The Department of Corrections is committed to ensuring public safety, rehabilitating the incarcerated and functioning in an efficient, cost-effective manner.

Disciplinary Hearing Unit

This unit provides hearing officers to all state correctional facilities to adjudicate inmate disciplinary charges in a timely and efficient manner, in accordance with the United States Supreme Court's decision in Wolff v. McDonnell.

Equal Employment Division

The Equal Employment Division (EED) is responsible for ensuring that the NJDOC provides its employees with a workplace free from all forms of discrimination, harassment and retaliation.

The EED monitors compliance of this policy through investigation of complaints filed by employees regarding discrimination or harassment based on an individual’s membership in a protected class, such as gender, race or religion. During the 2006 fiscal year, the EED received 256 formal and informal complaints. Following an investigation, employees who are found to have engaged in acts of discrimination, harassment or retaliation are subject to administrative remedies, including disciplinary action.

The EED also represents the NJDOC in external discrimination claims before the Division of Civil Rights and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. In addition, the division is responsible for keeping all staff updated on policies and procedures through the distribution of documents as well as educational workshops and classes.

Office of External Affairs

The Office of External Affairs reports to the Commissioner of the NJDOC with responsibility for following areas:

• Legislative Services – The unit keeps abreast of proposed and current legislation that may impact the NJDOC. It maintains a cooperative and informative working relationship with the state legislature and committee aides, the Governor’s Office and the Office of Legislative Services in order to respond to inquires and requests for constituent assistance, and to provide comments and necessary amendatory language during the process of enacting law. In addition, the unit provides staff with updates regarding legislative initiatives in an effort to track and disseminate any proposed legislation or amendments that may require a position by the NJDOC.
• Litigation/Legal Support Services – The unit ensures that all litigation directed toward the NJDOC is processed in accordance with the procedures of the Office of the Attorney General. Litigation/Legal Support Services also processes legal documents served on the NJDOC and/or employees. The unit maintains a working relationship with the Office of the Attorney General during the preparation of legal representation for cases involving the department; provides support and direction to the litigation liaisons in each correctional facility; and updates and advises the Commissioner on the status of pending litigation and other legal proceedings.
• Government Records – The unit is responsible for ensuring compliance by the department with the Open Public Records Act (OPRA), N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1 et seq. To accomplish this mission, every OPRA request received by the NJDOC is reviewed to determine whether all or part of the requested document(s) can be released to the public in accordance with the law. All government record requests directed to the department are processed and responded to within the designated time period.
• Ethics – The unit ensures that employees of the NJDOC comply with statutes, rules, regulations and legal authority that establish the standards for ethical conduct of all employees. To enhance awareness and understanding of the standards of conduct with which state employees must comply during the course of their employment, the ethics unit provides employees with state statutes and regulations regarding ethics, to include the Uniform Code of Ethics and Plain Language Guide. In addition, the unit reviews employee applications for attendance at events and secondary employment to ensure compliance with the conflict-of-interest law.
• Conscientious Employee Protection Act (CEPA) – The unit is responsible for making employees aware of their rights under the CEPA, and accepting and processing CEPA complaints.

Office of Policy and Planning

The Office of Policy and Planning is responsible for the evaluation of correctional and criminal justice information in the context of relevant law, policy and practice, and the development of data analyses, studies and reports to support NJDOC operations. The office acts as a liaison with federal, other state and local law and justice system agencies for strategic planning purposes, including the development of goals, objectives, impact analyses and research.

The Office of Policy and Planning is responsible for several NJDOC units.

The Administrative Policies and Procedures Manual (APPM) Unit is the operational unit responsible for the generation, distribution and maintenance of NJDOC policy statements, which are documents that impact on the operation of all organizational units under the authority of the Commissioner of the NJDOC.
 
The American Correctional Association (ACA) Accreditation Unit endeavors to achieve accreditation status for all NJDOC facilities by the ACA, a private, non-profit resource that administers the only national accreditation program for all components of adult corrections.

