|
Support Federal Correctional Officers, Sign the Petition!
Dear AFGE Activist,
Understaffing at federal prisons is putting the lives of AFGE correctional officers at risk. One AFGE correctional officer has been killed and life threatening incidents are occurring weekly. Prison violence is rising at an alarming rate system wide. It has to stop. Lives depend on immediate action.
Click Here to Tell the Department of Justice to Protect our Correctional Officers and Stop the Violence.
In June 2008, Correctional Officer Jose Rivera was stabbed to death in a federal prison in Atwater, CA while locking inmates into their cells by himself. He should not have been alone. But in the understaffed Bureau of Prisons, where correctional officers are often outnumbered by inmates by 150 -1, prison violence is rising at an alarming rate. On April 23 of this year, an officer at a prison in Terra Haute, Indiana was stabbed seven times by an inmate. A week later in Tucson, Arizona, another officer was attacked. Similar incidents are now reported regularly system-wide. Because of this, AFGE and the Council of Prison Locals 33 are calling on United States Attorney General Eric Holder to hire more staff at our nation's federal correctional facilities.
Click Here to Tell the Department of Justice to Protect our Correctional Officers and Stop the Violence.
Earlier this year, the United States Congress, at the insistence of AFGE, voted to increase funding by $545 million for the Bureau of Prisons so more staff and correctional officers could be hired. Management at the Bureau of Prisons, however, has repeatedly refused to follow the direction of Congress, and is unilaterally saying that none of the funds provided for increased staffing will be used for that purpose. The blatant disregard for the safety of our federal correctional officers by the Bureau of Prisons management is inexcusable. The safety of correctional officers, inmates and our communities is at risk. It is imperative we take action and call upon United States Attorney General Holder to use the funds appropriated to hire additional staff. Please take action on this issue.
Click Here to Tell the Department of Justice to Protect our Correctional Officers and Stop the Violence.
Time is of the essence. Lives depend on immediate action.
In solidarity,
Bryan Lowry
President
Council of Prison Locals
American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO
Sign this petition and notify:
Attorney General Eric Holder
Your Congressperson
Your Senators
Correctional Officer Jose Rivera was stabbed to death in a federal prison in Atwater, California in June, 2008, while locking inmates into their cells by himself. He should not have been alone. But in the understaffed Bureau of Prisons, where correctional officers are often outnumbered by inmates by 150 -1, prison violence is rising at an alarming rate. On April 23 of this year, an officer at a prison in Terra Haute, Indiana was stabbed seven times by an inmate. A week later in Tucson, Arizona, another officer was attacked. Similar incidents are now reported regularly system-wide.
The repeated refusal of the Bureau of Prisons management to address understaffing and underfunding within the system threatens the safety of correctional officers, inmates and our communities. Ironically, Congress attempted to address this problem by increasing total funding for the Bureau's salaries and expenses in 2009 by $545 million - with a significant portion of this increase intended for hiring new correctional officers. However, BOP management is now unilaterally saying that none of the $545 million increase will be used to hire more correctional officers.
We, the undersigned, have lost all faith in the Bureau of Prisons management. In order to insure the safety of correctional officers, inmates and our communities, we call upon Attorney General Eric Holder to take the following actions:
(a) Mandate that all funds appropriated for BOP staffing to be used for staffing
(b) Call for the resignation of BOP Director Harley Lappin who has led the BOP down a dangerous, misguided path for the past 8 years
(c) Hire 9,000 additional correctional officers in order to return the Bureau of Prisons to the same level of staffing as in 1997.
Time is of the essence. Lives depend on immediate action.
|
Tell-a-Friend!