Corrections Leaders to Address National Prison Commission in Los Angeles

Testimony Sought From Correctional Facility Employees

LOS ANGELES — The Commission on Safety and Abuse in America’s Prison will hear testimony at its final hearing this week on the transparency of U.S. prisons, external and internal oversight, and gang and drug activity behind bars.

The hearing, held at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles this Wednesday and Thursday, will feature testimony from Harley G. Lappin, director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons, and several leaders of state prison systems. Several prison monitors, including the California inspector general and Great Britain’s chief prison inspector, will also address the commission.

The 21-member commission was formed in the wake of the Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse scandal in Iraq. Three hearings have been held since April in Tampa, Fla., Newark, N.J., and St. Louis. After the hearing in Los Angeles this week, the commission will create a report on its findings.

The hearings are open to the public, but only witnesses schedule to appear are invited to address the committee. However, the commission is seeking testimony from people who have working at correctional facilities and people who have been incarcerated. Accounts can be submitted at the commission’s Web site, www.prisoncommission.org. They can also be e-mailed to accounts@prisoncommission.org.

The commission is organized and staffed by the Vera Institute of Justice, a New York-based nonprofit organization.

The commission hearing will be held at St. Robert’s Auditorium at Loyola Marymount University from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Wednesday and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday. For more information, contact Commission’s Coordinator Jenni Trovillion by phone, (202) 673-6355, or e-mail, jtrovillion@vera.org.