About Daniel B. Vasquez

California Expert Witness and Investigative Services

With over 36 years of career Corrections experience in the State of California, starting my career from a Corrections Officer to attaining higher administrative posts as Program Administrator, Associate Warden, Deputy, and Chief Deputy Warden, San Quentin State Prison, Warden, Soledad State Prison Warden, to Director of Corrections of the Santa Clara County Jail system, and Warden of the California City Correctional Center facility; the largest California State privately operated prison of Corrections Corporation of America, of Nashville, Tennessee; and including corrections consulting experience nation-wide since 1986 to the present. I bring a unique level of first-hand experience to contemporary Corrections issues/problems. I have experience in the administration/operations of maximum custody high-security facilities Level IV and medium-security Level III, II, and Level I minimum Custody prisons. At San Quentin State Prison I operated the nation’s largest Security Housing Unit (SHU) with over 1,750 Maximum Custody prisoners. I managed the nation’s largest Death Row located at San Quentin State Prison, and have carried out executions.

Throughout my career, I have participated in and/or supervised and directed investigative units of peace officers, in conducting investigations of hundreds of criminal gang/and related prison and street gang crimes, including hundreds of interviews of gang members, gang associates; and informants. This experience has provided me with many years of specialized experience and the corresponding knowledge of the cultural aspects of Hispanic, White Supremacy, Asian and Black prison and criminal street Gangs’ activities; Gang membership, Gang tenants, and their criminal organization strategies and recruiting methods.

I have extensive experience in the policy and responsibilities of inmate classifications in which I have participated in tens of thousands of inmate classification committees as either a committee member, Warden’s designed chairperson or as chair of the committees, as the Warden. The Classification committee is responsible for but not limited to, assigning inmates custody, transfers to appropriate institutions commiserate with the inmates custody, time to serve and crimes, assignment to security Housing units of those inmate requiring maximum custody, review of housing placement, and inmate gang validations. I also gained extensive experience in the review of tens of thousands of institution incident reports of inmate assaults against other inmates, serious assaults against staff, including the murder of staff by inmates; corresponding to incident reports. I was the senior disciplinary hearing officer responsible for the adjudication of inmate disciplinary charges and assigning punishment for different offenses.

Inclusive, in all my administrative positions in my assigned facilities; I was integrally responsible for the safety of all the institution staff and inmates. This responsibility was achieved through the knowledge of all the facilities operational restraint equipment, less than lethal weapons, firearms, and the required departmental and state law training required to teach staff the proper use and maintained state law required yearly qualification certifications. procedures and departmental wide policy, some of which that was related to Safety equipment which included, but not limited to; stationary emergency alarm systems located strategically throughout the institution, along with individually staff issued personal and institution maintained and location linked alarm systems, staff response to incident alarms, including staff issued and institution maintained two-way communication radio net-work linked equipment, batons, protective riot shields, helmets, protective vests, chemical agents, chemical agent protective masks,

I invite you to review my detailed Curriculum Vitae , my reference list of cases I have worked to assist in determining if I may be of assistance to you and your case.

Experience

  • Prison/Street Gang Predicates information and Validation by Law Enforcement agencies
  • Review analysis and evaluation of Convicted felons prison Central Files Records
  • Correctional Facilities inmate Classification issues/Rules/Regulations/Policy
  • Correctional Facilities and staff Use of Force and Incidents Review expertise Correctional Facilities and Death in custody Incidents Correctional facilities policies and procedures vs. practices of staff
  • Development of policies and procedures for Correctional facilities operations
  • Independent Risk Assessment Reports-Indeterminate sentenced inmates parole hearings
  • Preparation of Federal Rule 26 Reports
  • Extensive court testimony and/or deposition testimony experience in Federal/State, Habeas Corpus issues, criminal proceedings, and (186.22 PVC), prison, and street gang validation issues. Death Penalty Phase testimony of defendants future dangerous for jury deliberations of either a Death Sentence or vs. a sentence of Life Without the Possibility of Parole.
  • Testimony/Depositions Federal/State Courts, Civil/Habeas Corpus/criminal proceedings/Gang Enhancement (186.22 PC)/Death Penalty Phase Testimony Death vs. Life Without Parole
  • Litigation issues review, analysis, and consultation
  • Expertise facility security analysis, inmate classification, appropriateness’ of staff behavior Correctional facility Management & Organizational structure and enhancement
  • Special Housing needs/programs for High-Security Risk prisoners
  • Development and training of execution teams
  • Pending Execution Clemency considerations