[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]

Re: Disposal of Prison Inmate Files



We rely on the Department of Corrections to identify the files--it's a pretty loose situation, but there really is not a more practical way to identify them.  The prison system doesn't track these guys any differently than they do the run of the mill inmate.

Thomas (Tom) D. Norris
Manager of Records Advisory Services
New York State Archives
(518) 473-8499

>>> Matthew.Hockey@DIA.GOVT.NZ 07/16/00 07:33PM >>>
Thanks Thomas - I had found this case study in our library, and it's
extremely useful - the New Zealand situation is remarkably similar to New
York State, although on a smaller scale.  One point interests me, though -
I notice you kept all files on "notorious criminals".  How did you decide
which inmates were "notorious criminals"?  Is this a specific legal term,
or is it a purely subjective term, that allows you to keep files on famous
cases that don't fit any of the other criteria?

Matthew Hockey
National Archives of New Zealand
<mailto:Matthew.Hockey@dia.govt.nz>




Thomas Norris <tnorris@MAIL.NYSED.GOV>@LISTSERV.MUOHIO.EDU> on 15/07/2000
12:53:05 AM

Please respond to Archives & Archivists <ARCHIVES@LISTSERV.MUOHIO.EDU>

Sent by:  Archives & Archivists <ARCHIVES@LISTSERV.MUOHIO.EDU>


To:   ARCHIVES@LISTSERV.MUOHIO.EDU 
cc:

Subject:  Re: Disposal of Prison Inmate Files


 My apologies for resending.  I forgot to include my signature to message
below.

Several years ago, the NY State Archives underwent a major project to
appraise, schedule, and acquire prison inmate files.  Briefly, we acquired
all inmate files prior to 1957 when computer tracking was implemented.  We
also acquired tapes for that computer system to provide aggregate data and
then sampled the paper files following 1957 randomly at 2%.  We also
oversampled in certain categories all files for inmates from racial/ethnic
groups other than white, black, and hispanic to ensure these smaller groups
would not be missed.  Since women inmates make up only about 2% of the
prison population, we also acquired all files for them.  We also
oversampled the files for inmates in the following categories:

- Inmates with life sentences
- Inmates sentenced to death
- Inmates with commuted sentences
- Inmates that died in custody
- Inmates with variable sentences--"one day to life"
- Inmates that were notorious criminals.

The sampling was based on extensive research and consultation with experts
in the field.  The implementation of the sampling plan took near 5 years to
accomplish due to major problems in coordinating between different
departments in the Department of Correctional Services.  I am not sure that
the effort or time was worth it.

I wrote up the project as a case study for the Society of American
Archivists intended for use in graduate archival administration studies.
It was published and is available for purchase from SAA.  I assume you can
find out how from the SAA web-site.

Thomas D. Norris
Manager of Records Advisory Services
New York State Archives
518-473-8499
tnorris@mail.nysed.gov 

>>> Matthew.Hockey@DIA.GOVT.NZ 07/13/00 07:49PM >>>
I am an appraisal archivist at the National Archives of New Zealand, and I
am currently developing a disposal schedule for prison inmate files.  I
would be very interested to know how other archives are dealing with these
files - in particular, whether sampling is used to select files for
retention, and if so what kind of sampling plan is followed.

If there are any current schedules covering prison inmate files, I would be
interested to see these, as well as any appraisal reports which would
explain the reasons for the sampling method used.

Please e-mail me at Matthew.Hockey@dia.govt.nz 
<mailto:Matthew.Hockey@dia.govt.nz>.  Alternatively, you can write to me at
National Archives, PO Box 12 050, Wellington, New Zealand.

Thanks!

Matthew Hockey
National Archives of New Zealand
PO Box 12 050
Wellington
Ph 64 4 499 5595
Fax 64 4 495 6210
Web: http://www.archives.govt.nz 

A posting from the Archives & Archivists LISTSERV List!

To subscribe or unsubscribe, send e-mail to listserv@listserv.muohio.edu 
      In body of message:  SUB ARCHIVES firstname lastname
                    *or*:  UNSUB ARCHIVES
To post a message, send e-mail to archives@listserv.muohio.edu 

Or to do *anything* (and enjoy doing it!), use the web interface at
     http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/archives.html 

Problems?  Send e-mail to Robert F Schmidt <rschmidt@lib.muohio.edu>

A posting from the Archives & Archivists LISTSERV List!

To subscribe or unsubscribe, send e-mail to listserv@listserv.muohio.edu 
      In body of message:  SUB ARCHIVES firstname lastname
                    *or*:  UNSUB ARCHIVES
To post a message, send e-mail to archives@listserv.muohio.edu 

Or to do *anything* (and enjoy doing it!), use the web interface at
     http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/archives.html 

Problems?  Send e-mail to Robert F Schmidt <rschmidt@lib.muohio.edu>

A posting from the Archives & Archivists LISTSERV List!

To subscribe or unsubscribe, send e-mail to listserv@listserv.muohio.edu 
      In body of message:  SUB ARCHIVES firstname lastname
                    *or*:  UNSUB ARCHIVES
To post a message, send e-mail to archives@listserv.muohio.edu 

Or to do *anything* (and enjoy doing it!), use the web interface at
     http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/archives.html 

Problems?  Send e-mail to Robert F Schmidt <rschmidt@lib.muohio.edu>

A posting from the Archives & Archivists LISTSERV List!

To subscribe or unsubscribe, send e-mail to listserv@listserv.muohio.edu
      In body of message:  SUB ARCHIVES firstname lastname
                    *or*:  UNSUB ARCHIVES
To post a message, send e-mail to archives@listserv.muohio.edu

Or to do *anything* (and enjoy doing it!), use the web interface at
     http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/archives.html

Problems?  Send e-mail to Robert F Schmidt <rschmidt@lib.muohio.edu>