The Tennessee Department of Correction employed a visually impaired correctional officer and allowed the officer to carry a gun, thereby violating its own hiring standards, according to a report released by the Tennessee Comptroller’s office.
The individual mentioned in the report attended the Tennessee Correction Academy in Tullahoma, Tenn., but was dismissed by TDOC’s contracted onsite doctor for uncorrectable vision of 20/400 in one eye, which led to the individual’s termination.
TDOC rehired the individual, who had completed training at the academy with the exception of firearms training, but he or she received firearms qualification from another TDOC facility.
The individual was assigned to housing unit security and was only reassigned from armed posts as a result of the Comptroller’s inquiries in April 2016 when the facility was informed by the department’s central office that the individual would no longer be allowed to work those posts.
Employment policy in the department, according to the report, provides for a pre-employment medical screening to determine if candidates “can perform required duties without creating hazards for themselves or others.”
Policy also states, “The results of the examinations are final and shall be grounds for separation from the employment process. Second opinions from representatives outside of the department or its contract designees shall not be permitted.”
TDOC had also been provided a letter of opinion from an outside doctor dated seven months prior to the officer’s initial employment.
“In this case, the department granted a reasonable accommodation as required under the Americans with Disabilities Act,” said Neysa Taylor, a spokeswoman for TDOC.
“While this wasn’t documented in the file that the audit team reviewed, that has since been corrected and appropriate documentation is now included in the employee’s file. This is the only employee for which an exemption has been made.”
The investigation also found the academy was not in compliance with its training standards after various inconsistencies were found in the program including test papers which reflected failing grades but scores that were reported as passed.
Retests were not graded consistently and one student even received a score which exceeded the maximum allowable score on a retest.
“The audit team also found inconsistencies in grading practices that have since been remedied,” Taylor said. “The issue was addressed with the staff and a new learning management system will be implemented this year. This new system will greatly reduce paper testing and thus reduce grading errors.”
Other findings from the report include:
* Personnel and training records for trainees who attended the academy were housed in multiple locations and did not contain complete information.
* Evidence of instructor certification was not available for some instructors at the academy.
* The academy’s current policy for firearms qualification allows unlimited retesting.
* TDOC does not maintain adequate controls over the issuance of firearm certification cards.