pérez Soto seeks to address through a measure that requires the Puerto Rico Police Bureau and the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (DCR) to comply with a mandate established 15 years ago.

The senator introduced Senate Joint Resolution 206, which directs both agencies to develop, adopt and implement the joint protocol provided for in Article 59 of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation’s 2011 Reorganization Plan. The article establishes that the Police Bureau and the DCR must agree on how they will intervene and investigate crimes and misdemeanors that occur within correctional institutions.

“It has been 15 years since this mandate was established,” Pérez Soto said. “When we talk about crimes within our prisons we can be talking about controlled substances, weapons, explosives and even organized crime. In situations of this nature, there can be no room for doubts about who is investigating, who is intervening, which agency has a certain responsibility, or how information is shared. What we are demanding is clarity, coordination and compliance with the law.”

Article 59 authorizes custody officers, within the limits of correctional institutions or detention facilities, to conduct criminal investigations related to offences covered by the Penal Code and the laws on controlled substances, weapons, explosives and organized crime. In turn, it expressly provides that the Police Bureau and the DCR secretary will jointly establish a protocol for intervention and investigation agreements.

The measure establishes that the protocol must delimit the coordination mechanisms between the two agencies, the jurisdiction and responsibility of each entity, the procedures for intervention in incidents in correctional institutions, the criminal investigation processes and the channels for communication and information management.