A state legislative agency that monitors Ohio prisons has released a report that shows the Toledo Correctional Institution is making progress in key areas, including fewer incidents of assaults and disturbances.

The Correctional Institution Inspection Committee, which a year ago issued a harsh report that was critical of the high number of murders and low staff morale, said the facility has made improvements in the number of inmate deaths, security, management of maximum security prisoners, health-care services, and employee turnover.

Joanna Saul, executive director of the agency, said the prison in North Toledo showed improvement in most categories.

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“The [TCI] inspection and subsequent report was one of the most concerning of the biennium, but I am very pleased to say that [TCI] has made an extraordinary transformation in the past year,” Ms. Saul said. “The institution is overall safer, with a perceptibly more secure environment.”

Three homicides occurred inside the prison between September, 2012, and August, 2013. There has been none since then.

According to the report, which covers the year ending June 30, the 50 inmate-on-inmate assaults in 2014 compare with the 53 that were reported in 2013 and 2012.

Of the 2014 assaults, 96 percent were physical and the others were both physical and sexual offenses.

The number of assaults by inmates on staff increased slightly to 58 in the most recent inspection, up one incident from the year before. There were only 32 such incidents in 2012.

The inspection committee said the 14 disturbances at the Toledo prison in 2014 — disturbances are defined as incidents caused by four or more inmates — were significantly more than Ohio’s other maximum security prisons, but far fewer than the 22 that occurred in 2013.

Ms. Saul said state officials have made changes to improve employee morale and retain employees, including the management of maximum security inmates.

She said the state also made other changes, including shifting administrative personnel, decreasing inmate population, hiring more staff, using outside consultation experts, and conducting a top-to-bottom review since the 2013 inspection.

According to the report, the population of the Toledo prison at the end of September was 1,035, down 18.3 percent from a year ago.

“There is still further work to be done, but TOCI is truly a testament to the impact of bringing resources to an institution and a concerted effort by the [Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections] administration to change an environment for the better,” she said.

The report said the prison employs 402, of which 277 are security staff.

“The improvements can be attributed to number of things including involving staff from all levels at the facility in developing solutions to issues that had previously been identified. In addition, we have reduced the inmate population and increased staffing,” said JoEllen Smith, spokesman for the Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections.

Contact Mark Reiter at: markreiter@theblade.com or 419-724-6199.

First Published November 25, 2014, 5:00 a.m.