California Institution for Men
Encyclopedia
California Institution for Men (CIM) is a male-only state prison located in the city of Chino
, San Bernardino County, California
. It is often colloquially referenced as "Chino." In turn, locals call the prison "Chino Men's" or just "Men's" to avoid confusion with the city itself. The institution is a reception center for parolees who are returning to custody and a place for newly committed felons from several counties in Southern California
.
As of Fiscal Year 2006/2007, CIM had 2,327 staff and an annual budget of $232.2 million. As of September 2007, it had a design capacity of 3,160 but a total institution population of 6,900, for an occupancy rate of over 200 percent.
, Folsom State Prison
, and the original California Institution for Women
at Tehachapi
). Since the California Correctional Institution
replaced the original California Institution for Women at Tehachapi, CIM is now the third-oldest California state prison.
In 1970, a commercial diver training program started at CIM. In following years, the program's graduates had much success in finding jobs after release from prison and a recidivism
rate of only 12 percent. The program was "closed in 2003 due to budget restraints," but reopened in 2006.
Inmate Kevin Cooper
escaped from CIM in 1983. In retrospect, factors that may have contributed to the escape included conviction "under an alias," an undetected "history of escaping from jails and mental hospitals," and "a hole in a fence" surrounding CIM. Three days after Cooper's escape, four people were found dead in nearby Chino Hills
, and Cooper was later convicted of murdering them.
In 1987, officials of the city of Chino opposed a plan to build a ward at CIM for inmates with HIV
/AIDS
because they "believe[d] it would threaten the community." After "Corrections Department officials announced they wouldn't increase the AIDS inmate population to more than 200 men," opposition decreased. The ward was constructed and received its first patients in May 1988, making it the second such AIDS ward in California (following one opened in 1984 at the California Medical Facility
).
Shayne Allyn Ziska was a correctional officer at CIM "from January 1984 through October 2000." In 2004 he was arrested for assisting the Nazi Lowriders
(a white supremacist organization) "distribute drugs and assault inmates" inside CIM. In 2006, Ziska was convicted "on charges of conspiracy, civil-rights violations and violent crime in aid of racketeering" and sentenced to "17 years in federal prison." Ziska, Federal Bureau of Prisons
#04299-748, is now at Federal Correctional Institution, Allenwood Medium.
Correctional Officer Manuel A. Gonzalez Jr. was stabbed to death in CIM in 2005. Factors that may have contributed to the killing were prison overcrowding, understaffing, a failure to segregate the inmate in question due to a history of violent behavior, the inmate's lengthy stay at CIM, the inmate's access to a weapon, and the officer's lack of a protective vest. In the aftermath of the Gonzalez murder, the CIM warden and two chief deputy wardens were fired, and CIM instituted reforms. The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
in July 2007 agreed to pay $1.2 million to settle a lawsuit by Gonzalez's family.
In 2005 and 2007, the state of California proposed building hundreds of new units for mentally ill inmates at CIM and at the nearby California Institution for Women
; local officials opposed such plans. A "general acute-care hospital at CIM" had received a license to operate in 1984, but in March 2006 the hospital operating room was closed and in July 2007 the plan was "to relinquish the license" because the facility was not functioning as a hospital.
On August 8, 2009, a prison riot
broke out at CIM during which over 250 inmates were injured, and which ultimately took more than twelve hours to put down. The cause of the riot is under investigation.
The riot broke out at 8:20 pm. Although other races were involved the riot was mainly between Hispanic inmates and African American inmates. The prison's damages were severe, bathroom sinks ripped of the walls, fires broke out, and 50 inmates were taken to nearby hospitals. The riot caused a lock down of the prison and six others in the area.
In February 2010 the youth facility Heman G. Stark Youth Correctional Facility was closed; California authorities will incorporate the facility into that of the California Institution for Men.
Chino, California
Chino is a city in San Bernardino County, California, United States. It is located in the western end of the Riverside-San Bernardino Area and it is easily accessible via the Chino Valley and Pomona freeways....
, San Bernardino County, California
San Bernardino County, California
San Bernardino County is a county in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2010 census, the population was 2,035,210, up from 1,709,434 as of the 2000 census...
