Who is the Colorado Criminal Justice Reform Coalition?

Our mission is to reverse the trend of mass incarceration in Colorado. We are a coalition of nearly 7,000 individual members and over 100 faith and community organizations who have united to stop perpetual prison expansion in Colorado through policy and sentence reform.

Our chief areas of interest include drug policy reform, women in prison, racial injustice, the impact of incarceration on children and families, the problems associated with re-entry and stopping the practice of using private prisons in our state.

If you would like to be involved please go to our website and become a member.


Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Federal Prison in Florence

Two articles from Erin Rosa at Colorado Confidential on the federal prison in Florence.

In some units the duress system is broken, meaning that inmates who push the button in their cells to report an emergency are not able to communicate with correctional officers (COs). A security measure around the perimeter of the prison has not worked for nearly 9 months, and there are problems with the phone logging equipment used to monitor inmate phone calls. On top of that, COs are becoming ill due to a sewage spill contaminating ventilation systems, a problem that has been ongoing for approximately 5 years.

Such details are a reality according to COs and union officials working at the federal United States Penitentiary Administrative Maximum Facility (ADX) in Florence, Colorado, one of the country's most notorious prisons.

Meanwhile, employees also allege that the facility's warden has spent thousands of dollars of taxpayer money updating conference rooms and a command center with amenities like custom-made furniture and plasma television sets. A question of priorities? The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) isn't saying.

Locked Doors Locked Mouths

he job has never been easy, and it won't be getting any easier.

Right now a general consensus from the workforce of correctional officers (COs) residing in one of the nation's most notorious prisons is that "we're basically screwed." So says a veteran officer working at the United States Penitentiary Administrative Maximum Facility (ADX) in Florence, Colorado.

On top of low staffing levels that are reportedly turning the facility into a concrete tinderbox, there's also the issue of the real people who work the prison, and the consistent fear that they won't come home from an 8-hour shift. But you might not guess this with the image of stability and security portrayed by the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP), an agency that workers say doesn't take kindly to the idea of COs talking to the media.

Erin Rosa :: Inside Florence ADX: Locked Doors, Locked Mouths

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