(COLORADO SPRINGS) — Employees at the Colorado Springs location of a statewide security company are alleging the company is jeopardizing their safety due to unsafe vehicles used for transporting inmates.
Denver Metro Protective Services (DMPS), is a Colorado-based security company that vows to protect, through “innovative and advanced technologies.” FOX21 News spoke with six current and former employees of the Colorado Springs location, who say that DMPS has routinely ignored pleas to rectify the precarious conditions of its inmate transport vehicles. The situation has escalated to the point where employees fear for their lives every time they get in a work vehicle.
“We’re always wondering if our vehicle is going to break down or catch on fire,” said one current employee. The employees who still work there wished to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation.
Employees say the vehicles used for inmate transportation frequently experience mechanical issues, many times leaving them stranded on the side of the road with inmates in the back of the car.
FOX21 obtained more than 20 maintenance reports filed within a two-week period in October. Employees say this volume of complaints is a regular occurrence, and that typically there are at least 30 maintenance reports per month, highlighting a systemic problem within the company.
The reports detail a myriad of car issues spanning from common service complaints to life-threatening situations. On the less severe end, these include problems like persistent check engine lights, low tire pressure, and tags that had expired as far back as 2020.
“They called it [one of the cars] ‘the Christmas tree’ because every single light was on in there… and they told me they’re supposed to be like that the lights are malfunctioning,” said another current employee.
DMPS vehicle expired car tag, 2020. Courtesy: FOX21 News Reporter, Rhea Jha
DMPS vehicle expired car tag, 2022. Courtesy: FOX21 News Reporter, Rhea Jha
Service lights in a DMPS vehicle. Courtesy: Current DMPS employee
Conversely, the reports also highlight more perilous issues, including non-functioning brakes, vehicles abruptly stalling in the middle of the road, tires blown out on the highway, fumes, and a strong fuel smell inside the vehicles. These issues led to one employee needing to visit the emergency room due to a carbon monoxide leak.
Medical report with carbon monoxide diagnosis from a current DMPS employee
The inmates transported by DMPS employees include individuals convicted of severe crimes, such as murder and rape. Employees express deep concern that the inmates are well aware of the subpar condition of the vehicles.
One current employee noted, “Not only does DOC [Department of Corrections] staff know… of the condition of our vehicles, but the inmates also have that knowledge. If an inmate wanted to plan an escape, they know our vehicles are trash.”
In a statement to FOX21, DMPS responded to these allegations, asserting their commitment to safety. The company said they maintain a dedicated fleet services team responsible for inspecting, repairing, and testing each vehicle. DMPS also claimed that employees are expected to perform pre-trip and post-trip vehicle inspections and report any concerning issues.
The full statement DMPS can be found at the bottom of this article.
However, employees argue that DMPS’s approach to fixing the issues is flawed. They claim that if the company decided to fix the issue they often use parts from old vehicles sitting in their garage instead of acquiring the correct replacements, further compromising safety.
“So instead of them actually paying for the services that can fix it the correct way… they’re telling him to go in and repair these vehicles with pretty much whatever other parts that you could possibly utilize from another vehicle,” said a former employee Stephen Frazier.
Frazier asserts that the company has forced them to drive unsafe vehicles and even disciplined those who refused to do so, a practice that has created an environment where their safety concerns are not taken seriously.
“I refused to drive the van for my safety, the inmate’s safety and the public safety and canceled my transport. I was written up and given points for canceling that transport,” asserted one current employee. They say the van in question has expired tags, jerking steering, and delayed brakes.
Frazier says he has already taken these complaints to higher authorities, such as the state attorney general’s office and the Colorado Department of Labor, and is awaiting the ongoing investigation.
One current employee points out the persistence of these complaints and the overwhelming number of maintenance reports suggest a troubling pattern: “When you do somebody wrong so many times, and it’s not just one person, two people, three people, it’s everybody. Somebody has to speak up for those people.”
DMPS maintains that they strive to operate a safe fleet while emphasizing the paramount importance of their employees’ safety.
Denver Metro Protective Services’ full statement to FOX21:
At Denver Metro Protective Services, the safety of our employees is a paramount concern every single day, as we provide services statewide. As a company, we maintain one of the lowest workers compensation mod ratings for a business in our industry, utilize a company-wide safety program and currently operate more than 80 vehicles throughout Colorado. Within DMPS, we maintain three full-time members of Fleet Services, who work each day to inspect, repair and test each vehicle which is placed on the road, and ensure that no vehicle is allowed to be on the road if any unsafe condition exists. Each employee is expected to perform a pre-trip and post-trip vehicle inspection and notate any items which may be concerning, which are then turned into work orders each morning for the Fleet Services team. All vehicles have tires replaced yearly prior to the winter season, receive weekly fluid inspections and are monitored by a fleet tracking GPS device which sends immediate exception notifications to the Fleet Services Manager for any critical incident. Although mechanical issues on vehicles do occur, especially when being driven thousands of miles monthly, we strive continually to find ways to minimize these issues and operate a safe fleet overall for our employees.