. It is often colloquially referenced as "Chino." In turn, locals call the prison "Chino Men's" or just "Men's" to avoid confusion with the city itself. The institution is a reception center for parolees who are returning to custody and a place for newly committed felons from several counties in Southern California
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
.
Facilities
CIM has 2500 acres (10.1 km²). Facilities include:- "The largest Level I inmate population within the California prison system" ("Level I" referring to "open dormitories without a secure perimeter").
- Three Reception Centers (RCs) which "provide short term housing to process, classify and evaluate incoming inmates." Reception Center Central for medium/maximum custody level inmates "receives intake from several southern California counties"; Reception Center East "houses [medium/maximum custody level] RC inmates with sensitive needs, Mental Health inmate/patients requiring an Enhanced Out-Patient level of care and a 100 bed HIV/CID unit"; and Reception Center West is for "medium level custody inmates" who are "waiting processing/transfer to programming institutions."
- The counties served by Reception Center Central include Orange CountyOrange County, CaliforniaOrange County is a county in the U.S. state of California. Its county seat is Santa Ana. As of the 2010 census, its population was 3,010,232, up from 2,846,293 at the 2000 census, making it the third most populous county in California, behind Los Angeles County and San Diego County...
, Riverside CountyRiverside County, CaliforniaRiverside County is a county in the U.S. state of California. One of 58 California counties, it covers in the southern part of the state, and stretches from Orange County to the Colorado River, which forms the state border with Arizona. The county derives its name from the city of Riverside,...
, and San Bernardino CountySan Bernardino County, CaliforniaSan Bernardino County is a county in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2010 census, the population was 2,035,210, up from 1,709,434 as of the 2000 census...
. It also serves prisoners transferred form the Pitchess Detention Center in CastaicCastaic, CaliforniaCastaic, California, is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Los Angeles County, California, north of Santa Clarita and a few miles from Six Flags Magic Mountain amusement park. It is approximately 39 miles from the downtown Los Angeles Civic Center. As of the 2010...
, Los Angeles County.
- The counties served by Reception Center Central include Orange County
As of Fiscal Year 2006/2007, CIM had 2,327 staff and an annual budget of $232.2 million. As of September 2007, it had a design capacity of 3,160 but a total institution population of 6,900, for an occupancy rate of over 200 percent.
History
CIM opened in 1941 and "was the first major minimum security institution built and operated in the United States." It was the fourth state prison built in California (after San Quentin State PrisonSan Quentin State Prison
San Quentin State Prison is a California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation state prison for men in unincorporated San Quentin, Marin County, California, United States. Opened in July 1852, it is the oldest prison in the state. California's only death row for male inmates, the largest...
, Folsom State Prison
Folsom State Prison
Folsom State Prison is a California State Prison located in the city of Folsom, California, northeast from the state capital of Sacramento. Opened in 1880, Folsom is the second-oldest prison in the state of California after San Quentin and was the first in the country to have electricity...
, and the original California Institution for Women
California Correctional Institution
California Correctional Institution is a state prison located in Cummings Valley, west of the city of Tehachapi in southern California. It is a supermax...
at Tehachapi
Tehachapi, California
Tehachapi is a city incorporated in 1909 located in the Tehachapi Mountains between Bakersfield and Mojave in Kern County, California. Tehachapi is located east-southeast of Bakersfield, at an elevation of...
). Since the California Correctional Institution
California Correctional Institution
California Correctional Institution is a state prison located in Cummings Valley, west of the city of Tehachapi in southern California. It is a supermax...
replaced the original California Institution for Women at Tehachapi, CIM is now the third-oldest California state prison.
In 1970, a commercial diver training program started at CIM. In following years, the program's graduates had much success in finding jobs after release from prison and a recidivism
Recidivism
Recidivism is the act of a person repeating an undesirable behavior after they have either experienced negative consequences of that behavior, or have been treated or trained to extinguish that behavior...
rate of only 12 percent. The program was "closed in 2003 due to budget restraints," but reopened in 2006.
