This policy shall apply to all persons working, volunteering, or touring the secured area of any custody facility. All personal property shall be accounted for at all times, and shall not be stored in any area accessible to inmates.
PROHIBITED OR RESTRICTED ITEMS
In order to ensure the safety and security of all persons in custody facilities, the following personal property is prohibited inside secured areas:
- All personally-owned weapons or objects that can be considered weapons, including but not limited to, firearms, knives, and any unauthorized cutting instrument consisting of a sharp blade with a point;
- Personally-owned weapons legally possessed by non-Department personnel, such as chemical agents, stun guns, TASERs, etc.;
- DVD players and game devices;
- Metal hygiene tools such as scissors, nail clippers, nail files, tweezers, etc.;
- Umbrellas;
- Alcoholic beverages;
- Personal medication that is unlabeled or in altered packaging;
- Tobacco products, matches and cigarette lighters.
The following items are not permitted inside secured areas, unless specifically pre-approved by the concerned unit commander or policy:
- Personal electrical appliances (e.g., coffee pots, toasters, heaters, fans, etc.);
- Tape players, CD players and radios;
- Personally-owned weapons by sworn Department personnel and custody assistants, such as chemical agents, TASERs, etc.;
- Cellular telephones, smart watches, wireless hotspots, or any device capable of recording audio and/or video (refer to CDM section 3-01/090.05, "Wireless Communication Devices");
- Laptop computers, personal digital assistants (PDA's), and computer tablets for which there is no court order. Attorneys from the Los Angeles County Public Defender and Alternate Public Defender’s Office may use County issued laptop computers or tablets for face-to-face visits without a court order or pre-approval, with the completion of the Laptop Request and Acknowledgment Form (SH-J-460);
- Reading material not related to the job or the furtherance of formal education and self-development;
- Glass or ceramic food/beverage containers;
- Metal utensils or cutlery.
NOTE: The items above may be approved by the watch commander prior to entry into security areas on a shift-by-shift basis. Based on an individual's specific duties, requests for continuous authorization must be submitted in writing to the unit commander, and once approved, daily approval by the watch commander will not be necessary.
AUTHORIZED ITEMS FOR PERSONNEL
The following items are approved inside secured areas; however, they must not be accessible to the inmate population and shall remain under close control by the employee/volunteer who is responsible for them, or secured in the employee/volunteer's immediate work area at all times:
- Plastic utensils;
- Reading materials such as textbooks, newspapers, and appropriate magazines and novels, which must be related to the job or the furtherance of formal education and self-development;
- Personal portable storage devices used to store data such as flash drives, thumb drives, or external hard drives for Department business only (refer to Manual of Policy and Procedures [MPP] section 3-07/220.00, "Prohibitions").
Additionally, the following rules shall be adhered to:
- Personal property containers shall conform to specifications delineated in CDM section 3-01/090.15, "Personal Bags";
- Food items brought into security shall be placed in a clear food-type container (clear plastic, rubber, or silicone material) or wrapped in clear plastic wrap/plastic bag;
- Outside food deliveries made to the facility shall be in the vendor's original packaging and will be subject to inspection prior to entering the facility;
- Personal medication brought into secured areas of a custody facility shall be in its original labeled container and limited to only the amount of prescription and non-prescription medication that would be taken during a normal working day. Any lost or missing medication shall be immediately reported to a supervisor.
Personal security dictates that personnel should refrain from bringing items which contain personal identification information (e.g., wallets, purses, checkbooks, etc.) into secured areas to prevent loss or compromise of information. Should personnel elect to bring in any such item, they shall be maintained on their person or stored in a locked compartment.
This policy does not limit persons from bringing into secured areas, items or containers that contain necessary tools, training material, or equipment to facilitate the performance of their duties, (e.g., tool chests, medical bags, digital test equipment, laptop computers, and/or computer tablets whose use has been authorized in a court order, etc.), nor does it limit personnel who are attending training from entering the facility wearing civilian attire en route to the Officer's Dining Room (ODR).
Unit commanders have final authority to determine what personal property is allowed within their facilities.