Federal Bureau of Prisons

Autopsies are not required for federal prison deaths that are classified as natural. NPR found cases where medical neglect, poor prison conditions and a lack of resources contributed to these deaths. But families were given little information.

National

There is little scrutiny of 'natural' deaths behind bars

12:51pm January 02, 2024

by Tirzah Christopher

Autopsies are not required for federal prison deaths that are classified as natural. NPR found cases where medical neglect, poor prison conditions and a lack of resources contributed to these deaths.

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Sen. Dick Durbin, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, called on the federal prison system to address its staffing crisis.

Lawmakers push for federal prison oversight after reports of inadequate medical care

5:13pm December 12, 2023

by Meg Anderson

Lawmakers are urging the federal Bureau of Prisons to address prisoner health care after an NPR investigation detailed the stories of prisoners nationwide going without needed medical care.

A photo of Jeffrey Ramirez is seen at his parents' home in Vista, California. He was diagnosed with cancer while in prison and died at age 41.

1 in 4 inmate deaths happens in the same federal prison. Why?

6:00am September 23, 2023

by Meg Anderson

The Butner federal prison complex in North Carolina is where a quarter of federal inmate deaths occur. It includes a medical facility but inmates aren't getting needed care, there or at other prisons.

The federal prison complex in Terre Haute, Ind., is pictured in August 2020. All federal prisons in the United States have been placed on lockdown. Law enforcement agencies are taking measures in the aftermath of Jan. 6 insurrection and over concerns of m

National

Federal Prisons On Lockdown Because Of 'Current Events'

8:05pm January 16, 2021

by Jason Slotkin

The Bureau of Prisons said Saturday it was securing all of its facilities as a precautionary measure. The agency did not specify the length of the lockdown, but said it was a temporary measure.

National

'Never Seen Morale This Low': Correctional Officers Struggle Through Shutdown

7:04am January 19, 2019

by Scott Simon

NPR's Scott Simon talks to Justin Tarovisky, who works at a penitentiary in Hazelton, W.Va., about what it's been like to put in hours — including overtime and double shifts — without getting paid.

National

Federal Report Criticizes Harsh Treatment Of Lewisburg Prisoners

7:58pm July 13, 2017

by Joseph Shapiro

A Justice Department review says the federal prison violates its own rules that men with serious mental illnesses should be removed from its Special Management Unit.

National

Investigation Into Private Prisons Reveals Crowding, Under-Staffing And Inmate Deaths

3:03pm August 25, 2016

Seth Freed Wessler reported on substandard medical care in privately-run prisons in the federal corrections system for The Nation, which may have led the Justice Department to phase out their use.

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The Idaho Correctional Center south of Boise, Idaho, is a contract facility operated by Corrections Corporation of America. The Justice Department says it is phasing out its relationships with private prisons after a recent audit found they have more safe

National

Justice Department Will Phase Out Its Use Of Private Prisons

7:08pm August 18, 2016

by Carrie Johnson

Federal officials said the contract facilities don't offer substantial cost savings or provide the same level of security as those run by the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

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A Bureau of Prisons spokesman said the initial decision to take pork off the menu was spurred by the low ratings prisoners gave the product in surveys.

National

Pork. It's What's For Dinner Once More At Federal Prisons

1:52pm October 16, 2015

by Alexandra Starr

The other white meat was yanked from prison menus this month, but it's back on prisoners' plates following a push from hog farmers and Iowa Sen. Charles Grassley.