The Criminal Justice Interagency (CJIU) Unit interacts, promotes and oversees the utilization of technology in order to improve the exchange of information among criminal justice agencies at the federal, state, county and municipal levels. 

The Video Teleconference (VTC) Unit develops, implements and maintains state-of-the-art video teleconferencing capability throughout the state criminal justice system. The result is increased efficiency, lower operating costs and increased public safety and community protection by reducing the external movement of state inmates into the community. Furthermore, access is provided to the NJDOC inmate population for criminal justice systems at all levels – county, local, state and federal.

The Grants Management Unit is charged with the oversight of all NJDOC grant activities. These responsibilities include the seeking of funding opportunities, technical support to staff developing grant applications, processing of grant applications, fiscal management of grant funds, monitoring of grant activities and grant reporting requirements.

The Research and Evaluation Unit provides statistical support and analysis, including empirical research and program evaluation services to the various program divisions and units within the NJDOC. The unit conducts and facilitates action-oriented research that informs and influences policy and practice. 

The Resource Review and Study Unit identifies benchmarks in order to quantify and analyze NJDOC performance, comply with federal reporting requirements, document best practices and foster successful innovations in a number of areas. Those areas include inmate management and service functions and impact analysis.

Office of Public Information

The Office of Public Information is responsible for providing information regarding NJDOC events, programs, functions, services and activities to the media, other governmental agencies and the public. The office promotes public awareness of the functions of the Department of Corrections through a web site, the Inside Corrections newsletter, annual reports and promotional materials.

Special Investigations Division

The Special Investigations Division (SID) is responsible for investigations into violations of the laws of the State of New Jersey and violations of the administrative code for the NJDOC by inmates, employees and those individuals who visit NJDOC facilities.

The SID is represented at each facility, where investigators not only conduct all criminal and administrative investigations, but also act as NJDOC liaisons to all law enforcement agencies. SID investigators regularly conduct cooperative investigations in conjunction with federal, state, county and municipal law enforcement agencies, and are called on to provide expert witness testimony in state and federal courts on a regular basis.

SID investigators receive ongoing technical training in an effort to maintain the department’s ability to keep pace with the ever-changing criminal atmosphere. The division has expanded its role within the NJDOC with the establishment of several specialized units. These units have catapulted the SID into the forefront as a state-of-the-art correctional investigative unit.

• Drug Interdiction Unit – The unit was formed in conjunction with the department’s “Zero Tolerance” drug policy. The unit employs the Ionscan computerized drug detection machine to collect and analyze microscopic particles of up to 15 narcotics and up to one-billionth of a gram. Along with the obvious deterrent to drug activity, the NJDOC has made numerous seizures of controlled dangerous substances and witnessed a significant decrease in drug-related inmate disciplinary charges.
• Intelligence Unit – The unit is nationally recognized as a leader in correctional gang intelligence. The gang member identification process and gang database, developed by the Intelligence Unit, are the cornerstones of the Security Threat Group Management Unit (STGMU) at Northern State Prison in Newark. The STGMU has become recognized as one of the most effective gang management programs in the country, and some states have expressed interest in using the program as a model for addressing their gang management problems. In fact, investigators assigned to the Intelligence Unit have provided gang identification training to thousands of law enforcement professionals in New Jersey and many other states.
• Fugitive Unit – Investigators assigned to this unit have worked with dozens of agencies throughout New Jersey and beyond in an effort to remove escaped offenders from the streets. The department’s Fugitive Unit continues to work jointly with the New Jersey State Police Fugitive Unit and the U.S. Marshal's Office. This unit has been extremely successful, and numerous cooperative apprehensions have been made.
• Computer Forensic and Polygraph Unit – The unit is responsible for the forensic analysis of computers and computer storage devices related to computer crimes or violations of the department’s microcomputer policy. SID investigators continue to provide expert law enforcement skills to the NJDOC as polygraphists and document examiners.