New US prisons chief pledges truth, reform for ailing system
The outsider brought in to reform the ailing federal Bureau of Prisons has pledged to hold accountable any employees who sexually assault inmates and reform the agency’s archaic hiring practices
WASHINGTON (AP) — The outsider brought in to reform the ailing federal Bureau of Prisons pledged Monday to hold accountable any employees who sexually assault inmates, reform archaic hiring practices and bring new transparency to an agency that has long been a haven of secrecy and coverups.
Colette Peters detailed her vision in a wide-ranging interview with The Associated Press, her first since becoming director nearly three months ago.
She said she wants to reorient the agency's recruiting and hiring practices to find candidates who want to “change hearts and minds” and end systemic abuse and corruption. She would not rule out closing problematic prisons, though there are no current plans to do so.
As Oregon's prison director, Peters developed the “Oregon Way” of running prisons, which aims to transform “environments inside correctional facilities to be more normal and humane," according to the state prisons' website. She oversaw sharp drops in Oregon's inmate population.
