Jennifer Akturk

Plain-language summary (this site, from the cited record only)

The Department of Corrections suspended Correctional Police Sergeant Jennifer Akturk for 30 days in 2024 over her supervision of an inmate escort at Garden State Correctional Facility. An investigation found that Akturk failed to properly supervise the escort, observed officers applying force inconsistent with NJDOC policy, and took no action to stop it. She did not transfer the escort to a suited response team or remove the officers involved. The sustained charges were conduct unbecoming an employee and violation of a rule or policy.

Synopsis as reported by the agency

The Sergeant was disciplined for her involvement in supervision of the escort of an inmate at Garden State Correctional Facility and an allegation of inappropriate force being used during the initial stages of the escort of the inmate. An investigation and review determined that that the escorting officers did not exhaust all other reasonable means before resorting to force, specifically, when they immediately applied wrist locks and pain compliance on the inmate. There were no de-escalation techniques, clear instructions, or warnings used to gain voluntary compliance before the use of physical force and the inmate was not given a reasonable opportunity to comply during the initial stages of the escort. The officers continued to use pain compliance throughout the escort without reassessing or determining if the compliance technique was achieving an appropriate level of control. Sgt. Akturk failed to properly supervise the escort of the inmate resulting in NJDOC procedural and UOF policy violations. Sgt. Akturk observed the officers applying force that was inconsistent with NJDOC policy and took no action to interrupt the flow of events or stop the improper use of force. She failed to intervene physically or verbally when the level of force used was not proportional to the level of resistance. When Sgt. Akturk ordered the officers to take the inmate to the ground for attempting to kick at the escorting team, she did not transfer the escort to a suited response team or use a video camera for further documentation. She also did not remove the officers involved in the initial stages of the incident from the escort. She allowed the officers to continue the escort using pain compliance techniques without seeking an appropriate alternative such as a suited response team. Her failure to separate herself and the officers from the inmate resulted in a further physical altercation when placing the inmate on another unit, which possibly could have been avoided by the use of a suited response team.