Jail Management

Facilities shall maintain fiscal records which clearly indicate the total cost for operating the facility according to the county’s accounting principles.  Such records shall have an itemized breakdown of the total operating expenses, such as wages and salaries, food, and operating supplies.  Rules of the Tennessee Corrections Institute, Rule 1400-1-.05(1).

The Rules of the Tennessee Corrections Institute, Rule 1400-1-.06(3). requires that facilities have a personnel policy manual made available to each employee, and which provides information on the following subjects:

(a) Description of organizational structure;
(b) Position descriptions;
(c) Personnel rules and regulations;
(d) Recruitment procedures;
(e) Equal employment opportunity provisions;
(f) Work hours;
(g) Personnel records;
(h) Employee evaluation;
(i) In-Service training;
(j) Hostage policy; and,
(k) Use of force. 

The facility administrator or designee shall visit the facility’s living and activity areas at least weekly.  Rules of the Tennessee Corrections Institute, Rule 1400-1-.07(16).

Facilities shall have sufficient staff, including designated supervisor, to provide, at all times, the performance of functions relating to the security, custody, and supervision of inmates as needed to operate the facility in conformance with the Standards of the Tennessee Corrections Institute.  Rules of the Tennessee Corrections Institute, Rule 1400-1-.07(20).

Jail Record Keeping

Tennessee Code Annotated § 10-7-504(m)(1) states information and records that are directly related to the security of any government building shall be maintained as confidential and shall not be open to public inspection.  For purposes of this subsection (m), “government building” means any building that is owned, leased, or controlled, in whole or in part, by the state of Tennessee or any county, municipality, city or other political subdivision of the state of Tennessee.  Such information and records shall include, but are not limited to:

(A) Information and records about alarm and security systems used at the government building, including codes, passwords, writing diagrams, plans and security procedures and protocols related to the security systems;
(B) Security plans, including security-related contingency planning and emergency response plans;
(C) Assessments of security vulnerabilities;
(D) Information and records that would identify those areas of structural or operational  vulnerability that would permit unlawful disruption to, or interference with, the services provided by a governmental entity; and
(E) Surveillance recordings, whether recorded to audio or visual format, or both, except segments of the recordings may be made public when they include an act or incident involving public safety or security or possible criminal activity.  In addition, if the recordings are relevant to a civil action or criminal prosecution, then the recordings may be released in compliance with a subpoena or an order of a court of record in accordance with the Tennessee rules of civil or criminal procedure.  The court or administrative judge having jurisdiction over the proceedings shall issue appropriate protective orders, when necessary, to ensure that the information is disclosed only to appropriate persons.  Release of any segment or segments of the recordings shall not be construed as waiving the confidentiality of the remaining segments of the audio or visual tape.

Information made confidential by this subsection (m) shall be redacted wherever possible and nothing in this subsection (m) shall be used to limit or deny access to otherwise public information because a file or document contains confidential information.

Facilities shall maintain current and accurate custody records on all inmates committed to or assigned to the facility, which shall include but are not limited to the following:

(a) Intake/booking information;
(b) Court generated background information;
(c) Cash and property receipts;
(d) Reports of disciplinary actions, grievances, incidents, or crime(s) committed while in custody;
(e) Disposition of court hearings;
(f) Records of program participation;
(g) Work assignments; and,
(h) Classification records.

Inmates shall have reasonable access to information in their records.  Access is only limited due to safety or security concerns for the inmate, other inmates, or the facility.  Further, inmate records shall be safeguarded from unauthorized and improper disclosure.  Rules of the Tennessee Corrections Institute, Rule 1400-1-.14(6), (7), and (8).

The Rules of the Tennessee Corrections Institute, Rule 1400-1-.14(9) requires as part of the inmate accounting system, facilities shall maintain on a daily basis the following information:

• Admissions
  • Adult – Juvenile
  • Male – Female
  • Race
  • Charge
• Releases
  • Adult – Juvenile
  • Male – Female
  • Race
  • Charge
• Inmate Population
  • Sentenced – Non-sentenced
  • Adult – Juvenile
  • Male – Female
  • Felons – Misdemeanants
  • Race

Facilities shall keep records on each inmate specifying:

(a) Date of confinement;
(b) Length of sentence;
(c) Reduction of sentences provided by statutes; and,
(d) Release date.  Rules of the Tennessee Corrections Institute, Rule 1400-1-.14(10).

The Rules of the Tennessee Corrections Institute, Rule 1400-1-.14(11), (12) and (13) require that facilities shall maintain written policy and procedures for releasing inmates from the facility which include but are not limited to, the following:

(a) Identification of outstanding warrants, wants, or detainers;
(b) If released into the custody of another officer, appropriate credentials must be reviewed;
(c) Positive identification of the inmate by the releasing officer;
(d) Verification of release papers;
(e) Completion of release arrangements, including notification of the parole authorities in the jurisdiction of release, if required;
(f) Return of personal property including cash.  All items shall be inventoried on a receipt and witnessed by the releasing officer.  This receipt shall be kept in the permanent records of the facility;
(g) Provision of a listing of available community resources; and,
(h) Provision of medication as directed by the health authority.

Further, all inmates released from the facility shall sign a receipt for property, valuables and cash returned at the time of release.  All items shall be carefully inventoried on the receipt and witnessed by the releasing officer.  The receipt shall be kept I the permanent records of the facility.

Changing Sex Designation on Certain Government Records

Under Tenn. Code Ann. § 68-3-203(d), “[t]he sex of an individual shall not be changed on the original certificate of birth as a result of sex change surgery.” This Office has previously opined that a court could conclude, on the basis of § 68-3-203(d), that “a person’s sex under Tennessee law is determined at birth” and that “sex reassignment surgery would not alter the sex of a person for purposes of marriage.” Tenn. Att’y Gen. Op. 88-43 (Feb. 29, 1988). See also Tenn. Code Ann. § 4-21-102(20) (added by 2011 Tenn. Pub. Acts, ch. 278, § 2) (for purposes of Tennessee Human Rights Act, “‘sex’ means and refers only to the designation of an individual person as male or female as indicated on the individual’s birth certificate”).

Changing the designation of a person’s sex on existing police booking sheets, warrants, and other court records would require the alteration of such records. A court would likely conclude, based on § 68-3-203(d), that where the designation of a person’s sex has been made on police booking sheets, warrants, and other court records in accordance with the person’s birth certificate, the police booking sheets, warrants, and other court records may not be altered as a result of sex-change surgery.  See Op. Tenn. Atty. Gen. No. 14-70, July 16, 2014.