Office of County Inspection and Services (OCIS)
Kay Kishbaugh
Director
717-728-4057
kkishbaugh@pa.gov
County Inspectors
Lt. Sandra Leonowicz Doug Croley
717-728-4059 717-728-4058
sleonowicz@pa.gov dcroley@pa.gov
The Office of County Inspections and Services is responsible for maintaining a statewide program of independent field inspections of all county prisons. A minimum of every 12 months and a maximum of every 24 months, each county prison receives an inspection. Inspections determine prison compliance with controlling Commonwealth statutes and regulations. To support the inspection process, the Office of County Inspections and Services provides technical services to any requesting county prison. County Prison Inspectors assist in the interpretation of state law, regulations, plus “best practices.” Training assistance is available through the Office of County Inspections and Services Resource Library. This library allows any county prison to borrow videos, books, and publications for staff development use. Citizen and/or inmate complaints about designated county prisons are channeled through this office for review and resolution.
While the Office of County Inspections and Services has inspection oversight responsibility of county correctional facilities, the office does not have direct operational/investigative responsibilities. Concerns regarding a county facility should appropriately be directed to the local governing authority for each county.
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Link to Title 37
(Note: The link above will redirect you from the DOC's Web site.)
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Inspection Process
The inspection process includes the following elements:
- The County Prison Inspector coordinates inspection dates with the Warden/designee of the county facility.
- Upon arrival, and entrance interview is held explaining the inspection process to administrative staff.
- Upon arrival, the County Prison Inspector reviews policy and procedure to ensure compliance with Title 37.
- Additional documentation is reviewed to determine the integrity and effectiveness of internal controls.
- A complete physical tour is conducted of the county facility (interior and exterior) to ascertain the status of the physical plant and conditions of confinement.
- Interviews are conducted of staff and inmates to identify individual concerns and/or complaints.
- A facility profile is developed.
- An exit interview is held to discuss observations made during the inspection.
- A comprehensive written report is prepared by the County Inspector and submitted to the governing prison authority. The report details the findings and provides an assessment of facility readiness relative to meeting operating requirements, in accordance with Title 37.
All requests for copies of the Inspection Report should be addressed to the respective county, not to the Office of County Inspections.
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County Resource Guides provide listings of various community services available for inmates in each county. Click HERE to be taken to the system's Knowledge Directory, where you can view the various County Resources Documents. If you don't see the one you want, scroll down to the lower right corner of the page and see if there is an option to see additional documents/pages. Once you find your document, it will open in Adobe Acrobat. Once finished, use your back button to return to the DOC's Web site.
