EXCLUSIVE: Investigation finds "ASTRONOMICAL" death rate in Maricopa County jails. With 43 deaths in 2022 and 43 in 2023, they are among the deadliest jails in the country. But you wouldn't know that, because the deaths were underreported — until now. azcentral.com/story/news/loc… A review by The Arizona Republic of Maricopa County's in-custody jail deaths from 2019 through 2023 found the death rate was among the highest of major jail systems in the country, and four times the national average.

NEW: Bombshell internal investigation conducted by Arizona's new prisons director reveals "State is in no position to conduct an execution"
azcentral.com/story/news/loc… According to the newly appointed Arizona Department of Corrections director, no written records exist from the previous administration on where the state’s death penalty drugs came from, how they were procured or who prepared them.

BREAKING: @GovernorHobbs has appointed a Death Penalty Independent Review Commissioner, and @AZAGMayes has filed to withdraw a motion for the only pending death warrant, effectively pausing executions in Arizona. "The Commissioner is tasked with reviewing and providing transparency into the Arizona Department of Corrections lethal injection drug and gas chamber chemical procurement process, execution protocols, and staffing considerations." azgovernor.gov/office-arizona…

BREAKING: Governor Hobbs has appointed Dr. Ryan Thornell, Deputy Commissioner of the Maine Department of Corrections, to take over Arizona’s troubled prison system. His first day in office will be January 30. azcentral.com/story/news/loc… Thornell has worked in corrections for more than 18 years. He has a Master’s Degree in Criminal Justice from the University of Cincinnati, and a Doctorate in Political Science from the University of South Dakota.

IMPACT: @GovernorHobbs & @AZAGMayes condemn Arizona's "barbaric" practice of inducing the labor of pregnant prisoners, vowing to stop it – AND – @AthenaSalman pledges to introduce a bill protecting the autonomy of incarcerated medical patients. azcentral.com/story/news/loc… .@GovernorHobbs calls forced inductions "wrong and inhumane."

"The choice of when and how to give birth is deeply personal and that does not change just because someone is incarcerated. The reproductive rights of all women must and will be safeguarded and respected."

A tipster shared these pictures with me. Apparently prison labor was used to set up the inauguration of Arizona's new governor today at the state capitol in Phoenix. The incarcerated workers were hurried away from the event as volunteers and staff arrived. Arizona quite literally runs on prison labor, and apparently will continue to do so under the new administration. Our cities and towns are maintained by incarcerated people who are forced to work for pennies a day. Read our @azcentral investigation here: azcentral.com/in-depth/news/…

Breaking: The Arizona Supreme Court granted the state's request for a warrant of execution for Murray Hooper. The execution is scheduled for November 16. He would be the third man executed by the state of Arizona this year. Hooper will have a choice of lethal injection or gas. Background on Hooper's case: azcentral.com/story/news/loc…

ASPC-Lewis
Barchey Unit
Buckeye, Arizona

"I am an inmate at the Barchey Unit in Buckeye. As I write, please know that I am not anti-prison. I committed a terrible crime almost 16 years ago, and I deserve to be here for what I did.

However, I was not sentenced to serve my time in a veritable dope-den, surrounded by zombies, with no opportunities for self- improvement by way of educational/vocational training.

I got the full Tempe Police body camera footage from the night former Arizona prisons director Charles Ryan led them on a drunken, armed standoff, pointing his gun at officers. This went on for 3 hours. Imagine if the police always used this much restraint. Ryan exited his home safely, and the police drove him to the hospital where he was treated for a self-inflicted gun shot wound and an injury from a bean bag round. He was never taken to jail. azcentral.com/story/news/loc…

There are also prisons in Arizona with no AC that have recently lost access to running water. State lawmakers could demand an inspection and take a reporter with them. Just throwing some ideas out there.

https://twitter.com/genefortexas/status/1557191007229427718

And none of this pre-arranged tour business either. You have to show up unexpectedly and demand entry or they'll spend weeks hiding mentally ill prisoners and painting the floors.

