Here we provide various types of documentation (audits, reports, internal documents, news stories, litigation, prisoner essays, etc.) for many areas of systemic concern, as well as some DOC forms to help members of the public navigate this vast bureaucracy. Additional legal documents relevant to WA DOC can be found in the Prison Legal News legal brief repository and by using Google Scholar’s case law search.
Please note that WA DOC policies, forms, memoranda, and agency goals are constantly being renewed, revised, and superseded. Where known, we provide the year when a specific document was created, but visitors to our website should be mindful that the documents compiled here may not reflect the most updated WA DOC policies, stances, or progress. The department website provides many of its current publications and forms, as well as current policy revisions and WA DOC press releases announcing updated information.
See something we are missing? Have a public records document to share with us? Contact us here.
- Acronyms and Initialisms
- Agency Leadership and Department Secretaries
- Algorithms (Risk Assessment)
- Books for Prisoners
- Cell Searches
- Classification & Risk Assessment
- Clothing for Prisoners and Staff Uniforms
- Contraband
- Contracts
- Correctional Culture and Reform
- Correctional Industries
- COVID-19 Pandemic
- Deaths
- Equipment/Infrastructure Loss and Misuse
- Expert Witness and Consulting Activities of WA DOC Officials
- Facility Operations Reviews & Agency Performance Reports
- Food
- Forms
- Gender Responsiveness
- Graduated Reentry Program
- Grievance System
- Health Services
- Immigrant Prisoners & Visitors
- Infractions and Hearings
- Jargon
- Leadership and Line Staff Relationship
- Legal Resources
- Legislature and Legislation
- Lifers & Life Without Parole Sentences
- Mail for Prisoners
- Marriage
- Medical
- Ombudsmen
- Overtime (staff)
- PREA & Women’s Prison Staffing
- Prison Food
- Prison Mail & Books
- Prisoner Grievances
- Prisoner Health
- Prisoner Marriages
- Prisoner Writing, Publishing, and Freedom of Speech
- Programming for Prisoners
- Property for Prisoners
- Public Records
- Release of Medical Information (ROI)
- Retaliation
- Risk Assessment (Classification)
- Sentence Calculation
- Solitary Confinement
- Staff Safety & Morale
- Staff Misconduct, Dereliction, and Disciplinary Process (includes hiring of staff with known misconduct record)
- Staff Uniforms
- Staff Unions
- Tort Claims
- Visitation
- WA ONE Risk Assessment (formerly Strong-R)
- Washington State Institute for Public Policy (WSIPP) reports
Agency Leadership and Department Secretaries
- Locke picks new prisons chief. (1997, February 27). The Kitsap Sun.
- Ammons, D. (2005, January 25). Gregoire names Nebraskan as prisons chief. The Spokesman-Review.
- Gregoire names new head of prison system. (2008, January 9). The Everett Herald.
- Beekman, D. (2016, February 2). State Corrections chief quits, scorns lawmaker’s ‘need for blood.’ The Seattle Times.
- Barclay, J. (2017, January 10). PRESS RELEASE: Dr. Jody Becker-Green Named Acting Secretary of Corrections. Washington Department of Corrections Newsroom.
- Barclay, J. (2017, April 25). PRESS RELEASE: Governor Inslee Names Stephen Sinclair Secretary of the Department of Corrections. Washington Department of Corrections Newsroom.
- See also WA DOC History Timeline and Expertise & Performance
Cell Searches
- Aug. 2019 – Exception to Dry Cell Search/Watch (exception to staff gender requirement in women’s prisons)
Clothing for Prisoners and Staff Uniforms
- Early revisions of WA DOC 440.050 State-Issued Clothing/Linen
- 2012 – HB 2346 staff uniforms
- Greenhalgh v. Dep’t of Corr. (2014)
- May 2016 – Effect on staff morale of providing used uniforms
- DOC 440.000 Personal Property for “Offenders”
- Requirements of WA DOC ceremonial uniform insignia by rank: DOC 870.440 Attachment I
- WA DOC service ribbon ceremonial uniform insignia: DOC 870.440 Attachment III
Contraband
- United States of America v. Bowden (2017), see sentencing memorandum
- Former Monroe Prison Guard Sentenced for Smuggling Contraband into Facility. (2017, March 31). Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office.
