{"id":63818,"date":"2025-04-18T10:42:14","date_gmt":"2025-04-18T14:42:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/?p=63818"},"modified":"2025-04-18T11:27:02","modified_gmt":"2025-04-18T15:27:02","slug":"genesee-county-sheriffs-office-taps-experienced-professionals-to-lead-corrections-staff-at-new-county-jail","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2025\/04\/18\/genesee-county-sheriffs-office-taps-experienced-professionals-to-lead-corrections-staff-at-new-county-jail\/","title":{"rendered":"GENESEE COUNTY\/Sheriff\u2019s office taps experienced professionals to lead corrections\u2019 staff at new county jail"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Jason Queal and Diana Prinzi at the Genesee County Jail on West Main Street Road (Photo by Mike Pettinella)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By Mike Pettinella
For Video News Service<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Both Diana Prinzi and Jason Queal, longtime Genesee County residents, have checked a lot of boxes on their way to being promoted to superintendent and deputy superintendent, respectively, at the new Genesee County Jail at 3839 West Main St. Rd. in the Town of Batavia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prinzi has worked in law enforcement for 26 years, including 22 years in various capacities with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the past three years as coordinator of Genesee Justice, the alternatives to incarceration program under the auspices of the Genesee County Sheriff\u2019s Office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Queal has more than 12 years with the sheriff\u2019s office under his belt \u2013 starting as a correction officer and then moving up to senior correction officer in 2017.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

County Sheriff Joseph Graff appointed Queal to the deputy superintendent position last December, shortly before selecting Prinzi as superintendent of the state-of-the-art, 184-bed (maximum) facility just east of Genesee County Building 2.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The superintendent job became open at the end of 2024 when William Zipfel retired after 42 years with the agency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In an interview with Video News Service on Thursday afternoon, both officials said it was an honor \u2013 and a challenge \u2013 to work at the new jail, with a goal \u201cto grow the facility and learn how to adapt to it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNow that we have the space to develop different programs, our goal is to be beneficial for those who are in here, beneficial for the staff as far as safety and security goes, to be able to offer more \u2013 whether it is as simple as group counseling sessions or anger management or GED courses,\u201d Prinzi said. \u201cAnd we really want to implement more training for the officers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Calling it \u201ca clean slate,\u201d Prinzi said her staff is working to put policies and procedures in place \u2013 tasks that she handled while with ICE at the federal detention center in Batavia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a process to figure out exactly what you need staffing to do in certain areas and how to adjust the old way of doing things at 14 West Main (site of the old county jail) to make it work here,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cJason is the expert in those areas because I didn\u2019t work in that jail. We take \u2018this is how we used to do it\u2019 and we tweak it a little bit to make it fit this operation. Now that we have the building, we have to learn how to live in it; to use every feature that it has to make it the best possible. It\u2019s going to take some time. It\u2019s not going to happen overnight.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Queal said he\u2019s excited about the potential of the new jail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMuch is different, and a lot of things needed to change \u2013 just with the times and the plant layout,\u201d he offered. \u201cI really wanted to be a part of that and work with everyone involved here. It\u2019s a lot better here. The other jail was very old and outdated.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As she takes on new responsibilities, Prinzi drew a parallel to the start of her career with ICE.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen I started with ICE in 1997, the detention facility that was under construction, so we were there from the beginning. I was part of the original group of officers that opened that building,\u201d she recalled. \u201cI was part of the policy and procedure and accreditation team in that facility for several years. I wrote policy and procedures and accreditation to the American Correctional Association, so I had a lot of background when it came to that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She took on a supervisory role with ICE, assisting with detention, intake (processing) and transportation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI have a lot of experience in what I\u2019m doing now, just at a different level \u2013 federal versus county,\u201d she noted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Queal, who was recognized for distinguished service in 2023, the move to deputy superintendent is another step up the ladder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt was always a question of whether I wanted to be in a superintendent role,\u201d he said. In 2023, they made this position, and I applied for it then \u2026 in anticipation of the new jail (being built).\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As far as the prison population is concerned, Queal said the facility houses men and women who have committed crimes \u201cfrom low-level misdemeanor to very high felony; from simple theft to a murder charge.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Currently, there are around 100 inmates in three of the jail\u2019s four pods (or housing areas) \u2013 two for males and one for females. The fourth pod is not in use at this time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prinzi said the jail is a direct supervision-style facility \u2013 meaning that inmates are assigned to cells in their pods but they \u201ccan come out and mingle throughout the day.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey have common areas and recreation areas so it\u2019s very different,\u201d she said. \u201cThe old jail had linear cells, with bars.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While awareness on the part of the correction officers is always important, it is heightened due to the difference in housing arrangements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere\u2019s one officer in the unit with all of those inmates \u2013 that\u2019s what direct supervision is,\u201d Prinzi said. \u201cThere are other officers that come in and out for various reasons throughout the day, but you have to be very aware of what\u2019s going on.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She said that staffing has increased to about 50 correction officers \u2013 along with a full-time cook and two part-time cooks. The sheriff\u2019s office contracts for medical services and with Genesee County Mental Health and UConnectCare for mental health and substance use counseling, respectively.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe have volunteers that provide religious services and now we\u2019re offering opportunities for inmates to get their GED,\u201d Prinzi added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

————-<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sheriff Joseph Graff\u2019s statement on the appointment of Chad Minuto, Diana Prinzi and Jason Queal to their new positions:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Genesee County Sheriff\u2019s Office is proud to welcome such experienced and dedicated professionals into these key leadership roles. Their commitment to safety and integrity along with their extensive backgrounds working in law enforcement and corrections will strengthen our team and enhance our ability to serve our jail facility and community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI have full confidence in their abilities to lead with professionalism and compassion, and I look forward to the positive impact they will bring to our Office.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Link to related story: GENESEE COUNTY\/Chad Minuto promoted to chief deputy of criminal investigations \u2013 Video News Service<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Jason Queal and Diana Prinzi at the Genesee County Jail on West Main Street Road (Photo by Mike Pettinella) By Mike PettinellaFor Video News Service Both Diana Prinzi and Jason Queal, longtime Genesee County residents, have checked a lot of boxes on their way to being promoted to superintendent and \u2026<\/p>\n

Continue reading<\/i><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":63828,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[23],"tags":[5070],"class_list":["post-63818","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-genesee-county","tag-jason-queal-and-diana-prinzi"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8eTP4-gBk","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":29430,"url":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2021\/12\/01\/genesee-county-prinzi-appointed-as-genesee-justice-program-coordinator\/","url_meta":{"origin":63818,"position":0},"title":"GENESEE COUNTY\/Prinzi appointed as Genesee Justice Program Coordinator","author":"aka","date":"December 1, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"(Provided photo) Diana M. 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