Jails, Prisons, Private Prisons

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Chief insists to Senate panel there’s been ‘visible change’ in the system

WASHINGTON — The head of the Federal Bureau of Prisons on Wednesday outlined to the Senate Judiciary Committee how she has sought improvements in the nation’s troubled prison system, and fielded questions from Republicans about transgender inmates.

https://floridaphoenix.com/2023/09/14/u-s-prisons-chief-insists-to-senate-panel-theres-been-visible-change-in-the-system/?

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Last operating US prison ship, a grim vestige of mass incarceration, set to close in NYC

NEW YORK (AP) — Kenneth Williams spent his whole life in Brooklyn, but it wasn’t until a night in 2018 when he crossed a narrow footbridge in shackles, that he learned about New York City’s last floating jail. He remembers the murky East River water below him, the stench of mold, and a sinking feeling that soon turned literal.

https://apnews.com/article/nyc-bronx-jail-boat-close-rikers-9d552d4cda48b58bdb141a40dffc8df5?

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Lawmakers hear report that says path of Florida’s prison system is ‘unsustainable’

Urges $582 million for air-conditioning, a provision questioned by one GOP senator

https://floridaphoenix.com/2023/11/15/lawmakers-hear-report-that-says-path-of-floridas-prison-system-is-unsustainable/?

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High-profile attacks on Derek Chauvin and Larry Nassar put spotlight on violence in federal prisons Derek Chauvin was stabbed nearly two dozen times in the law library at a federal prison in Arizona. Larry Nassar was knifed repeatedly in his cell at a penitentiary in Florida. The assaults on two notorious, high-profile federal prisoners by fellow inmates in recent months have renewed concerns about whether the chronically understaffed, crisis-plagued Federal Bureau of Prisons can keep people in its custody protected. Read more.

Why this matters: The attacks on Chauvin and Nassar, among dozens of other assaults and deaths involving lesser-known inmates, are symptoms of larger systemic problems within the Justice Department’s largest agency that put all 158,000 federal prisoners at risk. They include severe staffing shortages, staff-on-inmate abuse, broken surveillance cameras and crumbling infrastructure.   The violence has challenged a perception — repeated by some lawyers and criminal justice experts quoted in the news media when Chauvin was sentenced last year — that federal prisons are far safer than state prisons or local jails.   An ongoing Associated Press investigation has uncovered deep, unreported problems within the Bureau of Prisons, including rampant sexual abuse and staff criminal conduct, dozens of escapes, chronic violence, deaths and severe staffing shortages that have hampered responses to emergencies, including inmate assaults and suicides.

Related coverage ➤ Inmate who stabbed Derek Chauvin 22 times is charged with attempted murder, prosecutors say Ex-correctional officer at federal prison in California gets 5 years for sexually abusing inmates The story so far: AP’s investigation into federal prisons

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Prisoners in the US are part of a hidden workforce linked to hundreds of popular food brands A two-year AP investigation found that everything from grains, eggs, beef and milk have been grown, harvested or produced by incarcerated people. They are among America’s most vulnerable workers, some getting pennies an hour or nothing at all. If they refuse to work, they can jeopardize their chances of parole or face punishment. They also are often excluded from protections guaranteed to almost all other full-time workers, even when they are seriously injured or killed on the job. Read more.

Why this matters: Tracing goods produced or harvested by prisoners in the U.S. can be a challenge. So, in some cases, the Associated Press followed trucks, finding that products wind up in the supply chains of everything from Rice Krispies cereal and Ball Park hot dogs to Gold Medal flour. They are on the shelves of most supermarkets, including Kroger, Costco and Whole Foods.   The AP sought information from all 50 states, through public records requests and inquiries to corrections departments, linking hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of transactions to agriculture-based prison labor in state and federal facilities over the past six years.   Many of the companies that buy directly from prisons are violating their own policies against the use of forced or prison labor. But it’s completely legal. Enshrined in the Constitution by the 13th Amendment, slavery and involuntary servitude are banned – except as punishment for a crime.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤ Locked Up: The prison labor that built business empires   California and Nevada may ban forced prison labor, servitude   WATCH: US prison labor tied to some of the world’s most popular food brands

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9 hospitalized after 200 prisoners rush corrections officers in riot at Southern California prison

BLYTHE, Calif. (AP) — Eight corrections officers and an incarcerated man were injured in a riot involving around 200 inmates in the recreational yard of a Southern California prison, authorities said Thursday.

https://apnews.com/article/california-prison-riot-ironwood-blythe-ee673a8f49378b675745f14feea036bb?

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Wall Street’s New Prison Scam

As part of a growing effort to stop prison telecom monopolies from charging exorbitant fees for calls between prisoners and their families, last year Minnesota became one of the first states to make all phone calls free for prisoners. And to eliminate the kickback system perpetuating the scheme, the state barred its agencies from collecting commissions on prison phone services, as well as on video calling and e-messaging. 

https://www.levernews.com/wall-streets-new-prison-scam/?

