Protestors gathered outside the Alabama Department of Corrections Wednesday demanding they hold correctional officers accountable.
Families of incarcerated men and women have been mounting pressure in the wake of the Oscar-nominated HBO documentary “The Alabama Solution,” which used cell phone footage from inmates to expose poor living conditions within the prisons and abuse from guards.
The protestors moved inside the Statehouse for a meeting of the prison oversight committee comprised of lawmakers from the Alabama House and Senate.
Robert White, pastor of the Montgomery City of Refuge, suggested that lawmakers consider legislation to immediately suspend correctional officers with pay while an investigation is conducted any time they use force against an incarcerated man in their care.
The committee discussed expanding reports on how the prisons are responding to calls and complaints filed, including that an inmate’s health or safety is being jeopardized. A representative for the department told lawmakers how many complaints had been received, and that on average the issues were resolved within two days.
But lawmakers asked that future reports include the nature of the complaint, whether it was substantiated, and if substantiated, how it was resolved.
Conditions at at least one prison will soon be assessed by the Alabama Department of Examiners of Public Accounts, from use of force to visitation policies to lockdown procedures.
“Our upper management is heavily, heavily involved in this,” Chief Examiner Rachel Riddle told the committee. “This is not something I take lightly.”
The review will be independent from ADOC.
