McKee nominates Department of Corrections head amid union criticism

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — Governor Dan McKeen nominated Wayne Salisbury, Jr., to serve as Director of the Rhode Island Department of Corrections on Friday, a move criticized by the Rhode Island Brotherhood of Correctional Officers.

Salisbury is the current interim director of the department and previously worked as the department’s assistant director, deputy warden, and acting warden, as well as working as warden of the Donald W. Wyatt Detention Facility in Central Falls.

McKee said he was also recognized with the 2007 Neil J. Houston Jr. Award for Dedicated Service and Citizen Contribution Toward the Criminal Justice Profession and Public Interest.

“Wayne’s experience in the Department of Corrections is extensive, and he has played an important role in day-to-day operations and long-term, strategic planning for the department,” the governor added.

RIBCO, however, criticized the nomination in a statement that said issues such as fights among inmates and assaults against correctional officers have increased under Salisbury’s tenure as interim director.

The full statement from RIBCO President Richard Ferruccio can be read below:

We are disheartened by the short-sighted nomination of Wayne Salisbury to lead the RI Department of Corrections. Rhode Island has a strong and proud history of excellence within our correctional system. However, under the leadership of the current acting director, we have ceded our stature as one of the nation’s best run departments and jeopardized the safety and well being of our officers and inmates. Since the acting director took over 18 months ago, the number of assaults on officers and fights amongst inmates has nearly doubled, resulting in an increase in use of force by officers. Drug trafficking and drug use in the prisons has also increased in part because of short-sighted policies set by the acting director that restrict our officers’ ability to discipline offenders. Additionally, inmates have uncontrolled access to technology that they use to communicate and coordinate prospective gang violence. The proud men and women of the Correctional Department have committed their careers to maintaining public safety in our state prison system. The Brotherhood of Correctional Officers strongly opposes the nomination of Wayne Salisbury and we look forward to sharing information on the negative impacts of his leadership with members of the Senate making this determination.