ADMINISTRATIVE LAW
01-2-6203 Washington v. New Jersey Dep’t of Corrections, App. Div. (per curiam) (16 pp.) Washington, an inmate at New Jersey State Prison, appealed from a final determination of the Department of Corrections that he “used abusive or obscene language to a staff member,” a non-asterisk prohibited act. The panel found that there obviously were inconsistencies in the written statements presented to the hearing officer, there was no corroborating evidence that would resolve the competing versions of what occurred, and in the absence of live testimony and the opportunity to assess the credibility of the witnesses, there was no obvious basis upon which the hearing officer could have resolved this credibility dispute, other than with the aid of a polygraph, and it was unclear on what basis the hearing officer had resolved the credibility dispute. The panel also found, inter alia, that the administrator’s decision denying Washington’s request for a polygraph did not explain the decision in terms of the standards in Ramirez; Washington disputed that he knowingly waived his confrontation rights; and it was inappropriate for the administrator to base his decision upholding the hearing officer’s decision based on Washington’s disciplinary record without giving him notice that his prior record would be considered. The panel reversed and remanded so Washington could be given the opportunity to submit a polygraph, or for a new hearing.