Inmate Kevin Cooper
Kevin Cooper (inmate)
Kevin Cooper is a death row inmate currently held in California's San Quentin Prison. Cooper was convicted of four murders that occurred in the Chino Hills area of California in 1983...
escaped from CIM in 1983. In retrospect, factors that may have contributed to the escape included conviction "under an alias," an undetected "history of escaping from jails and mental hospitals," and "a hole in a fence" surrounding CIM. Three days after Cooper's escape, four people were found dead in nearby Chino Hills
Chino Hills, California
Chino Hills is a Los Angeles suburb located in the southwestern corner of San Bernardino County, California, United States. The city borders Los Angeles County on its northwest side, Orange County to its south, and Riverside County to its southeast...
, and Cooper was later convicted of murdering them.
In 1987, officials of the city of Chino opposed a plan to build a ward at CIM for inmates with HIV
HIV
Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...
/AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
because they "believe[d] it would threaten the community." After "Corrections Department officials announced they wouldn't increase the AIDS inmate population to more than 200 men," opposition decreased. The ward was constructed and received its first patients in May 1988, making it the second such AIDS ward in California (following one opened in 1984 at the California Medical Facility
California Medical Facility
California Medical Facility is a male-only state prison located in the city of Vacaville, Solano County, California. It is older than California State Prison, Solano, the other state prison in Vacaville.-Facilities:...
).
Shayne Allyn Ziska was a correctional officer at CIM "from January 1984 through October 2000." In 2004 he was arrested for assisting the Nazi Lowriders
Nazi Lowriders
The Nazi Lowriders or NLR or "The Ride" are a white supremacist criminal organization primarily based in southern California, although it is believed to have spread to other states. They are allies of the larger and more notorious gang, the Aryan Brotherhood. Their main rivals are the Bloods, the...
(a white supremacist organization) "distribute drugs and assault inmates" inside CIM. In 2006, Ziska was convicted "on charges of conspiracy, civil-rights violations and violent crime in aid of racketeering" and sentenced to "17 years in federal prison." Ziska, Federal Bureau of Prisons
Federal Bureau of Prisons
The Federal Bureau of Prisons is a federal law enforcement agency subdivision of the United States Department of Justice and is responsible for the administration of the federal prison system. The system also handles prisoners who committed acts considered felonies under the District of Columbia's...
#04299-748, is now at Federal Correctional Institution, Allenwood Medium.
Correctional Officer Manuel A. Gonzalez Jr. was stabbed to death in CIM in 2005. Factors that may have contributed to the killing were prison overcrowding, understaffing, a failure to segregate the inmate in question due to a history of violent behavior, the inmate's lengthy stay at CIM, the inmate's access to a weapon, and the officer's lack of a protective vest. In the aftermath of the Gonzalez murder, the CIM warden and two chief deputy wardens were fired, and CIM instituted reforms. The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation is responsible for the operation of the California state prison and parole systems. CDC&R is the second largest law enforcement or police agency in the United States behind the New York City Police Department which employs approximately...
in July 2007 agreed to pay $1.2 million to settle a lawsuit by Gonzalez's family.
In 2005 and 2007, the state of California proposed building hundreds of new units for mentally ill inmates at CIM and at the nearby California Institution for Women
California Institution for Women
California Institution for Women is a female-only state prison located in the city of Chino, San Bernardino County, California.-Facilities:...
; local officials opposed such plans. A "general acute-care hospital at CIM" had received a license to operate in 1984, but in March 2006 the hospital operating room was closed and in July 2007 the plan was "to relinquish the license" because the facility was not functioning as a hospital.
On August 8, 2009, a prison riot
Prison riot
A prison riot is an act of concerted defiance or disorder by a group of prisoners against the prison administrators, prison officers, or other groups of prisoners in attempt to force change or express a grievance....
broke out at CIM during which over 250 inmates were injured, and which ultimately took more than twelve hours to put down. The cause of the riot is under investigation.
The riot broke out at 8:20 pm. Although other races were involved the riot was mainly between Hispanic inmates and African American inmates. The prison's damages were severe, bathroom sinks ripped of the walls, fires broke out, and 50 inmates were taken to nearby hospitals. The riot caused a lock down of the prison and six others in the area.
In February 2010 the youth facility Heman G. Stark Youth Correctional Facility was closed; California authorities will incorporate the facility into that of the California Institution for Men.