- Thornton, E. (2018, Dec. 5). Washington State Penitentiary officer accused of supplying contraband to inmates. Walla Walla Union Bulletin
- Connell prison guard arrested for trying to smuggle drugs. (2020, Jan 9). Tri-City Herald
- Guard at Airway Heights Corrections Center accused of smuggling drugs to inmates. (2020, July 20). KHQ-Q6
Contracts
Correctional Culture and Reform
- Padden, M. (2019, August 25). Commentary: Years after scandal, corrections reforms idled. The Everett Herald
- Biller, S. (2020, October 21). PRESS RELEASE: Department of Corrections and Amend at UCSF Announce New Partnership. WA DOC Newsroom
Correctional Industries
- Overview of WA DOC Correctional Industries
- Washington Prison Food Factory Cooks Up Controversy. (1997, August 15). Prison Legal News.
- Berens, M.J. & Baker, M. (2014, December 13). Sell Block Part 1: Broken prison labor program fails to keep promises, costs millions. Seattle Times.
- Berens, M.J. & Baker, M. (2014, December 13). Sell Block Part 2: Recycling scheme lost state $1 million. Seattle Times.
- Berens, M.J. & Baker, M. (2014, December 13). Sell Block Part 3: Why license plates have cost us so much. Seattle Times.
- Correcting Food Policy in Washington Prisons: How the DOC Makes Healthy Food Choices Impossible for Incarcerated People & What Can Be Done (2016)
- May 2017 Office of the Washington State Auditor Audit Performance Audit of Correctional Industries
- Schwing, E. (2017, May 22). Nearly 160 Tons Of Food Manufactured In Washington Prison Kitchen Recalled. Northwest News Network.
- Jenkins, A. (2018, April 7). Hunger Strike Highlights Long-Simmering Fight Over Prison Food. Northwest News Network.
- Glover, J. (2019, February 5). Inmates at Coyote Ridge Corrections Center on hunger strike over quality of breakfast food. The Spokesman-Review.
- July 2019 Office of the Washington State Auditor Audit Update
- Gottlieb, P. (2019, October 23). 36 Clallam Bay Corrections Center inmates transferred after meal strike. Peninsula Daily News.
- Murphy, P. (2019, October 31). Prisoners went on food strike. Were thrown in solitary. And now they’re suing. KUOW Public Radio.
COVID-19 Pandemic
- WA DOC COVID-19 Memos to Interested Parties
- WA DOC COVID-19 Memos to All Staff Statewide
- WA DOC COVID-19 Staff Resources
- Other WA DOC COVID-19 resources
- WA DOC COVID-19 Data
- WA DOC COVID-19 Significant Events Timeline
- WA DOC Pandemic Budget Strategy
Deaths
- Ostrom, C.M. & Pian Chan, S. (2011, January 31). Monroe guard complained about working solo before inmate killed her. Seattle Times.
- Jenkins, A. (2017, March 6). How 11 Suicides Forced Change Inside Washington Prisons. Northwest News Network.
- Inmate deaths at state prisons are unconscionable. (2019, July 23). Seattle Times.
- Tri-City inmate dies in Walla Walla state prison cell. (2019, October 21). Tri-City Herald.
- Hutton, C. (2019, December 19). Report: Breakdown in Monroe prison left man to die of cancer. The Everett Herald.
Equipment/Infrastructure Loss and Misuse
- December 2015, Larch Corrections Center – Department of Natural Resources Status of Audit Resolution, Audit Report No. 1012889
Expert Witness and Consulting Activities of WA DOC Officials
- Amos Reed – Alberti v. Klevenhagen (1987)
- Amos Reed testimony referenced – IN RE: Rodney ALCALA on Habeas Corpus (1990)
- Affidavit of Chase Riveland – Osterback, et al. v. Michael W. Moore, et al. (Prison Legal News)
- Report of Joseph Lehman, Coleman v. Schwarzenegger et al. (2008)
- Witness statements – 2016 Washington State Senate Law & Justice Committee investigation
- Dan Pacholke – “More Than Emptying Beds: A Systems Approach to Segregation Reform” (2016)
Facility Operations Reviews and Agency Performance Reports
The Operations Reviews that follow are report cards WA DOC gives its facilities in two areas: (1) operations review (IT, security, disciplinary processes, food services, “offender” management, secured housing, searches & evidence, staff safety & accountability) and (2) health services (general, infirmary, medications, health records, restricted housing)
- AHCC
- CBCC
- CCCC
- CRCC
- LCC
- MCC
- MCCCW
- OCC
- SCCC
