Virginia Correctional Center Improves Through Restructure and Contraband Deterrence

By CN Staff

GREENSVILLE COUNTY, Va.—Through facility reorganizations, a zero-tolerance policy to drugs and contraband, enhanced community partnerships, and new leadership, the Virginia Department of Corrections’ (VADOC) Greensville Correctional Center reports continued improvement in its aim to provide effective incarceration that helps ensure long-term public safety in Virginia.  

“I’m pleased with the progress Greensville Correctional Center has made since Summer 2023, when the facility faced operational challenges,” said VADOC Director Chad Dotson. “Public safety agencies must meet these challenges head-on, and I believe that the Department, our Eastern Region Operations team, leadership at Greensville Correctional Center, and our corrections team members across the state have done just that. Our agency measures itself by six key values: Safety, Integrity, Accountability, Respect, Learning, and Service. Greensville Correctional Center, our other facilities, and our probation and parole offices throughout Virginia continue to embrace these values.”   

Greensville CC’s inmate population is now split into three clusters with separate leadership structures to help further ensure safety and security for both corrections team members and the inmate population. Each cluster has its own warden and assistant warden. This is necessary due to Greensville’s population of 2,371 (according to the June population report). Greensville’s population is nearly 1,200 more than the second-most populated VADOC facility. Each cluster also features its own visitation room, in order to further enhance security and operational efficiency.  

The VADOC and Greensville Correctional Center have a zero-tolerance policy for the introduction of drugs and contraband. Greensville has conducted four intensive interdiction operations with Virginia State Police between November 2023 and June 2024. The facility has also worked diligently to deter the introduction of drugs through front entry, drones, and other methods, while ensuring all corrections team members are also held accountable. The VADOC continues to be proactive in security practices in the prevention of contraband coming into our facilities. Anyone with information about attempts to smuggle drugs or contraband into a VADOC facility can call anonymously to 540-830-9280. 

Partnerships with the community and local law enforcement are crucial for all VADOC facilities. Greensville Correctional Center continues to build strong bonds with Virginia State Police, the Greensville County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office and local law enforcement. Additionally, Greensville has strengthened its partnerships with a local hospital that regularly treats inmates. This enhanced partnership has included several collaborations to strengthen facility security, daily visits from facility leadership when an inmate is being treated at the hospital, and enhanced communication.  

Greensville Correctional Center has also built a special partnership with Totaro Elementary School in Brunswick County. On Tuesday, August 6, Greensville donated a large amount of school supplies for Totaro students. In March, Greensville corrections team members donated 20 bicycles to the school’s Standards of Learning initiative, read to students, and donated to the school’s General Initiative Store, allowing students to purchase items for developmental growth. 

“This is the new and improved Greensville Correctional Center,” said VADOC Eastern Region Operations Chief Leslie Fleming. “The leadership team is regularly seen inside the facility and Greensville’s positive presence is felt more than ever in the community it serves. I credit and thank both our facility leadership and all corrections team members for this tremendously positive growth.”   

These partnerships and changes have largely been organized by corrections team members and leadership at the facility. Lead Warden Kevin McCoy oversees the entire facility and took charge at Greensville in November 2023.  

“Our staff has bought in and works hard every day to make Greensville Correctional Center safe and secure,” Lead Warden McCoy said. “I thank them for their dedication to our mission. It makes a difference for their coworkers, the inmate population, and all of Virginia.”