Updated: 03/11/25
Completing rounds is one of the most important duties a correctional officer performs, serving as the foundation of effective inmate management, maintaining compliance, and ensuring the safety of both inmates and staff. However, remembering to complete these rounds on time and in a randomized manner can be challenging, especially with the many other responsibilities officers must juggle.
When relying on unreliable documentation and tracking systems, like pen and paper or guard tour systems, maintaining security rounds compliance becomes difficult as the data can be inaccurate, illegible, and even easily forged. Without a better solution, how can officers be confident when a round is due? By using kitchen timers or relying on gut feeling?
To stay compliant and prevent inmates from predicting your rounds, you must adopt a more efficient system. This is where Command Cloud’s Mobile Compliance Monitor (MCM) comes in.
As one of the most highly anticipated features of Command Cloud, MCM provides immense value to officers conducting their rounds. In this blog, we’ll explore what Mobile Compliance Monitor is, what it does, and how it can be customized to meet the specific needs of your facility.
What is the MCM?
MCM is Command Cloud’s advanced mobile inmate tracking system, redesigned to assist officers in maximizing their security round compliance. At first glance, the key features to take note of include:
- Real-time alerts: MCM provides real-time information on the time remaining between rounds, sending alerts when it's time to prepare for a check and when a check becomes overdue. The remaining time is based on a configurable value called “Max Check Time,” which MCM calculates by comparing the time since the last check was completed at a given location or for an inmate.
- Color-coded display: The colors displayed in MCM signify when checks are due.
- Green indicates there is sufficient time remaining
- Yellow signals that time is running short
- Red means that the check is late
- Customizable notifications: These notifications are delivered through audible alerts or discreet vibration (haptic) feedback, ensuring inmates are unaware of upcoming rounds. Similar to your phone's notifications, you can choose between a haptic or audible alert within your device’s settings.
- Prioritization of upcoming checks: As officers conduct rounds, checks with the most time remaining are moved to the bottom of the list, while those with the least time remaining appear at the top. This ensures that urgent checks are always the most visible. This is a core principle of the officer experience platform (OXP) – helping officers focus on what matters most.
- Filtered views: MCM can be filtered to show only the locations relevant to an officer’s duties, removing distractions from areas outside their responsibility. The combination of the alert system and color-coded timer enhances officer awareness and accountability, ensuring timely and effective security rounds.
How Can I Randomize Checks with MCM?
Every good correctional officer knows the importance of irregular, staggered rounds – varying start times and travel paths to avoid predictability. Inmates are observant and can anticipate when rounds will occur if patterns are consistent. And once they catch onto your rounds, it opens up a window of opportunity for misconduct.
Many "rounds" or "guard tour" systems fail because they schedule checks at fixed intervals (e.g., every 15, 30, or 60 minutes), creating predictability. Some systems might trigger an alarm if a check is late or early, but this predictability can be exploited by inmates.
That's why the concept of Max Check Time is key. MCM ensures you don't exceed this time limit, confirming continuous security round compliance, but it doesn’t dictate when checks are made—only that they stay within the required time frame.
Mobile Command XR also has a feature called Staggering Score which analyzes the randomness of an officer’s rounds and identifies areas of improvement with an actual score. This helps officers become less predictable and minimize the risk of inmates finding a window of opportunity to partake in things they have no business being in.
What Happens if My Check is Late?
While late checks can happen from time to time, it’s important to document the reasons why they were late. However, many facilities fail to consistently log these justifications. With Mobile Compliance Monitor, officers can capture late check justifications right at the point of responsibility.
As soon as a tag is scanned after the time it was due, a late check justification prompt appears on the SPARTAN screen, allowing officers to document their reasoning through typing or talk-to-text. Late check justifications cannot be edited once they’re submitted so users are encouraged to be thorough and accurate when documenting their justifications. While not editable after the fact, supervisors can review these justifications and provide comments on officers' entries.
System administrators can also force late check justifications for all users if they feel necessary. This feature is especially useful in states with jail standards as jail inspectors will often request explanations for late checks. If late checks are consistently undocumented, it could increase the risk of non-compliance.
What if We Lose Wi-Fi?
MCM works seamlessly both offline and online, ensuring uninterrupted operation regardless of your connectivity status. Whether you're outside Wi-Fi coverage, experiencing power or internet loss, or facing all of the above, MCM continues to function, supporting your team in maintaining compliance and defensibility during crucial inmate management duties.
All data captured with your SPARTAN device is stored locally, so in the event of an outage, we encourage you to continue scanning as usual. Once Wi-Fi is restored, MCM will automatically sync with Command Cloud and update across all screens.
Do Special Status Checks Appear on MCM?
Yes, MCM automatically adjusts round frequencies based on an inmate’s classification status.
For example, if an inmate is placed on Suicide Watch and needs to be checked every 15 minutes, a special icon appears in MCM. Tapping this icon provides the inmate’s name, location, and classification, so staff are always aware of the critical details associated with that specific inmate.
Max Check Time is also linked to an inmate’s classification status or the classification of their housing location. When an inmate is placed on a Special Status requiring more frequent checks, MCM automatically updates the timers to reflect the new schedule. Similarly, if a Special Status is removed, the timer resets to the standard cadence.
Can MCM Be Customized?
Yes, MCM can be customized to fit the unique needs of your facility through Mission Command. System administrators can customize the following:
- Max Check Time: Every facility is unique, and Mission Command offers the flexibility to adjust cell check intervals to meet your specific needs. Whether your facility requires checks every 30, 45, 60, or even 90 minutes, system administrators can easily modify these intervals to ensure compliance with your operational requirements.
- Compliance Check Schedules: For cells that are only in use during certain days or times, Mission Command allows you to configure timers to activate or deactivate based on your facility's schedule. This ensures checks are performed only when necessary, optimizing efficiency and maintaining compliance.
- Special Status Timers: Special statuses may require varying check times depending on your facility's standards. Mission Command enables customization of these timers to align with your specific guidelines, ensuring that every status is managed appropriately.
All of these fields can be adjusted to be in accordance with your facility’s standards to help you maximize compliance and ensure the safety of inmates and staff.
Security round compliance is not just a regulatory requirement – it’s a fundamental aspect of maintaining safety, accountability, and operational efficiency in correctional facilities. Without the right tools, officers face challenges in conducting rounds on time, documenting checks accurately, noticing Special Statuses, justifying missed checks, and preventing predictable patterns that could compromise overall security.
With Command Cloud’s MCM, officers are empowered to streamline the entire process from gaining real-time alerts and color-coded tracking to customizable schedules and automatic updates related to Special Statuses. MCM ensures that security rounds are completed effectively, documented properly, and aligned with facility standards. Whether handling routine checks, responding to special inmate classifications, or justifying late checks, MCM provides the data-driven support needed to maintain compliance with confidence and accuracy.
