NEWARK — Essex County’s 2,000-plus prisoner lockup, a razor-wire encircled jail on Newark’s industrial Doremus Avenue, was locked down at 1 p.m. today as corrections officers began a time-consuming, systematic sweep for contraband. The security measure, expected to take as long as two weeks, cancels visitation privileges and comes five weeks after a long-time Essex corrections officer was charged...
Acting Essex County Prosecutor Robert D. Laurino during a press conference by the Essex County Prosecutor regarding a smuggling ring in Essex County Jail held on Thursday July 29, 2010. NEWARK — Essex County’s 2,000-plus prisoner lockup, a razor-wire encircled jail on Newark’s industrial Doremus Avenue, was locked down at 1 p.m. today as corrections officers began a time-consuming, systematic sweep for contraband.
The security measure, expected to take as long as two weeks, cancels visitation privileges and comes five weeks after a long-time Essex corrections officer was charged as a ringleader of a smuggling outfit that allowed inmates to place orders for everything from cell phones to heroin to prescription drugs.
"There is no argument that jails are dangerous places, and inmates will go to great lengths to obtain drugs, weapons and cell phones," Joseph DiVincenzo Jr., the Essex County executive, said in announcing the sweep. "The recent arrest of one of our own corrections officers ... is a reminder of how vigilant we must remain."
DiVincenzo was referring to Joseph Mastriani of Nutley, a nine-year veteran who on July 30 pleaded not guilty to charges of leading a 13-member ring that authorities said pulled in $1,000 a week by running what was akin to a concierge service for inmates.
The security sweeps are routinely done in the spring and autumn. This one, though, potentially had the element of surprise.
"We do it as necessary, as we get information," the jail’s director, Alfaro Ortiz, said a couple hours into the lockdown. "We expect to find a fair amount of contraband, in whatever form it takes.
The $461 million state-of-the-art jail, opened in 2004, ushered in the end of decades-long court supervision sparked by unsanitary conditions and crowding at antiquated lockups. Last year, the jail was taking in federal and immigration detainees. In the process, it generated $22.2 million in revenue for Essex County. At the same time, the jail celebrated a state Department of Corrections compliance award, with a perfect 100 percent rating, for the third year in a row.
Joe Amato, who as president of PBA Local 382 represents some 500 corrections officers, said searches are part of an officer’s daily routine. "But it’s never the same as a thorough search," he said. "The only good way to do a search is to lock the place down."
Still, Amato, mindful of the county’s boasting of its revenue-producing jail as well as efforts to curb overtime, questioned some of the motives behind the lockdown. "I firmly believe it’s more of an expense problem than a safety problem," he said.
DiVincenzo, however, said his goal is to keep the jail attractive to the federal agencies employing the jail’s services. "God forbid, something ever happened," DiVincenzo said. "I want to make sure these people are happy with our facility. I have to look at the global picture."