News: Press Releases

Sussex I State Prison to Receive ACA Accreditation

RICHMOND – Virginia Department of Corrections (DOC) Director Ron Angelone announced today that Sussex I State Prison has received accreditation with the American Correctional Association (ACA). Sussex I will become the second state adult correctional institution in the Commonwealth to be recognized by ACA for compliance with national standards. Fluvanna Correctional Center for Women was the first.
"Virginia’s national leadership role in corrections continues to grow. We are proving to be a model correctional agency and innovative leader in a manner consistent with sound correctional principles," said Director Angelone. "Warden John Taylor and staff at Sussex I are to be commended for their efforts."

The ACA audit team found Sussex I to be 100% compliant with its mandatory standards and 94.4% in the non-mandatory categories. The preliminary report and recommendations will be forwarded to the ACA Commission on Accreditation for final review and approval. Besides the ACA accreditation, the facility recently achieved unconditional certification from the Virginia Board of Corrections.

Sussex I State Prison, opened in May 1998, is a state of the art maximum security facility and home of Virginia’s death row.

ACA is the oldest association developed specifically for practitioners in the correctional profession. ACA has championed the cause of corrections and correctional effectiveness for more than 125 years.