inmates

As legislative session begins, priority will be resolving prison problems

The 2020 Legislative Session, which began last week, will be the second session of Governor Kay Ivey’s administration. For the second straight year, she and the legislature will be facing a major obstacle. The prison problem is the paramount issue for the year. The state must address and resolve this dilemma or the federal authorities … Continued

Steve Flowers

February 12, 2020

Opinion

Alabama Department of Corrections needs to start handing out pink slips this week

Contrary to popular belief, most of the time, prisoners do follow prison rules. As a former correctional officer with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, if prisoners cease to view the Alabama Department of Corrections (ADOC) as legitimate or fair, dire consequences ensue. Prison officials will see more inmates than usual assaulting other inmates and … Continued

David Rembert

December 30, 2019

Opinion

Saving taxpayer dollars and creating a path to redemption

As multiple recent state and national news stories have illustrated, overcrowded state prisons is one of the key challenges facing Alabama. While the State Legislature has made significant strides over the past few years in the area of criminal justice reform, Alabama’s prisons are still at about 166 percent of capacity. This creates a dangerous … Continued

Cam Ward

November 6, 2019

Opinion

ACLU of Alabama responds to use of misleading term

Recently the Alabama Daily News published a story about parole with a misleading headline that stated, “State data shows more violent inmates receive parole.” It’s true that Alabama parole rates have increased in recent years, but not necessarily because more violent people are getting out of prison early. Let’s address the term “violent inmate.” The … Continued

Beth Shelburne

August 13, 2019

Opinion

Reverse recidivism rate

Recidivism rate is the tendency of a criminal to commit a crime and return to prison. This is one of those areas where fuzzy math drives you crazy getting to the facts. According to the National Institute of Justice, 68 percent of 405,000 prisoners released in 30 states in 2005 were arrested for a new … Continued

John W. Giles

April 29, 2019

Opinion

Analysis | Ivey to build prisons come hell or legislative high water

Gov. Kay Ivey is going to build three new high-level security prisons to house the state’s most violent offenders and those inmates who are plagued by infirmities and mental illness. Ivey will build these three new correctional facilities come hell or legislative high water because it is right, not because it’s popular. It’s about time … Continued

Bill Britt

February 13, 2019

Federal court rules Alabama treatment of prisoners in isolation unconstitutional

A federal court ruled Monday that Alabama’s prison system fails to adequately evaluate the mental health of inmates during isolation in segregation cells. The treatment of the inmates is unconstitutional and violates the Eighth Amendment, U.S. District Judge Myron Thompson wrote in a ruling that found the Alabama Department of Corrections to be “deliberately indifferent” … Continued

Chip Brownlee

February 12, 2019

Former Sumter County sheriff pleads guilty to criminal ethics, drug charges

A former West Alabama sheriff who was removed from office in 2016 has pleaded guilty to eight criminal charges. Former Sumter County Sheriff Tyrone Clark pleaded guilty Monday to eight criminal charges including ethics violations and drug charges. He was removed from office in July 2016 by the Alabama Supreme Court after he was impeached … Continued

Chip Brownlee

November 28, 2018

Parole Board will no longer consider early parole for most serious felonies

The Alabama Board of Pardons and Paroles submitted a corrective action plan to Gov. Kay Ivey Wednesday including policy changes concerning the way the board considers parole for the most serious offenders. The board will no longer consider early parole for inmates convicted of Class A felonies involving serious physical injury to a victim. Instead, those offenders … Continued

Chip Brownlee

November 15, 2018

Opinion

Alabama voters: You just don’t care

Secretary of State John Merrill expected turnout in Tuesday’s Democratic and Republican Party primary runoffs to be “extraordinarily low.” Merrill said he thought, on average, 15 percent to 18 percent of the state’s registered voters would go to the polls. Even that was wishful thinking. Alabama voters: You don’t care. With as much going on … Continued

Joey Kennedy

July 19, 2018