- WCC
- WCCW
- WSP
Gender Responsiveness
- Aug. 2019 – Exception to Dry Cell Search/Watch ( exception to staff gender requirement in women’s prisons)
Graduated Reentry
Immigrant Prisoners and Visitors
- Improving Latino Offenders’ Access to Visitation – Carlos Lugo, 2016
Infractions and Hearings
Leadership and Line Staff Relationship
Legal Resources
- Prisoners’ Self Help Litigation Manual – John Boston and Daniel Manville
- Teamsters 117 Legal Resources
- Disability Rights Washington
- Columbia Legal Services
- American Civil Liberties Union of Washington
Legislature and Legislation
- WA DOC Reports to the Legislature (filter Organization Name by “Corrections, Department of”)
- WA DOC Legislative Presentations, Documents, and Priorities
- Washington State legislative bills search
- Washington State Institute for Public Policy (WSIPP) reports
Lifers and Life Without Parole Sentences
- May 2015 – Life Without Parole Sentences in Washington State – UW Law, Societies, & Justice (LSJ) Professor Katherine Beckett (see also Too Easy to Keep, by UW LSJ Professor Steve Herbert)
Medical
- Quick list of WA DOC medical resources
- WA DOC Release of Information (ROI) form for prisoners
- 2015 – SB 5650 – Prisoner medical sub-account funds
- Washington State Department of Corrections Office of the Ombuds (defunct) 2017 Annual Report
- Inmate deaths at state prisons are unconscionable. (2019, July 23). Seattle Times.
- Sinclair, S. (2019, September 8). Commentary: Reforms at state prisons protecting lives, safety. The Everett Herald.
- Office of Corrections Ombuds 2019 Annual Report
- Hutton, C. (2019, December 19). Report: Breakdown in Monroe prison left man to die of cancer. The Everett Herald.
Ombudsmen
- Washington State Department of Corrections Office of the Ombuds (defunct) 2017 Annual Report
- O’Sullivan, J. (2017, July 11). Bill to improve DOC unlikely to pass; Inslee gets the blame. The Seattle Times.
- HB 1889 – An act relating to creating an office of the corrections ombuds
- Will more oversight fix Washington’s Department of Corrections? (2018, May 15). The News Tribune.
- Sinclair, S. (2019, September 8). Commentary: Reforms at state prisons protecting lives, safety. The Everett Herald.
- Office of Corrections Ombuds 2019 Annual Report
- Hutton, C. (2019, December 19). Report: Breakdown in Monroe prison left man to die of cancer. The Everett Herald.
Overtime
- 2015 WA DOC report to the legislature: Prison Overtime Usage
- DOC 825.010 Hours of Work, Overtime, and Additional Compensation
PREA and Women’s Prison Staffing
- Teamsters Local Union No. 117 v. Washington State Department of Corrections (2015, staffing in women’s prisons to address PREA concerns)
- June 2019 – CGL Washington Department of Corrections Prison Staffing Model Review
Prison Food
- WA DOC prison food before Correctional Industries takeover
- Weisberg, K. (2009, February 5). John Holeman: Corrections Champ. Foodservice Director.
- 2014 – Washington Department of Health Healthy Nutrition Guidelines Implementation Guide for Institutions (guidance for WA DOC and WA DSHS in implementing Executive Order 13-06 in prisons and mental health facilities)
- December 2015 – WA DOC Memo on Meals During Visits
- Correcting Food Policy in Washington Prisons: How the DOC Makes Healthy Food Choices Impossible for Incarcerated People & What Can Be Done (2016)
- April 2018 – WA DOC memo in response to Washington State Penitentiary food strike
- Jenkins, A. (2018, April 7). Hunger Strike Highlights Long-Simmering Fight Over Prison Food. Northwest News Network.
- Sept. 2018 – Living Unit Handout Promoting Processed Foods – Food Services Newsletter Publication No. 700-NE002
- Feb. 2019 – Religious Diet Changes – Milk Mainline Alternative Diet
- Glover, J. (2019, February 5). Inmates at Coyote Ridge Corrections Center on hunger strike over quality of breakfast food. The Spokesman-Review.
- Gottlieb, P. (2019, October 23). 36 Clallam Bay Corrections Center inmates transferred after meal strike. Peninsula Daily News.
- Murphy, P. (2019, October 31). Prisoners went on food strike. Were thrown in solitary. And now they’re suing. KUOW Public Radio.