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📈 Mapped: Prison population rising

Data: Bureau of Justice Statistics. Map: Kavya Beheraj/Axios The U.S. prison population rose 2.1% in 2022 — the first increase in almost a decade, Axios' Alex Fitzpatrick and Kavya Beheraj report from Justice Department data. Why it matters: Despite years of declines, the U.S. prison population remains extremely high compared to the era before the "war on drugs" and "tough on crime" politics. 🧮 By the numbers: 1.23 million Americans were in state or federal prison in 2022, according to the DOJ. That's up from 1.21 million in 2021, but down from 1.57 million in 2012. Zoom in: Incarcerated populations grew the most in Mississippi (+14.3%), Montana (+8.8%) and Colorado (+8.2%) between 2021 and 2022. Virginia (-10.5%), Oregon (-5.2%) and California (-3.8%) shrank the most. Keep reading ...

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Police track down escaped Idaho prison gang member and accomplice, say pair may have killed 2 on run

Police on Thursday arrested two white supremacist gang members — an Idaho prison inmate and the accomplice who helped him escape — following an attack on corrections officers at a Boise hospital, and investigators are looking into whether they killed two people while on the run.

https://apnews.com/article/hospital-shooting-idaho-escaped-inmate-5d4eb764853ca05d2721145bc435367a?

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New York inmates are suing to watch the solar eclipse after state orders prisons locked down

NEW YORK (AP) — Inmates in New York are suing the state corrections department over the decision to lock down prisons during next Monday’s total solar eclipse.

https://apnews.com/article/solar-eclipse-prison-lawsuit-new-york-3b6af5a2f1f8f320a1ed4918a560b525?

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Starting over: Women emerging from prison face formidable challenges to resuming their lives

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — On a cold and dreary October day, Heather C. Jarvis packed everything she had into a pink duffle and a plastic trash bag and waited for the rest of her life to begin.

https://apnews.com/article/women-prisoners-reentry-challenges-program-shortage-d56afe6283c25e981d37d6e925d90ffd?

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Bureau of Prisons to close California women’s prison where inmates have been subjected to sex abuse

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The beleaguered federal Bureau of Prisons said Monday it will close a women’s prison in California known as the “rape club” despite attempts to reform the troubled facility after an Associated Press investigation exposed rampant staff-on-inmate sexual abuse.

https://apnews.com/article/federal-prison-dublin-california-sexual-abuse-bureau-of-prisons-17731ecb5d0a14adf6011e853bf7e05d?

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US prisoners are being assigned dangerous jobs. But what happens if they are hurt or killed?

Nationwide, hundreds of thousands of prisoners are put to work every year, some of whom are seriously injured or killed after being given dangerous jobs with little or no training, The Associated Press found. They include prisoners fighting wildfires, operating heavy machinery or working on industrial-sized farms and meat-processing plants. They are part of a labor system that largely denies them rights and protections guaranteed to other American workers. Read more.

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The Little-Known Reason Counties Keep Building Bigger Jails: Architecture Firms

All over the country, architecture firms make the case for bigger jails — then get hired to design them.

https://theintercept.com/2024/05/31/jail-construction-justice-architecture-firms/?

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Private Prisons Want You To Go Directly To Jail

As states across the country adopt harsh new sentencing laws, private prison companies are celebrating, telling investors that they soon expect more people in their prisons — and even higher profits.

https://www.levernews.com/private-prisons-want-you-to-go-directly-to-jail/?

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4 Missouri prison guards charged with murder, and a 5th with manslaughter, in death of Black man

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Four Missouri prison guards were charged Friday with murder, and a fifth with accessory to involuntary manslaughter, in the December death of a Black man who was pepper sprayed, had his face covered with a mask and was left in a position that caused him to suffocate while in custody at a correctional facility, according to a complaint filed Friday.

https://apnews.com/article/prison-guards-charged-black-man-custody-death-be04c04c1cb90959eeebf5e19f4850dd?

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FL prisons are using wristbands to track inmates, and punishing those who refuse, some say

A Florida Department of Corrections requirement that inmates wear electronic bracelets to monitor their movements in one facility is raising concerns among some family members and advocates that refusal to wear the devices is resulting in punishment.

https://floridaphoenix.com/2024/07/10/fl-prisons-are-using-wristbands-to-track-inmates-and-punishing-those-who-refuse-some-say/?

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Biden signs bill strengthening oversight of crisis-plagued US Bureau of Prisons after AP reporting

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden signed into law on Thursday a bill strengthening oversight of the crisis-plagued federal Bureau of Prisons after reporting by The Associated Press exposed systemic corruption, failures and abuse in the federal prison system.

https://apnews.com/article/federal-prisons-congress-oversight-abuse-transparency-biden-397d95d00d507a95c58dc0f78ada0407?

