SOUTH BOISE, Idaho — Idaho News 6 previously reported on allegations of document mishandling and negligence at the Idaho State Correctional Center, raised by a correctional officer. Now, new documents obtained by our investigation show that these problems date back to at least 2020.
- These documents include internal memos and inmate complaints, highlighting that mail was often left undelivered or left in accessible areas where it could be stolen.
- Additionally, previous reports allege concern forms—critical for inmates to address issues like medical complaints and requests—were reportedly being discarded in "Shred-It" bins rather than being delivered.
- In an exclusive interview, former inmate Dominique Hicks described witnessing similar concerns, with medical requests and concern slips allegedly being ignored or mishandled during his time at the facility.
IDOC responded to these allegations, stating:
"IDOC takes these allegations very seriously. We are committed to conducting a comprehensive investigation to uncover any wrongdoing and to appropriately hold staff accountable where appropriate. It is equally important to us to thoroughly investigate these types of allegations to ensure staff who are wrongly accused are exonerated. We are in the early stages of the investigation and have to be very mindful of not comprising the investigation by sharing information prematurely. As such, we have nothing that we can disclose at this time."
(Below is the transcript from the broadcast story)
"I was in Idaho Correctional Center… They are not willing to look into anything; they don't care," says Dominique Hicks, a former inmate at the Idaho State Correctional Center.
Dominique Hicks spent two years as an inmate at Idaho Correctional Center, serving time for armed aggravated assault.
While incarcerated, he says he experienced negligent behavior from correctional officers and medical caregivers, as they routinely mishandled inmate concern slips.
"A concern slip is something you put in the mail that the nurses are supposed to respond to within 24 hours," says Hicks.
"So it's mostly medical complaints?"
"Medical, counselor, stuff like that," Hicks replies.
"Do you feel those slips were efficient?"
"Hahahaha, that's a joke. No, no," says Hicks.
Hicks, who had injuries from an accident before his incarceration, says his medical requests often went unanswered for months.
"You've got corrupt COs that don’t care, who are just there for a paycheck, or you've got the medical people that are there for a paycheck… I was supposed to get an ultrasound, they gave me an X-ray… You're gonna give an X-ray for an ultrasound?"
We reached out to IDOC for a response to Hicks' claims but haven't heard back.
We previously reported on claims from IDOC Correctional Officer Scott Amos, who raised concerns with his supervisors—saying mail, concern forms, medical requests, and other documents were being intentionally misplaced.
An Idaho News 6 investigation found, through a public records request, email communication showing that those supervising officers were more curious about Amos sharing his concerns with inmates than the incidents he was reporting.
One supervisor wrote to Amos: "Even if that was the case, informing offenders of this could have led to a serious incident. Could you please explain why you did this?"
New documents obtained by Idaho News 6 now show these trends date back to at least 2020.
In an internal memo to correctional officers, one supervisor wrote:"Lately, there have been issues within units regarding mail not being delivered to the offender population in a timely manner."
Another concern form from an inmate in August 2021 states: "Mail is being left on tables by COs and not being delivered. Anyone can take someone else's mail or copy an address of a loved one… Mail delivery needs to stop being lazy. That can cause serious issues."
In addition to mail, Amos reported that a number of concern forms—critical for inmates to raise issues about visits, medical complaints, and other requests—were being discovered in "Shred-It" bins.
Another incident, detailed by Amos in an incident report, describes the mishandling of an inmate's personal property, stating residents witnessed personal property being thrown in the classroom trashcan. "Some even demanded watching staff during cell searches, stating 'If we don't watch you, you'll throw our stuff in the trash,'" Amos wrote.
This is something Hicks says happened regularly.
"Some COs… they'll use their badge for power… They rip up your stuff, they tear up your house, like if you're there for 5 years, that's your house… They would touch personal property, they would touch pictures from your loved ones… They would do stuff that you would go back into your cell and be like, why?" says Hicks.
We have continued to reach out to the Idaho Department of Correction regarding these claims. They tell us, "We are investigating these claims and do not have any information to share."