- Office of Corrections Ombuds 2019 Annual Report
Prison Mail & Books
- March 2019 – Used Publication Ban Memorandum (see also PRESS RELEASE: Book Donation Acceptance Process, April 2019)
- Publication Review Logs
- Resources
- Books to Prisoners (non-profit organization)
Prisoner Grievances
- 2013 “Offender” Grievance Program Manual
- 2016 “Offender” Grievance Program Manual
- Monroe Correctional Complex IMU Grievance Envelope (2016)
- Washington State Department of Corrections Office of the Ombuds (defunct) 2017 Annual Report
- Office of Corrections Ombuds 2019 Annual Report
- June 2020 Health Services Grievance Program Memo
- Resources
- Disability Rights Washington Tips for Writing Grievances in Washington State
Prisoner Marriages
- Overview of the WA DOC marriage process
- WA DOC Prisoner Marriage Forms and Checklist (current as of 2016)
- Letter concerning prisoner wedding rings (June 2021)
Prisoner Writing, Publishing, and Freedom of Speech
- Minutes Before Six (Washington state prisoner contributors)
- Prison Writing with PEN America: Can Mass Incarceration & Freedom of Speech Co-Exist? (2019, December 10). Phil & Co. Podcast.
Programming for Prisoners
Property for Prisoners
- Washington State Department of Corrections Office of the Ombuds (defunct) 2017 Annual Report
Public Records
- WA DOC Public Records Requests
- Wilkerson v. Dep’t of Corrections (2019, concerning exemptions)
Retaliation
- Navigating retaliation and efforts that backfire
- WA DOC Policies Addressing Retaliation
- DOC 490.800 Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) Prevention and Reporting
- DOC 810.005 Diversity/Inclusion/Non-Discrimination (addresses retaliation for whistle-blower activities; see also DOC 190.300 Attachment I)
- DOC 850.625 Sexual Harassment
- May 2011 – Teamsters 117 Correctional Officers Union Unfair Labor Practices complaint concerning retaliation
- August 2012 – One local facility WA DOC superintendent expressed concerns to WA DOC headquarters that staff were retaliating against visitors (see here and here)
- July 2016 – Inaccurately ascribing unpopular actions to individuals by name in front of others can result in retaliation and widespread bullying
- November 2016 media coverage of retaliation against whistleblowers for reporting data tampering
- May 2018 media coverage of allegations of retaliation at Larch Correctional Center
- April 2018 – WA DOC retaliation against an incarcerated author and a prison volunteer for prisoner publishing activities
- July 2018 – Retaliation can take the form of prisoners or staff putting other prisoners up to filing false anonymous reports of death threats, with the goal of getting a disliked prisoner or a prisoner who is holding a coveted job position transferred to solitary confinement or a different prison
- At the November 30, 2018 Monroe Correctional Complex Local Family Council meeting, an Associate Superintendent stated, “This administration will not tolerate retaliation.” A Superintendent then stated, “We won’t accept retaliation.” A Lieutenant then stated, “We are here to change that culture.” This moment marked a turning point in WA DOC acknowledging that retaliation occurs in its facilities.
- Bannan, R. (2018, December 24). Department of Corrections denies allegations raised by Larch employee. The Reflector.
- Murphy, P. (2019, October 31). Prisoners went on food strike. Were thrown in solitary. And now they’re suing. KUOW Public Radio.
- Office of Corrections Ombuds Nov. 2019 Investigative Report
- Office of Corrections Ombuds Nov. 2020 Investigative Report – Reynolds Work Release
- WA DOC has provided a response to the report here, in which it states that “‘Retaliation’ is not in alignment with the Department’s values. The Department is incorporating the definition of the term ‘retaliation’ as well as examples into annual required training by all corrections staff. Assistant Secretary Armbruster will be meeting with all work release supervisors to discuss ‘retaliation’ and stress the importance of zero tolerance of retaliation within work release facilities.”
- Fowler, L. (2020, December 9). Washington Inmates Say They Face Retaliation For Getting Coronavirus. Patch and Crosscut.
Sentence Calculation
- Beekman, D. (2016, February 2). State Corrections chief quits, scorns lawmaker’s ‘need for blood.’ The Seattle Times.
- Yarmuth Wilsdon Investigative Report RE: Department of Corrections (2016)
Solitary Confinement
- Solitary confinement in WA DOC
- Washington Corrections Watch coverage of solitary confinement in WA DOC
- Spreadsheet of WA DOC prisoners’ solitary confinement duration periods, 1995–2015 (generated by WA DOC Public Disclosure Unit, July 2015)
- “State prison security chair program going nationwide” – August 11, 2017 video news clip from KING5 news
- Catalog pricing for Correctional Industries IMU “classroom” restraint desks, to which prisoner “students” are shackled
- Pedersen, J. A Walk in the Dark. (Submission for the M.I.A. 2018 What We Know Book Center for American Progress anthology.)
