Information, topic by topic, on prisons across the world

February 13, 2019

UK: at Birmingham prison, government takeover from G4S extended for another six months

News

Europe United Kingdom

Birmingham Prison is to remain in government hands for a further six months due to the “fragile” state of the jail, the government has said. The Prison Service stepped in to operate HMP Birmingham last August after an inspection uncovered soaring violence, drug use and appalling living conditions.…

February 13, 2019

USA: from life in prison to published author

News

United States

Drug deals and gun violence were everyday realities for Chris Wilson growing up. Straddling homes in D.C.‘s Lincoln Heights neighborhood and Prince George’s County’s Temple Hills community, Wilson watched his mother fall victim to both domestic abuse and drug abuse. Many of his friends were locked…

February 13, 2019

New Zealand: how sport in prison could help stop reoffending

News

Oceania New Zealand

A sports programme which is being piloted in New Zealand prisons aims for a reduction in reoffending. Not only does physical activity help prisoners with their wellbeing and mental health, but it could help them into employment, according to UK Professor of Criminological Psychology Rosie Meek. “Sp…

February 12, 2019

USA: Alabama will build 3 prisons for men, Ivey announces

News

Facilities United States

Gov. Kay Ivey announced today that her administration will seek bids for building three regional prisons for men to replace aging, cramped facilities that the Alabama Department of Corrections has said are too costly to maintain and repair. The governor said new prisons are a necessary part of a la…

February 12, 2019

USA: emergency declared at Kansas prison because of staffing shortage - 95 jobs unfilled

News

United States

Kansas prisons have been under-staffed for years. Inmate populations are overcapacity. Uprisings in recent years have caused hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage. Now, the state’s corrections agency is declaring an emergency at one of its largest prisons – El Dorado Correctional – because of…

February 12, 2019

Haiti: all inmates escape from Aquin

News

Central America and the Caribbean Haiti

All 78 inmates of a prison in southern Haiti have escaped from captivity, according to the country’s police. The detainees reportedly made their escape from Aquin prison while police were distracted by anti-government protests nearby Haiti’s national police force said it has launched an investigati…

February 12, 2019

USA: women in prison in Florida get some needed attention

News

Women United States

Florida legislators, no matter their party — and no matter their gender — have shown a heartening amount of empathy for incarcerated women on an issue that affects them, uniquely. On Monday, the state Senate Criminal Justice Committee unanimously approve the Dignity for Incarcerated Women Act. The…

February 11, 2019

USA: want to shrink the prison population? Look at parole.

News

United States

This article is not available in English.

February 10, 2019

Colombia: El ‘estigma’ de las cárceles en zonas residenciales

News

South America Colombia

This article is not available in English. This article is available in the following versions: Spanish

February 9, 2019

USA: why the justice department can’t be trusted to investigate abysmal conditions in federal prisons

News

United States

The humanitarian crisis at Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center will have come as a shock to many. It is horrifying. If there is one institution, however, which has no grounds for shock, nor the performance of it, it is the Justice Department. As a late-January polar vortex hit New York with fr…

February 7, 2019

Ireland: two deaths in 10 days at Midlands prison

News

Ireland

Suicide is suspected as the cause of death in both instances, but investigations are ongoing. It is highly unusual for two deaths to occur in such a short time span in a single prison.

February 7, 2019

Switzerland’s prison population swells 50% in less than 30 years

News

Switzerland

The number of prisoners in Switzerland rose 50% from 1988 to 2017. Much of this is due to population growth. Switzerland’s population grew 28% over the same period. However, population growth doesn’t account for all of the increase in prison numbers. In 1988, there were 70 prisoners per 100,000. By…

February 6, 2019

USA: Mississippi’s prison bribery scandal is in the past, but the state still hasn’t learned its lesson

News

United States

Since 2014, a massive bribery scandal involving some of the most powerful prison industry corporations in America has hung like a cloud over Mississippi’s already-troubled corrections system, which locks people up at a higher rate than almost any other state.

February 6, 2019

USA: Coyote Ridge prison inmates go on strike

News

United States

Prisoners at the Central Washington corrections center are objecting to being served “breakfast boats,” a boxed meal with food such as a muffin and cold cereal, instead of a hot breakfast.

February 6, 2019

USA: Justice Department orders investigation after inmates at Brooklyn prison went days without heat

News

United States

The Justice Department has requested an investigation after inmates at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York, spent several days without heat or lighting.

February 5, 2019

United States: inmates at freezing federal jail in brooklyn pounded out a message

News

United States

The Metropolitan Detention Center had been largely without power and heat for more than a week. Inmates have been banging on the windows of their cells to call attention to the conditions, and protesters have been rallying outside the jail calling for improvements.

February 5, 2019

USA: aumenta el uso de gas pimienta contra reclusos en cárceles juveniles de Los Ángeles

News

United States

This article is not available in English. If you wish, you can consult the Spanish version.

February 4, 2019

France: Nice, un détenu se suicide en prison

News

Europe Suicide France

This article is not available in English. If you wish, you can consult the French version.

February 2, 2019

Argentina: en las cárceles hay casi 5.000 presos extranjeros

News

South America Argentina

This article is not available in English. If you wish, you can consult the Spanish version.

February 2, 2019

France: Villefranche-sur-Saône, un détenu de 18 ans se suicide dans sa cellule

News

Europe Suicide France

This article is not available in English. If you wish, you can consult the French version.

February 2, 2019

Spain: funcionarios de prisiones alertan de la captación de yihadistas en las cárceles y piden formación

News

Europe Spain

This article is not available in English. If you wish, you can consult the Spanish version.

February 1, 2019

United States: celebran decisión Wells Fargo de reducir apoyo a construcción cárceles

News

United States

This article is not available in English. If you wish, you can consult the Spanish version.

February 1, 2019

Uruguay: se necesitan cárceles pequeñas y bien gestionadas, señaló el director de Apoyo al Liberado

News

South America Uruguay

This article is not available in English. If you wish, you can consult the Spanish version.

February 1, 2019

France: surveillants de prison, un week-end de mobilisations

News

Europe France

This article is not available in English. If you wish, you can consult the French version.