By Aaron Aupperlee
The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
GREENSBURG, Pa. — Allegheny County Jail officers caught the jail’s psychiatrist trying to bring in cigarettes, lighters, matches and scissors before she lost her job this month. Warden Orlando Harper revoked Charolette Hoffman’s security clearances on March 4, the same day officers caught her with matches in her jacket, her third violation of the jail’s anti-contraband policy, according to documents the Tribune-Review obtained through an open records request.
Hoffman, the jail’s only full-time psychiatrist before losing her job, could not be reached for comment.
Harper, in a statement, said, “All personnel are trained on what is allowed and not allowed into the facility; this includes vendor personnel as well.”
Hoffman was contracted by Corizon Health, the Tennessee-based health care company hired to run medical care at the jail. Harper said violations of the jail’s contraband policy results in “progressive discipline based on the severity of infraction.”
Officers said in written reports that they caught Hoffman with two packs of cigarettes, two lighters and a pair of scissors in her purse on Feb. 25. The report said Hoffman told a officer that “she had them in her bag and did not realize they were in there.” She was required to leave the items at the employee entrance.
On Feb. 27, an officer reported finding a pack of Sandia Menthol 100s in her purse, Hoffman’s second offense, according to a jail incident report. Officers said they found a pack of matches in her coat March 4.
Harper sent an email to jail staff later that day informing them that Hoffman’s “clearance has been pulled.”
Corizon, which took over medical care at the jail in September 2013 under a $12 million-a-year contract, has dedicated a recruiter “who is aggressively searching to fill this vital permanent position,” a company spokesman said. Corizon hired a temporary psychiatrist who works about 80 hours per month and is exploring the use of telepsychiatry, the company said.