- PRESS RELEASE: The Washington State Department of Corrections Partners with the Vera Institute to Focus on Restricted Housing Reforms – May 16, 2019
- Vera Institute partnership update sent by WA DOC to the Washington State Governor’s office on October 1, 2019
- Relaxation tips document given to Washington State Penitentiary IMU North prisoners upon entering solitary confinement up until New York Times coverage in November 2019 inspired WA DOC to end the practice
- Baker, M. (2019, November 16). Prison’s Tips for Inmates in Solitary: ‘Plant a Tree’ or ‘Go on a Picnic.’ The New York Times. (Original WA DOC IMU handout here.)
- Vera Institute presentation to the Statewide Family Council on partnership with WA DOC – September 2020
- The WA DOC’s Left Hand Knows What Its Right Hand is Doing: Cartoon Explained – January 2021
Staff Misconduct, Dereliction, and Disciplinary Process
- Contraband Introduction
- United States of America v. Bowden (2017), see sentencing memorandum
- Former Monroe Prison Guard Sentenced for Smuggling Contraband into Facility. (2017, March 31). Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office.
- Thornton, E. (2018, Dec. 5). Washington State Penitentiary officer accused of supplying contraband to inmates. Walla Walla Union Bulletin
- Connell prison guard arrested for trying to smuggle drugs. (2020, Jan 9). Tri-City Herald
- Guard at Airway Heights Corrections Center accused of smuggling drugs to inmates. (2020, July 20). KHQ-Q6
- Effects on Staff Safety
- Dereliction detailed in death of Monroe prison guard Biendl. (2012, Jan 9). KOMO News
- Hiring and Retention of Staff With Known Misconduct Record
- Miletich, S., Mayo, J., Armstrong, K., & Alexander, B. (2006, September 13). Cop’s “incomprehensible” conduct in murder mystery comes to light. The Seattle Times.
- King, R. (2013, July 9) Arbitrator orders reversal of firing of prison officers. The Everett Herald
- Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA)
- Williams v. Wofford (2019)
Staff Safety and Morale
- 2012 – HB 2346 staff uniforms
- May 2016 – Effect on staff morale of providing used uniforms
- June 2019 – CGL Washington Department of Corrections Prison Staffing Model Review
- July 2019 – Results WA document on improving staff safety
- Wilkerson v. Dep’t of Corrections (2019)
- Sinclair, S. (2019, September 8). Commentary: Reforms at state prisons protecting lives, safety. The Everett Herald.
Staff Unions
- Staff Unions in WA DOC (includes collective bargaining agreements and union newsletters)
- Teamsters 117 Legal Resources
- 2012 – HB 2346 staff uniforms
- Teamsters Local Union No. 117 v. State Department of Corrections (2014, Public Employment Relations Commission, staff email protection)
- Teamsters Local Union No. 117 v. Washington State Department of Corrections (2015, sex discrimination in hiring)
Tort Claims
- Forms for filing tort claims against Washington State agencies
- Department of Enterprise Services Office of Risk Management Log of Tort Claims Filed Against WA DOC 2015–2016
- Tort Claim Indemnity Payout Analyses (presents payouts per state agency)
- See also Chapter 4.92 RCW
Visitation
- 2015 Visitation Staff Position Description
- December 2015 – WA DOC Memo on Meals During Visits
- 2017–2018 WA DOC & Statewide Family Council Visitation Working Group documents
- 2019–2021 Teamsters 117 Collective Bargaining Agreement (PDF pg. 217 – ratified Memorandum of Understanding with DOC concerning development of standards for prison visiting room staff)
WA One, Risk Assessment, Data, and Algorithms
- February 2014 – WSIPP Report on Risk Assessment
- Washington State University 2016 STRONG-R Pilot Assessment Study
- The Static Risk Offender Needs Guide – Revised (STRONG-R) 2017
- Washington State Department of Corrections Office of the Ombuds (defunct) 2017 Annual Report
- March 2019 – WA-ONE Worksheet
- October 2020 – WSIPP Report on WA ONE
- December 2021 – WSIPP Report on WA ONE
- Washington Corrections Watch overview of concerns about WA DOC data analytics
- WA DOC Data Analytics page
Washington State Institute for Public Policy (WSIPP)
Washington Corrections Watch 
