Edtorial: A black eye for prison officials

ORDINARILY, state administrative hearings involving public employees who have appealed disciplinary actions rarely deserve a mention.

But a decision last week reversing the demotion of Nevada Women's Prison Sgt. Mel Vande Brake for spreading rumors is extraordinary because it also offers a scathing indictment of the state prison system. In a 23-page decision, state Hearing Officer David Kladney paints a frightening picture of a complete breakdown in the operation of the state women's prison in Carson City during the 1990s, and suggests the state Prisons Department still has serious problems.

A litany of management afflictions were claimed by Kladney. Upper management in the Nevada Women's Prison had liaisons with subordinates, the counseling staff had relations with inmates, the medical staff was doing and dealing drugs within the prison, and unlocked doors and failed locks resulted in failed security. And during Vande Brake's hearing, the associate warden of operations said she had knowingly lived with an ex-felon. Assistant Prison Director Carl Sannicks knew about the relationship but did not order the prison official to end the relationship even though another corrections officer was fired for associating with an ex-convict at a bar.

Kladney found these revelations to be devastating. "Perhaps the worst blow to employee morale is the blind eye past management had to these conditions and the refusal of the current management to investigate upper management personnel where probable cause exists for further investigation," Kladney wrote in his decision. Past management failed miserably, Kladney asserted. "Current management is on that road with the stonewalling of investigations to protect certain employees," Kladney added.

All of these allegations happened under the watch of the Miller administration. Gov. Bob Miller has just half a year left in his term, and some of his key policy advisers have either left or announced that they will leave office soon. But the bottom line is that Miller, who has been governor for almost 10 years, should demand answers to this and order a prompt investigation with results before he leaves office. Any inquiry should include recommendations on how these incidents can be avoided in the future.

The mismanagement cited by Kladney would be shocking if it was uncovered at any state agency. But particularly troubling is that it occurred at an institution where it is essential that all employees, including upper management, operate with the highest integrity.

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