The Oneida County Correctional Facility, formerly known as the Oneida County
Jail, has existed in Oneida County for over 200 years. Over the decades the
care, custody and control of inmates in the correctional facility, and the
facility itself, have undergone drastic change. The present Correction
Facility was renovated and enlarged during the years 1996 - 1998, at a
cost of 30 million dollars, and the capacity of the present jail
is 634 prisoners.
The County Correctional Facility provides for custody of prisoners from
throughout the judicial system, who have been remanded to the custody of the
Sheriff of Oneida County. Some prisoners are pre-trial; committed to jail
while awaiting trial. They require transportation to and from the courts.
Others are convicted criminals who are sentenced to time in the county jail,
or convicted of a felony and awaiting transfer to a state or federal
correctional facility. The federal government "reserves" 35 beds
for federal prisoners who are being transported throughout the
country or who are appearing in federal courts in the area.
Regardless of a prisoner’s status, the Oneida County Correction Officers must
provide security, supervision, safety and care. State, federal, and local
governments set guidelines and regulations for management and treatment of
inmates. Laws and regulations govern the admission and discharge of prisoners,
proper classification and records, medical and food services, security and
supervision, visitation, transportation, programs, facility maintenance, staff
training, alternatives to incarceration and the prisoner’s transfer or release
into the community.
The Correctional Facility of today bears little semblance to the Oneida
County Jail of 50, or even 20 years ago. Modular pods and electronic
doors have replaced bars and brass keys. Networked computer
systems have replaced twenty-pound ledgers. Tactical teams and
social workers have replaced fists and fire hoses. The only constant
throughout the years has been the Correction
Officer.
Additional information on Correction Division units, sections and functions
can be accessed from the menu to the left.