Update: Judge Silver will likely appoint Dr. Marc Stern to help craft an injunction addressing unconstitutional health care in Arizona prisons. Stern previously found “privatization of correctional health care costs the state more than self-operation.”
azcentral.com/story/news/loc… When Silver ruled in June that Arizona's prison health care system, and it's use of restrictive housing, was unconstitutional, she asked attorneys representing incarcerated people and the state to propose experts to help her remedy the situation. azcentral.com/story/news/loc…

Prisons and jails in Arizona responded to the pandemic by permanently raising custody levels and locking everyone down longer, while reducing recreation time and access to programming. I hear from so many people who are still being deprived of showers, phone calls and sunlight. The mother who just called me - her son is being held in close custody by himself for 23 hours a day in a tiny cell with no windows while he awaits trial - he's only been able to shower 4 times since March.

New: @ACLU says the Arizona Department of Corrections is violating the First Amendment by banning issues of @thenation magazine in state prisons. azcentral.com/story/news/loc… Corene Kendrick, deputy director of the ACLU’s National Prison Project, said the department has withheld issues of the magazine at least five times in the past 18 months, claiming they promoted racial superiority or contained sexual content.

The Prison Sell: How Arizona's Department of Corrections leases prisoners for profit.

@azcentral and @kjzzphoenix investigation by @JosephJaafari, @geoffhing, @justinJprice & me. Edited by @MichaelBraga2, Chad Snow and @skyschaudt azcentral.com/in-depth/news/… At least 150 Arizona companies or state agencies deployed prisoners from 2017 through 2021 for their labor, or used incarcerated people’s labor to make products for their business. azcentral.com/in-depth/news/…

Arizona Department of Corrections Director David Shinn just told the state legislature we can't shut down private prisons because too many communities rely on the cheap labor they provide and they would "collapse" without it

https://twitter.com/JimmyJenkins/status/1547628107204481030?s=20&t=Znh3psLNXCZcT8Gd6_15OA

"We have to do it to support Arizona" — Corrections director says Arizona communities would “collapse” without cheap prison labor azcentral.com/story/news/loc…

The Joint Legislative Budget Committee will hear a proposal this morning for a new private prison contract guaranteeing a 90% occupancy rate. This is despite a declining prison population and more than 11,000 empty beds in the Arizona prison system. azleg.gov/videoplayer/?c… Agenda: azleg.gov/iagenda/JLBC/0…

"Not credible" "Completely detached from reality" "Pretending the problems he knows about do not exist"

Federal judge roasts Arizona prisons director David Shinn for "flagrant dereliction of responsibilities," unconstitutional conditions azcentral.com/story/news/loc… In her order issued last night, Judge Roslyn Silver condemned Department of Corrections Director David Shinn, the named Defendant in the Arizona prison health care case, for his deliberate indifference to the conditions in the prisons he oversees.

BREAKING: U.S. District Court Judge rules in landmark prison health care case finding Arizona "failed to provide . . . a constitutionally adequate medical care and mental health care system for all prisoners." Judge Silver orders injunctive relief to be determined by court expert Background on the prison health care trial that led to this decision: azcentral.com/story/news/loc…

We have got to put a stop to this portal bs! Everyone keeps telling me "oh it helps with organization, it's no big deal etc" No! It's gatekeeping! It's creeping obstruction! Government agencies exploit these systems!Booooo public records portals booooo!

https://twitter.com/mkayackley/status/1542210264895918080?s=21&t=-BtbOIJfrV9K8Qx1TBLjPw

.@Mkayackley's experience seems like a perfect opportunity for a hero attorney out there to challenge this ridiculous policy and push back on the larger issue in Arizona of government agencies using portals to restrict public access to records.

I am at the state prison in Florence, Arizona to witness the execution of Frank Atwood. I am required to leave my phone and laptop in the car. Follow @curtis_chels and @azcentral for updates azcentral.com/story/news/loc… I just watched Frank Atwood direct the state of Arizona on how to insert IVs into his veins properly so they could administer the drugs that would kill him

Florence, AZ — I'm here with media waiting to enter the state prison where Clarence Dixon is scheduled to be executed in two hours for the 1978 murder of Deana Bowdoin. Follow @azcentral and @curtis_chels for updates. azcentral.com/story/news/loc… There is a heavy police presence throughout the town of Florence this morning, and a wide security perimeter around the massive state prison complex. Media has been escorted by prison officials into the press briefing area inside the prison.