Assistant Deputy Superintendent
Hampden County Sheriff's Office
Assistant Superintendent Joaquin Suttles was born and raised in Springfield, MA where he graduated from Springfield Central High and later earned a Bachelor’s of Science in Criminal Justice from Westfield State University.
While attending college, he worked as a supervisor at the Children Study Home in Springfield, a facility for disadvantaged children transitioning to foster care.
In 2000, he was hired by the Hampden County Sheriff’s Office as a Correctional Officer. He worked a variety of facilities and in 2005 he achieved the highest departmental award, The Edward Boland Award, which recognizes one exceptional correctional officer each year for going above and beyond in the execution of their duties.
In the same year, Joaquin was chosen to serve as a Correctional Caseworker in the Orientation Unit, serving as the first point of contact for new offenders to the facility. In 2006, he became a counselor in the Restrictive Housing Unit with high-risk offenders.
In 2008, he was involved in a career-defining project focused on evaluating the procedures and offenders in Restrictive Housing. After months of evaluation and research, changes were put into daily practice, minimizing the population in the unit, providing positive programming outside of the cell and using MP3 programming to focus on mental health and stress management.
As a result of the study and subsequent changes, the model has been emulated nationally as ‘ahead of its time’ in relation to criminal justice reforms.
His efforts would go on to warrant various awards including The Quiet Hero Award in 2009 and the prestigious Correctional Employee Award of the State of Massachusetts in 2014.
Joaquin currently serves as an administrator overseeing the daily operations of Davis Tower while continuing to serve as a liaison for facilities around the country and abroad on as a specialist on Restrictive Housing Reform.
Disclosure information not submitted.
No Matter What You Wear to Work: Bridging the Gap Between Uniform & Non-Uniform Staff
Wednesday, May 22, 2024
8:00 AM – 9:30 AM East Coast USA Time