Current:Home > InvestFederal government to roll back oversight on Alabama women’s prison after nine years -BrightFuture Investments
Federal government to roll back oversight on Alabama women’s prison after nine years
View
Date:2025-04-18 11:28:16
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — The federal government will roll back almost all oversight over an Alabama women’s prison on Thursday, according to court filings, nine years after the Department of Justice found chronic sexual abuse at the facility and accused the state of violating the constitutional rights of incarcerated women.
The Alabama Department of Corrections announced on Thursday that the federal government would terminate 38 of the 44 provisions of the 2015 consent decree with the Julia Tutwiler Prison in Wetumpka, Alabama. The consent decree outlined the steps that the prison needed to take to prevent rampant sexual violence and initiated federal oversight.
Court filings said that the provisions were terminated as the result of the “State’s sustained, substantial compliance with a majority of the provisions of the Consent Decree.”
“I am thankful for the men and women who are dedicated to our mission at Tutwiler,” said Alabama Department of Corrections Commissioner John Hamm in a news release. Hamm added that the move “is a credit to our entire team and their dedication to our department and our state. We look forward to ending all court oversight of Tutwiler in the near future.”
In January 2014, the Justice Department issued a notice of findings letter that documented decades of violence at the prison, and alleged conditions violated constitutional protections against cruel and unusual punishment.
“For nearly two decades, Tutwiler staff have harmed women in their care with impunity by sexually abusing and sexually harassing them,” the 2014 report said.
Over a year later, the Alabama Department of Corrections entered a settlement with the Department of Justice that established regular oversight over the facility through the consent decree.
The court documents released on Thursday said that the prison achieved “substantial compliance” with all 44 of the provisions outlined in the consent decree but remained only in “partial compliance” with the provisions regarding adequate staffing.
The Justice Department has previously called the Alabama prison system overall one of the most understaffed and violent in the country.
In July, Justice Department officials filed a statement of interest in a 2014 lawsuit filed by inmates at St. Clair Correctional Facility.
In 2020 the federal government filed a separate lawsuit over conditions in Alabama’s statewide prison system, citing widespread inmate-on-inmate violence and excessive force at the hands of prison staff.
The lawsuit alleges that conditions are so poor that they violate the ban on cruel and unusual punishment and that state officials are “deliberately indifferent” to the problems.
The Alabama Department of Corrections has disputed the allegations in both cases.
___
Safiyah Riddle is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
veryGood! (7316)
Related
- Global Warming Set the Stage for Los Angeles Fires
- An illicit, Chinese-owned lab fueled conspiracy theories. But officials say it posed no danger
- Unlikely friends: 2 great white sharks traveling together shock researchers
- Minister vows to rebuild historic 200-year-old Waiola Church after Hawaii wildfires: 'Strength lies in our people'
- Have Dry, Sensitive Skin? You Need To Add These Gentle Skincare Products to Your Routine
- Northwestern athletic director blasts football staffers for ‘tone deaf’ shirts supporting Fitzgerald
- Bethany Joy Lenz to Detail “Spiritual Abuse” Suffered in Cult in Upcoming Memoir
- Lebanon, Kuwait attempt to ban 'Barbie' for 'homosexuality,' gender themes
- Taylor Swift Eras Archive site launches on singer's 35th birthday. What is it?
- Lebanon, Kuwait attempt to ban 'Barbie' for 'homosexuality,' gender themes
Ranking
- US wholesale inflation accelerated in November in sign that some price pressures remain elevated
- Lahaina Is ‘like a war zone,’ Maui evacuees say
- Ex-Georgia man sought in alleged misuse of millions of Christian ministry donations
- Kate Spade 24-Hour Flash Deal: Get This $300 Crossbody Bag for Just $65
- A Mississippi company is sentenced for mislabeling cheap seafood as premium local fish
- Billy Porter says he needs to sell his house 'because we're on strike'
- Treat Yourself to $600 Worth of Self-Care Products for $75: Elemis, Augustinus Bader, Slip, Nest & More
- A lawsuit accuses a Georgia doctor of decapitating a baby during delivery
Recommendation
Arkansas State Police probe death of woman found after officer
Ex-Georgia man sought in alleged misuse of millions of Christian ministry donations
15-year-old Texas boy riding bike hit and killed by driver on 1st day of school
'The Damar Effect': Demand for AEDs surges, leaving those in need waiting
How to watch the 'Blue Bloods' Season 14 finale: Final episode premiere date, cast
A Tennessee judge throws out the case of a woman convicted of murder committed when she was 13
Auto shoppers may be getting some relief as 2023 finally sees drop in new car prices
Wildfires take Maui by surprise, burning through a historic town and killing at least 6 people