Prisons

During the COVID pandemic, hundreds of prisoners in Oregon were released early. That led to backlash and Governor Tina Kotek later revoking some of those commutations. One woman in Southern Oregon is still struggling after being sent back.

The change comes as a result of a 2021 class-action lawsuit that resulted in refunding $77,041 to 870 people currently in prison.

Gov. Gavin Newsom is recommending small cuts to the state prison system, avoiding the closures of additional facilities.

The state’s high court ruled Gov. Tina Kotek didn’t have the power to revoke a commutation after a person completed their sentence. The justices wrote that Terri Lee Brown’s “imprisonment is unlawful.” Kotek revoked Brown’s commutation last year.

State workplace safety officials plan to protect employees from indoor heat this summer. But due to cost concerns, a separate rule is in the works for state prisons that will take more time.

The lawsuit is one of several class-action proceedings that have led the courts to assume oversight of the prison system’s treatment of those who are sick or suffer from mental illnesses.

Spokespeople for Gov. Tina Kotek and the corrections agency declined to answer questions about the allegations of abuse and poor conditions at Coffee Creek Correctional Facility in Wilsonville.

California correctional officers train like ‘they are going to war’ to work in state prisons. Gov. Gavin Newsom’s plan to transform San Quentin could require a kinder approach.

The incarcerated woman alleges she faced retaliation in the prison after a corrections officer was charged with sexually abusing her.

Oregon corrections agency plans to increase security cameras and provide more social activities at troubled prison.

Federal prosecutors say it’s the largest case of its kind the U.S. Department of Justice has prosecuted, both in terms of the number of victims and charges.

The Oregon Court of Appeals in Salem will decide whether prisoners shouldn’t be held for longer than 15 days.