While North Carolina leaders address a multitude of problems behind the state’s prison walls, a new national poll shows growing support for criminal justice reform. At least 75 percent of Americans think prisons need a makeover, show data from the Justice Action Network. Support crosses party lines, with 68 percent of Republicans and 80 percent...
N.C. Public Safety Secretary Erik Hooks met a chilly reception Jan. 25 while briefing legislators on the results of a top-to-bottom prisons review. Hooks, who took office at the Department of Public Safety one year ago, faced public inquisition following two prison tragedies within his first few months of service. Altercations and jailbreak attempts at...
The N.C. Department of Public Safety must reform staffing and safety measures in light of spiking prison violence across the state, experts say. The department should hire new executives for adult and juvenile corrections, increase salaries, and recruit new prison staffers, among other things, said Duke University researchers who presented a report to the N.C....
