1st Judicial District Department Of Correctional Services
1st Judicial District Department Of Correctional Services, The First Judicial District Department of Correctional Services is a public agency, created and established under Chapter 905 of the Code of Iowa and governed by a Board of Directors. We provide community-based correctional services to 11 counties in northeast Iowa.
| »Allamakee | »Black Hawk | »Buchanan | »Chickasaw |
| »Clayton | »Delaware | »Dubuque | »Fayette |
| »Grundy | »Howard | »Winneshiek |
Our motto “First in Safety and Success” embodies our objective to provide community safety by reducing recidivism rates of the individuals under our supervision. This is accomplished by providing appropriate treatment and programming opportunities while holding individuals accountable to their supervision expectations. I am proud of the dedication of our nearly 185 employees and grateful to our community partners that make this happen.
Contact Us
Mailing Address
314 East 6th Street
P.O. Box 4030
Waterloo, IA 50704
Hours of Operation
Monday – Friday 08:00 a.m. – 04:30 p.m.
Facilities 24/7
Our Services
The District provides the following services to our offenders:
Probation
Probation supervision is supervised release in the community for adjudicated offenders utilizing existing local resources for problem specific rehabilitative purposes. Supervision emphasizes employment stability, victim restitution, community service sentencing, use of community resources, one-on-one counseling, and surveillance of the offender in the community.
Parole Supervision
Parole supervision is provided for those offenders granted a parole by the Iowa Board of Parole either directly out of a state institution or paroled from Work Release. Monitoring and treatment is provided in the community, with utilization of locally available resources.
Pre-Trial Services
The Department established Pre-Trial Services in 1974. Pre-Trial Services is an alternate to the bail bond system. The Department offers interviews to arrestees that elicit social and criminal history in order to determine the arrestee’s ties to the community. A recommendation for release is made to the court after an assessment is made of the arrestee’s likelihood to appear for further court appearances and refrain from further law violations. In 1985 the Department established a Pre-Trial Intensive Program. Each of these programs supervise arrestees until the disposition of their cases.
Residential/Work Release Facilities
Residential facilities offer the court an alternative between street supervision and incarceration by providing a structured residential environment for both male and female offenders. Facilities may also be designated as alternate jails thereby allowing certain jail inmates to serve their sentences at the facilities or reside prior to adjudication. Contracts are also in effect to house offenders from the federal correctional system. Work Release refers to post institutional “live-in” supervision of offenders who are on inmate work release status, providing a structured reintegration to the community prior to parole or discharge. The duration of the program averages approximately four months with a one-year legal limit.
Interstate Compact
The Interstate Compact is an agreement between member states, which allows for supervision of parole and probation cases to be transferred to other states. Cases coming to Iowa are transferred via the Iowa Interstate Compact Administrators Office. This District uses the compact to transfer district cases to other states as well as to receive supervision of cases originating in other states. Standards for supervision of compact cases are the same as Iowa cases.
Operating While Intoxicated (OWI)
The First Judicial District provides services to offenders sentenced under the provisions of the Code of Iowa, Section 321J and 905.513. The district is required to contract for substance abuse counseling with a licensed substance abuse agency. O.W.I. programming is offered at all residential facilities.
Sex Offender Program
The Sex Offender Treatment Program consists of three components: assessment, group therapy, and individual counseling. A Department Psychologist conducts the assessments and groups are facilitated by Department staff that are trained and certified. Polygraphs are used to verify offender reported information. In addition to district-wide field services programs, sex offender programs are provided in the Waterloo Work Release, West Union Residential, and Dubuque Residential Facilities.
Drug Courts
Drug Court is a court that has been specifically designed and staffed to supervise nonviolent felony drug addicted offenders who have been referred to this comprehensive and judicially monitored program of drug treatment services.
Iowa Domestic Abuse Program (IDAP)
Given the lethal nature of domestic violence as well as its tendency to affect all within its range, the community has a vested interest in the methods used to stop and prevent future violence. Interventions for domestic violence must be based on a complete understanding of the most effective strategies for this specific problem and should be implemented by those well educated and skilled in those methodologies. Group education programming is recognized as only one of the contributions to effective intervention with those who abuse. Other effective intervention strategies include safety planning for the victims, prompt response by law enforcement, rigorous prosecution, appropriate adjudication, close monitoring by probation, and sentences which reflect the seriousness of this crime against the community. Since education is one approach being used for a problem that has such serious consequences to others, the providers of IDAPs should meet the highest standards. These standards are necessary to recognize that domestic violence is a serious, potentially lethal problem and that programming for these violent individuals requires more than just a general knowledge of the treatment of behavioral or interpersonal problems. Education programs must never be used as an alternative to legal sanctions, but always as an adjunct to those sanctions. Research suggests a combination of legal sanctions and education programs is a more effective means of reducing abusive behavior than either one alone.