02/14
News
Explore news stories on the understaffing and overcrowding crisis in America’s prisons.
Stories featuring Safer Prisons, Safer Communities spokespeople are displayed in orange.
For press releases and media coverage, please click here.
February 2025
02/13
VICE: New York Prison Overrun by Inmates During Staff Shortage Crisis
02/13
WGRZ: New York lawmakers question the corrections commissioner on staffing levels in prison
02/12
Associated Press: Illinois data shows inmates with violent records from shuttered prison sent to medium-security sites
02/12
Florida Politics: Prison problems continue, as Senators hear of significant staff shortfalls
02/12
Florida Phoenix: Florida Dept. of Corrections head says OT costs are becoming a serious problem
02/10
Kitsap Sun: Correctional officers struggling with PTSD could be provided coverage under new bill
02/06
Roll Call: Federal correctional officers driven to ask Congress for a raise
02/03
The Tennessean: Why former guard and others say CoreCivic understaffs this troubled small town prison
January 2025
01/31
Dallas Observer: Texas Prisons Suffer From Dangerous Understaffing
01/31
The Daily Progress: Virginia prisons 'dangerously understaffed,' state report finds
01/31
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Wisconsin DOC undergoing external review of prison conditions, use of solitary confinement
01/30
Savannah Morning News: Georgia prisons chief asks lawmakers for $10.4 million for staffing
01/28
Corrections1: The hidden toll of the night shift: How off-hours work impacts correctional officers’ lives
01/27
St. Louis Today: Too few guards, too many inmates at St. Louis jail, report says
01/23
South Dakota Searchlight: Prison medical staff shortage worsens as security shortage eases
01/23
Alabama Political Reporter: Alabama prisoners dying at a rate four times the national average
01/22
Honolulu Civil Beat: Report: Hawai‘i Prison Guards Face ‘Unsustainable’ Working Conditions
01/21
Missouri Independent: Missouri lawmakers push for oversight panel to monitor conditions in state prisons
01/15
Texas Standard: Texas prisons don’t have enough guards. Filling the gaps is costing the state money.
01/13
Stateline: Prison abuse, deaths and escapes prompt calls for more oversight
01/13
Forbes: Prisons Across Country Face Challenge Of Finding Workers
01/10
NPR: The prison population is going up as prisons struggle with staffing and overpopulation
01/09
Houston Chronicle: How Texas prisons are spending millions on a 'dangerous' staffing crisis as population soars
01/08
Georgia Public Broadcasting: Gov. Kemp recommends adding $372 million to shore up Georgia prisons
01/02
Corrections1: ‘He’s not just a statistic': Correctional officer’s widow leads mental health push after husband’s suicide
01/02
Alabama Political Reporter: Alabama incarceration rates rose in 2023 amid overcrowding
December 2024
12/27
The Statehouse News Bureau: State says Ohio prison wasn’t short-staffed prior to fatal assault on corrections officer
12/25
NC Newsline: Prison overcrowding demands immediate action from state leaders
12/18
Associated Press: Georgia senators want mental health funding and staffing to address prison deaths
12/17
Axios: Staff turnover is staggering in Arkansas' prison system
12/13
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Prison reforms get Senate committee backing
12/10
Corrections1: Roundtable: How the corrections profession was challenged in 2024
12/05
The Guardian: US shuts down prisons amid scrutiny over sexual abuse and crisis of suicides
12/05
New York Times: U.S. Is Closing California Prison Plagued by Sexual Abuse
12/04
Associated Press: Health care for Maryland prisoners was compromised by poor oversight, audit finds
12/03
Stateline: State prisons turn to extended lockdowns amid staffing shortages, overcrowding
12/01
The Philadelphia Inquirer: Were holiday stabbings in Philly prisons connected to lower staffing?
October 2024
10/15
The Idaho Statesman: Idaho jails frequently fail inspections. Some say they ‘can’t’ meet minimum standards
10/10
The Marshall Project: Prison Staff Shortages’ Toll on Prisoners, Guards and Their Families
10/10
The Tennessean: Tennessee's corrections chief balks at more oversight: 'I know how to run the prisons'
10/09
The Baltimore Banner: Years to fix a prison fence? Maryland CO’s union says working conditions are dire
10/05
The Hawkeye: 'It’s a systemic issue': Union calls for more state funding, help and return of collective bargaining rights following attacks on ISP guards
10/01
Associated Press: Justice Department says Georgia ‘deliberately indifferent’ to prison abuses
10/01
Texas Public Radio: Texas prison system’s staffing crisis and outdated technology endanger guards and inmates
September 2024
09/30
WTNH: Connecticut prison system under fire for alleged ‘inhumane’ conditions
09/25
San Antonio Express-News: Sweltering heat worsens Texas’ prison staffing crisis
09/11