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Ohio prison holds first-ever five-course meal open to public on facility grounds

GRAFTON, Ohio (AP) — A state prison in northeast Ohio says that for the first time in the state’s history, a five-course meal has been served to members of the public with food prepared by incarcerated men from fruits and vegetables grown in the prison garden.

https://apnews.com/article/prison-dinner-ohio-edwins-grafton-correctional-institution-38172ea3f324a2bdb9b070c833dac091?

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Clothes and confidence

Elmwood Correctional Facility inmates Mayra (left) and Blanca look at clothing at a Goodwill store inside the facility in Milpitas, Calif. Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images Goodwill just opened its first store inside a jail with the goal of providing inmates with job experience and clothes. Why it matters: The criminal justice system leaves a lasting imprint on people's lives. Reentering society with job skills and interview outfits can chip away at the steep obstacles people face when seeking a second chance. Zoom in: The new store is located inside the women's facility of the Elmwood Correctional Campus in Milpitas, Calif. (Santa Clara County). Women in custody have the opportunity to work in the store and join a training program to learn about warehousing, inventory and logistics. Inmates near release can also shop for free clothes from the store as they prepare to reintegrate into their communities. Training program participants are promised a job with Goodwill upon release, ABC7 in San Francisco reports. "I came in with nothing, and now I'm able to leave with clothes and confidence," one of the program participants said. Inmates Sinica (left) and Blanca set up a banner at the Goodwill store. Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images Zoom out: Goodwill has been opening new, larger stores across the country as Gen Z drives a shifting renaissance. Goodwill of Silicon Valley, which set up this store inside the jail, may eventually expand to the men's side of the Elmwood Correctional Campus, the nonprofit notes.

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Prison work assignments used to lure and rape female inmates. Guards sometimes walk free As part of a sweeping two-year investigation into prison labor, The Associated Press found that correctional staff nationwide have been accused of using inmate work assignments to sexually abuse incarcerated women, luring them to isolated spots, out of view of security cameras. Many cases follow a similar pattern: Accusers are retaliated against, while the accused face little or no punishment. Read more.

Key takeaways: Women are the fastest-growing population behind bars. Though they represent only 10% of the nation’s overall prison population, female incarceration rates have jumped from about 26,000 in 1980 to nearly 200,000 today. Most women have been locked up for nonviolent crimes that often are drug-related.   Reporters scoured thousands of pages of court filings, police reports, audits and other documents that detailed graphic stories of systemic sexual violence and coverups from New York to Florida to California. In all 50 states, reporters found cases where women said they were attacked by staff while doing jobs like kitchen or laundry duty inside correctional facilities or in work-release programs that placed them at private businesses such as national fast-food restaurants and hotel chains.   Accused correctional staff often quit or retire before internal investigations are complete, sometimes retaining pensions and other benefits, experts say. With no paper trail and severe staff shortages nationwide, some are simply transferred or hired at other facilities or they land positions overseeing vulnerable populations like juveniles.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤ Family releases video showing final moments before Black man’s death in Missouri prison   Arkansas purchases 815 acres of land for nearly $3 million to build new prison

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California voters reject proposed ban on forced prison labor in any form

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California voters have rejected a measure amending the state Constitution to ban forced labor in any form. The constitution currently bans it except as punishment for crime.

https://apnews.com/article/california-proposition-6-defeat-forced-labor-f07b8976c38a1177542eb923d1106636?

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The US government is closing a women’s prison and other facilities after years of abuse and decay

WASHINGTON (AP) — The federal Bureau of Prisons is permanently closing its “rape club” women’s prison in California and will idle six facilities in a sweeping realignment after years of abuse, decay and mismanagement, The Associated Press has learned.

https://apnews.com/article/federal-prisons-closing-ap-investigation-abuse-decay-c02c96b6f6a3c5535cc3e3025d5d2585?

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US to pay nearly $116M to settle lawsuits over rampant sexual abuse at California women’s prison

NEW YORK (AP) — The U.S. government will pay nearly $116 million to resolve lawsuits brought by more than 100 women who say they were abused or mistreated at a now-shuttered federal prison in California that was known as the “rape club” because of rampant staff-on-inmate sexual misconduct.

https://apnews.com/article/federal-prisons-dublin-sexual-abuse-lawsuit-settlement-8265b20642f7233ae9767578691154c1?

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Alabama profits off prisoners who work at McDonald’s but deems them too dangerous for parole

No state has a longer, more profit-driven history of contracting prisoners out to private companies than Alabama. Best Western, Bama Budweiser and Burger King are among the more than 500 businesses to lease incarcerated workers from one of the most violent, overcrowded and unruly prison systems in the U.S. in the past five years alone, The Associated Press found as part of a two-year investigation into prison labor. Read more.