Seminar Title
Legal & Liability Operations for Jails/Corrections
Dates of Events
11/02/2026 through 11/03/2026
Last Updated: 09/10/2026
Instructor(s): Lisa Farmer
Location: Association of County Commissioners of Oklahoma
- 429 N.E. 50th Street, Oklahoma City, OK 73105
Hotel: Courtyard Marriott Oklahoma City Northwest - 1515 Northwest Expressway, Oklahoma City, OK 73114
Course Registration Fee: $325
Instructor Bio
Lisa Farmer
Lisa Farmer, Director (retired)
Fayette County Detention Center Adult Facility. Lexington, Kentucky
Lisa Farmer retired in October 2022 and the Director of Fayette County Detention Center in Lexington, KY. Fayette County Detention Center is a Direct Supervision 1260 facility bed, with a staff of 358. She worked in many areas of the jail including the Classification Department. While promoting up the ranks, she was a Sergeant in Professional Standards for 7 years which included Internal Affairs investigations and starting the Gang Intel Unit. As she continued to promote up thru the ranks, she was a commander over the Custody Bureau. In March 2014, Lisa completed the National Jail Academy Leadership Command Academy in Sam Houston, TX and was the first to receive the CJM certification at Fayette County Detention Center in November 2014. Lisa was an adjunct instructor for training and recruit academy classes covering topics of gangs and Internal Affairs. Lisa completed her BS degree in Corrections and Juvenile Services from Eastern Kentucky University in 2001 and then followed up with her MS degree in Criminal Justice from Eastern Kentucky University in 2004, while working at the detention center.
Lisa Farmer, Director (retired)
Fayette County Detention Center Adult Facility. Lexington, Kentucky
Lisa Farmer retired in October 2022 and the Director of Fayette County Detention Center in Lexington, KY. Fayette County Detention Center is a Direct Supervision 1260 facility bed, with a staff of 358. She worked in many areas of the jail including the Classification Department. While promoting up the ranks, she was a Sergeant in Professional Standards for 7 years which included Internal Affairs investigations and starting the Gang Intel Unit. As she continued to promote up thru the ranks, she was a commander over the Custody Bureau. In March 2014, Lisa completed the National Jail Academy Leadership Command Academy in Sam Houston, TX and was the first to receive the CJM certification at Fayette County Detention Center in November 2014. Lisa was an adjunct instructor for training and recruit academy classes covering topics of gangs and Internal Affairs. Lisa completed her BS degree in Corrections and Juvenile Services from Eastern Kentucky University in 2001 and then followed up with her MS degree in Criminal Justice from Eastern Kentucky University in 2004, while working at the detention center.
Course Objectives
Course Overview:
This two-day course provides correctional professionals with a practical understanding of the legal standards, responsibilities, and potential liabilities associated with correctional operations. Participants will learn key legal terminology and the basic process of a potential lawsuit, while examining how mistakes, omissions, shortcuts, or failures to act can create legal issues for both individual staff members and the facility. Day One focuses on intake and classification, including medical, dental, mental-health, and suicide-risk screening; MAT/OUD/MOUD and continuity of care; ADA considerations; PREA; protective custody; and appropriate housing decisions. Emphasis is placed on the importance of recognizing, documenting, and acting upon information obtained during the intake and classification process.
Day Two focuses on the legal and operational responsibilities associated with conditions of confinement and staff conduct. Topics include sanitation, nutritional and medical standards, religious meals and accommodations, restrictive housing, and religious rights under RLUIPA. Participants will also examine the duty to intervene, including staff responsibilities to stop inappropriate or excessive use of force, and how organizational culture, ethics, supervision, and leadership can contribute to institutional failures. The course also addresses grievances, due process, the Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA), and the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act (CRIPA), emphasizing why proper grievance procedures and documentation are critical to identifying and addressing potential problems.
Throughout the course, relevant videos and court cases are used to demonstrate how legal standards have been established and how correctional facilities and individual staff members have faced liability when those standards were not followed. By the end of the course, participants will be able to identify common sources of correctional legal liability, recognize how failures during intake, classification, supervision, housing, and daily operations can create legal consequences, and explain their responsibilities related to inmate safety, care, use of force, intervention, grievances, and constitutional and statutory rights. The overall goal is to help participants recognize potential legal issues before they become lawsuits and make informed, ethical, and legally sound decisions in their daily duties.
Day Two focuses on the legal and operational responsibilities associated with conditions of confinement and staff conduct. Topics include sanitation, nutritional and medical standards, religious meals and accommodations, restrictive housing, and religious rights under RLUIPA. Participants will also examine the duty to intervene, including staff responsibilities to stop inappropriate or excessive use of force, and how organizational culture, ethics, supervision, and leadership can contribute to institutional failures. The course also addresses grievances, due process, the Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA), and the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act (CRIPA), emphasizing why proper grievance procedures and documentation are critical to identifying and addressing potential problems.
Throughout the course, relevant videos and court cases are used to demonstrate how legal standards have been established and how correctional facilities and individual staff members have faced liability when those standards were not followed. By the end of the course, participants will be able to identify common sources of correctional legal liability, recognize how failures during intake, classification, supervision, housing, and daily operations can create legal consequences, and explain their responsibilities related to inmate safety, care, use of force, intervention, grievances, and constitutional and statutory rights. The overall goal is to help participants recognize potential legal issues before they become lawsuits and make informed, ethical, and legally sound decisions in their daily duties.