(A DOC spokesman sent the following memo in an email to The Seattle
Times.)
Phasing out the Word "Offender"
Secretary Announcement
Good afternoon –
The Washington Department of Corrections is phasing out the use of the word “offender.” The
Department switched from ‘inmate’ to ‘offender’ in the early 2000’s as a more general term to
describe the men and women in our care and custody whether they were assigned to a prison,
work release, or supervised in the field.
As a technical term describing the people for whom we are legally responsible, the word
“offender” worked. It worked so well that it is embedded in nearly every policy, document, or
system associated with our Department. However, the word “offender” has also contributed
significantly to some unintended consequences. The word ‘offender’ has become a label that we
apply to people and in our case, the people for which we are charged to provide services and
everything associated with them. Unfortunately, what starts out as a technical term, used to
generically describe the people in our care, becomes and is enforced as a stereotype. As a
stereotype, “offender” is a label that impacts more than the person to whom it is applied. This
label has now been so broadly used that it is not uncommon to see it used to describe others
such as “offender families” and “offender employers or services.”
This is not a malicious act on the part of our Department or the public, but the term “offender”
does have a negative connotation and significantly impacts a broad group of people and
communities. This is something we can address. When I started work in corrections the term
“resident” had been adopted to replace “convict” and “inmate.” Inmate was reinstituted in the
early 80’s to be followed by “offender.” Times change, and so does our language.
Effective November 1, 2016, we will be phasing out the word “offender.” This will take some
time to fully accomplish, but you will begin to see the word “offender” replaced with “individuals”
or other applicable terms such as “student” or “patient” where/when appropriate. Policies and
other documents will be modified as they come up for review. We have many systems and
proprietary tools that use the word “offender” and those will take much longer to address, but we
need to start somewhere. It takes time to change habits but I encourage all of you to make an
effort. Start by referring to individuals by their names (if you don’t already), practice replacing or
removing the word ‘offender’ from your communication and presentations to others. Most
importantly, take this as an opportunity to help others define themselves not for their criminal
behavior, but for their future role in their communities.
Thank you for your efforts,
Dick
Richard "Dick" Morgan, Secretary
Washington State Department of Corrections
