Governor Ivey Makes Statement Following Prison Reform Update from Legislative Leadership

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ANGOLA PRISON, LOUISIANA – OCTOBER 14, 2013:
A prisoner’s hands inside a punishment cell wing at Angola prison.
The Louisiana State Penitentiary, also known as Angola, and nicknamed the “Alcatraz of the South” and “The Farm” is a maximum-security prison farm in Louisiana operated by the Louisiana Department of Public Safety & Corrections. It is named Angola after the former plantation that occupied this territory, which was named for the African country that was the origin of many enslaved Africans brought to Louisiana in slavery times.
This is the largest maximum-security prison in the United States[with 6,300 prisoners and 1,800 staff, including corrections officers, janitors, maintenance, and wardens. It is located on an 18,000-acre (7,300 ha) property that was previously known as the Angola Plantations and bordered on three sides by the Mississippi River.
(Photo by Giles Clarke/Getty Images)

MONTGOMERY – Alabama Legislative Leadership on Thursday held a press conference to give an update on the status of prison reform measures in the state.

Following the update from Legislative Leadership, Governor Kay Ivey released the following statement:

“I very much appreciate the long hours and hard work the Alabama Legislature has put into helping address the complex, multi-faceted issues facing our prison system. The fact that this is being done in a bipartisan way with leaders on both sides of the political aisle speaks to the fact that at the end of the day, we’re going to come up with the necessary remedies to help us provide ‘Alabama solutions to an Alabama problem,’ as I’ve said countless times before.

My administration pledges to continue to work closely with the Legislature to build consensus on any and all remedies necessary to solve these problems. And make no mistake, we need a solution that not only addresses today’s challenges but keeps us from having to deal with this issue again years from now. This problem has been kicked down the road for the last time.

I believe everyone — the Legislature, the Department of Justice, the courts and, most especially, the people of Alabama — realizes there is no single solution and there are no easy answers. I am encouraged to know that the Legislature will continue to work on solutions during the remainder of this session, we will remain in constant communication with one another during the coming weeks and months to keep this issue on the front burner. I truly believe that together, we will finally take the necessary steps to move our corrections system toward a more stable, safer future.”

Leaders in the Alabama Legislature gave an update this morning, (Thursday, May 16) on the response to the U.S. Department of Justice report claiming that Alabama’s men’s prisons are in violation of the Constitution because of the level of violence, rape, weapons, extortion, and other problems.

Legislators from both parties attended the press conference and said they were committed to fixing the dangerous, overcrowded and understaffed prisons.

Media Release/Alabama Governor Kay Ivey

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