New Arizona prison oversight panel to investigate 4 key trouble areas, suggest fixes

Gov. Katie Hobbs' newly created Independent Prison Oversight Commission met for the first time Friday and outlined a plan to help improve conditions in Arizona's prisons within seven months.

In January, Hobbs established the panel through an executive order. Its goal is to produce a public report this fall with findings and recommendations on four key issues facing the state's prisons.

Hobbs thanked the members for their presence at the beginning of the meeting. She said that even though changes have been implemented in the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation & Reentry since Ryan Thornell became its director, such as cracking down on prison drug smuggling, a lot more work needs to be done.

"The task at hand is certainly not going to be easy. The scope of this work is going to be demanding, both mentally and emotionally," Hobbs said, "and as a social worker I can tell you that oftentimes the most emotionally challenging work is also the most rewarding."

The 13-member commission includes members with experience as an incarcerated person, service in the Arizona legislature, work in the criminal justice system and work in the medical field. Members started off by sharing with the group their experiences with the criminal justice system and why they chose to serve on the panel.

They will form working groups to evaluate corrections staffing, health care, facilities, and resident services, programming and reentry.

Thornell attended the full meeting.

“Today is the first step in partnership and collaboration,” he told the panel.

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He said members can expect positive engagement, access and information, honesty, and responsiveness from himself and the Corrections Department. He told them that his approach to corrections is to redefine good outcomes and good corrections, because power and control to achieve compliance do not work in the long run.

With this commission’s work, Thornell said “power and control” was going to be replaced with “respect.”

Hobbs' January order stated that the commission was created because "there is an urgent need to provide transparency and accountability of Arizona's corrections system … and safeguarding the integrity of Arizona's correctional system, preventing misconduct, and identifying responsible ways to reduce costs" that will benefit all Arizonans.

"Individuals who are incarcerated should receive humane treatment during their incarceration and be prepared for successful reentry into society," the order continued.

On Saturday, criminal justice reform advocacy group FAMM praised Hobbs in a news release for the members she appointed to the commission and for the group making its first step in improving Arizona’s prisons.

"The Commission's work is crucial to laying the groundwork for an effective, transparent and accountable prison oversight board that can begin to make a change within state's prisons."

The news release went on to state it is displeased with Republican officials in the state.

"It's disappointing that Republican elected officials declined to appoint their allotted members to the commission," the FAMM release read. "The safety and wellbeing of incarcerated people should not be a partisan issue."

According to FAMM, prison oversight has broad, bipartisan national support.

The commission's small groups are expected to meet within the next two weeks. Members are tasked with submitting their report on Nov. 15.