The superintendent of Riverside Regional Jail remains on the job after the facility's governing board took no public action against her following two closed sessions of more than four hours to discuss "employee matters" and an investigative report of her management practices.
During a special meeting in November, and again at a regularly scheduled meeting this month, the Riverside Regional Jail Authority spent nearly the entirety of both gatherings in executive session — which is closed to the public and the press — to discuss the management practices of Col. Carmen DeSadier and her command staff, as well as the findings of a report by an outside law firm.
In September, the board hired the law firm of Harman Claytor Corrigan & Wellman to look into "numerous concerns from long-serving, senior staff-level members regarding changes in management practices" since DeSadier, who was hired in April, took the position the following month. The authority was billed $29,924 for the effort, which included nearly three dozen hours of employee interviews and a review of hundreds of pages of documents, the authority's lawyer said.
The board has declined to say whether the law firm's investigation uncovered any actionable violations of law or jail policies. However, the board members have taken no public action following their November and December meetings after reconvening in public session.
"The Authority Board has reviewed the findings from the recent outside review of employee concerns regarding senior management at the jail and will continue to take into consideration any additional relevant information as Board members determine the most prudent course of action going forward," the Board said in a prepared statement in response to a request from the Richmond Times-Dispatch about the deliberations. "The outside review included over 30 hours of employee interviews, over 500 pages of documents and a thorough assessment of applicable law and Authority policies."
"The process is ongoing and will involve additional discussions with Col. DeSadier and command level staff members in coming weeks," the Board said in the statement. "In the meantime, the Board and staff continue to be focused on ensuring that the jail is operated in compliance with all applicable state and federal standards and on developing a fiscally responsible budget for the next fiscal year."
The Board has declined to make public the law firm's investigative report.
"The written work and advice of the law firm leading this process is protected by attorney-client privilege in addition to being covered by the personnel records exemption from mandatory FOIA disclosure," said Jeffrey Gore, an attorney who represents the Riverside Regional Jail Authority.
Board members have declined to talk publicly whether they believe the unspecified allegations that led to the investigation are valid and need attention, or whether they are the result of DeSadier's efforts to bring change within a facility that is on state probation for inmate deaths.
DeSadier has 35 years of experience in corrections that included stints with large jails in New Orleans and Chicago, and has been certified as an American Correctional Association auditor. Her annual salary is $125,000.
The Times-Dispatch learned of the concerns raised by some staff members after receiving emails from employees. So far, none of those employees has been willing to be named or discuss their allegations publicly.
Some employees said in emails that DeSadier and her command staff's practices have led to a large number of employees resigning or taking temporary leave since she began work on May 13.
However, jail turnover statistics requested by The Times-Dispatch suggest a small increase in departures since her tenure began compared to a similar time period in 2018.
A total of 108 people left between May 13, DeSadier's first day on the job, and Dec. 6, compared with 100 departures between May 1 and December 31, 2018. Last year's numbers include the entire months of May and December.
For all of 2019, including the 4 1/2-month period before DeSadier began work, 149 employees left through Dec. 6. By comparison, a total of 141 employees left in all of 2018.
Employee turnover was lower in 2016 and 2017, when 99 and 114 people left, respectively, according to jail statistics.
Turnover rates in the corrections industry are notoriously high.
DeSadier hired three people in August and October to fill top commander positions at the jail, and two of them formerly worked with DeSadier at jails in New Orleans or Chicago. But Toni Calvin, who was hired as the jail's assistant superintendent, has since left and returned to her former job in Chicago.
DeSadier was hired during a critical period for the jail, which had endured harsh public criticism from Chesterfield County judges for the alleged mistreatment of inmates, and had undergone increased state scrutiny for the death of two prisoners.
In July, Riverside was placed on "probationary certification" for three years and forced to receive two unannounced audits every six months after a Virginia Department of Corrections jail review committee found shortcomings at the facility that may have directly or indirectly contributed to the death of two inmates who killed themselves in 2017. The committee also concluded there was evidence that the jail was not complying with some of the board's regulations.
Riverside, like other regional jails, is run by a superintendent hired by a governing board of local officials and sheriffs. The jail, in Prince George, is one of the largest in central Virginia and serves Petersburg, Hopewell, Colonial Heights and the counties of Chesterfield, Charles City, Surry and Prince George.