PHOENIX — Besieged for years by lawsuits and court decisions declaring Arizona's treatment of prisoners unconstitutional and conditions inside the prisons unsafe for inmates and staff, Governor Katie Hobbs announced Wednesday she is establishing an independent prison oversight commission.
"We can’t deny there is an urgent need to provide transparency and accountability in Arizona’s corrections system," the governor said. "Incarcerated Arizonans should be treated humanely and decently. And corrections administrators and officers should feel safe in their workplace."
The governor's executive order gives the 12-person commission power to inspect prison facilities and records, and interview staff and inmates.
It also gives the power to monitor health care, security and the overall conditions inside facilities, from accessibility and quality of mental health and medical care and drug treatment to access to basic necessities such as nutrition, medicine, and sanitary products and the number of qualified staff.
Earlier this month, a federal judge in Phoenix ruled the Arizona Department of Corrections failed to provide minimally adequate medical and mental health care and subjected prisoners to degrading conditions in solitary confinement.
"This committee goes far beyond the scope of the lawsuit which is specific to health care provided to prisoners. Our office is actively engaging with this case to ensure that we are addressing the issues that have been brought up which have largely been ignored until now," the governor said.
Governor Hobbs says the commission will report directly to her and it will not interfere with the work of incoming Corrections Director Ryan Thornell.
"We intend to focus on what needs to be done to turn this around and provide humane treatment to folks in our care." The executive order requires the Commission to submit a report to the Governor by November 15th.
