Missouri Department of Corrections Has an Honesty Problem.

Missouri DOC has a lot of issues to deal with including staff shortages, the constant threat of erupting violence in the prison system, harassment and retaliation issues that seem to be going nowhere and administrative failures which keep the department from making any substantial steps toward improvement.

Any addict will tell you that you cannot fix a problem without acknowledging there is one. This is where MODOC gets into trouble. The department has always had an honesty problem. The huge harassment and discrimination issue plaguing DOC is not new, but only in the last couple of years has it received any real national attention. Why? Because the department would not admit that it was happening until they had to. The volume of payouts from the department to victims shows that they were aware of the problem for decades but kept it quiet. This of course was until the Pitch article exposing Corrections harassment and department cover-ups went viral. Once everyone was talking about it, the department had to face what they had been sweeping under the rug. Massive changes were implemented to publicly address the issues now brought to light. The problem, however, is that changes were only on the surface and the department is still misleading the media and the public to hide the truth.

The Department of Corrections has employees who are responsible for communicating with the media. This is essentially a person tasked with manipulating the truth to protect the image of the department. Every "Official" story you hear about Corrections has been run through the PR filter to promote a narrative concocted by department heads. Consider the following. In 2015 A retirement aged female staff member at Jefferson City Correctional Center was almost murdered, nearly beaten to death in a housing unit. Her injuries were so severe that she had to be flown by helicopter for emergency medical care. She spent days in intensive care before beginning a lifetime of recovery from her brutal and vicious attack. Two weeks later, the news reported that "a staff member received non life-threatening injuries in an assault." Clearly the information given to the media was incorrect. When Warden Jay Cassady was asked about this misinformation, he stated that he has nothing to do with it because that is the Public relations officer's job.

Basically, the prison administration can avoid blame for false information given to the public by putting the blame on the spokesperson, while the spokesperson does the same by siting limited information that they have received from the prison administration. It is a circle of dishonesty that allows the department to control the flow of information. If you still don't see the problem, let's jump to 2018. Staffing and morale in Missouri prisons is at an incredible low, a new smoking ban and other administrative changes has the inmate population on edge, and the stage is set for mass violence as the perfect storm rolls in.

May 2018 Crossroads Correctional Center experiences the first riot of the anticipated unrest. DOC spokesperson Karen Pojmann describes the event as a disturbance in which Offenders refused to leave the Dining Hall. Initial reports made the event sound like a peaceful sit-in. As more information came out, namely large amounts of damage to parts of the institution, including some done with a stolen forklift, the department was forced to admit that the disturbance was more severe than originally reported.

July 4th 2018 Tipton Correctional Center experienced a riot in which housing units were damaged, staff was evacuated and outside law enforcement was brought in to control the situation. Again Karen Pojmann reported a version of the story to news outlets which seemed inconsistent with the facts. While no one was seriously hurt in the riot, it was a violent act which left parts of the institution severely damaged, and staff evacuated for their safety. control of the institution was lost while inmates used their numbers to carry out violence and destruction. This is the very definition of a prison riot. Pojmann, however stated that she was "uncomfortable" with the term "disturbance" and said that she felt it was more of a protest. Violence is not protest. The department knows this, but the truth is worse for their already tarnished image.

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Missouri Department of Corrections has spent years hiding the truth and telling us that a riot is not a riot, harassment is not harassment and everything is under control. None of these statements are true, but the worst lie that they tell is that the people cannot make a difference and that the staff should be quiet. DOC's spokesperson also said that staff who keep talking to the media are just making it worse. They are literally saying "Don't tell." Clearly they want the truth to remain hidden as it is not in their best interest for it to come out. Clearly the department is more interested in protecting the pyramid scheme they have going on with all the money in central office than protecting the safety of staff and the public. Obviously, the Missouri Department of Corrections is not going to address their honesty problem themselves. If you know the truth and value the lives of those in jeopardy, it is your job to address it for them.


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