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// VPT Standard 001

Tier Check Integrity

A defensible standard for the welfare and observation rounds at the heart of custody safety, the first thing reviewed after an in-custody death.

PURPOSE

A tier-check program meets Standard 001 when the facility can show that required observation actually happened, what was observed, and where it could not, in a form a reviewer can trust.

// The criteria
1

Eyes on the person, not just a logged button

Each required check is performed with direct observation of the individual, not satisfied by pressing a button or walking past. A check that was logged but not truly performed does not count.

2

Timestamped, with what was observed

Every check carries a timestamp and a record of what was seen, so the round can be reconstructed later without relying on memory.

3

Coverage of the highest-risk windows

The program covers the highest-risk zones and the highest-risk times, overnight and shift change, when checks most often slip.

4

Blind spots identified and mitigated

Areas where a check depends on a single glance, or where coverage is thin, are identified and addressed rather than assumed away.

5

Reviewable, with gaps flagged not hidden

The record is reviewable, and missed or incomplete checks are surfaced and corrected, not quietly omitted. A standard that hides gaps is not a standard.

// Why it matters

The record is the defense

After a serious event, a facility is judged not on whether a policy existed but on whether the check happened and can be shown. Meeting Standard 001 turns tier checks from a liability into a defense.

// How VPT supports it

A timestamped layer over your rounds

Virtual Patrolâ„¢ adds a timestamped, reviewable layer over the checks your staff already perform, on your existing cameras, and its Response Discipline measure and the Gold Sealâ„¢ turn adherence to this standard into a defensible score.

// Related
Doctrine: why tier checks fail, and how to make them auditable → Gold Seal & the Safety Intelligence Score → Documentation & defensible evidence → All VPT Standards →
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