The Editorial Board discusses the need for correctional oversight, and quotes Michele on the increasing momentum across the country supporting the establishment of external correctional oversight bodies.

Independent Oversight Is Essential for a Safe and Healthy Prison System,” Michele’s essay published in the Brennan Center for Justice’s series on punitive excess, was featured in Solitary Watch’s Weekly Roundup of News and Views on Solitary Confinement.

In this article about the ways agencies are continuing to shield data about the impact of COVID-19 in prisons, Michele responds to TDCJ’s claim that it waits for autopsy results before reporting deaths in custody due to COVID. The article also highlights findings from, “Hidden Figures,” our report detailing a lack of data transparency regarding the impact of COVID-19 in state prisons, local jails and state-run juvenile facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“There’s a sense that COVID is over, that the pandemic is behind us, and that is just not the case,” Deitch said. “We have to remember that prisons and jails were hit so much harder than the outside communities were, and in many jurisdictions, they were late to provide vaccinations to incarcerated people.”

Citing “Dead Man Waiting,” our report on deaths among those who were approved for parole but were still waiting for their release from prison, this article describes the nationwide problem of release delays due to programming requirements--a problem that was exacerbated during the pandemic.

Michele summarizes findings from “Dead Man Waiting,” our report about deaths among people who were approved for parole release but who continued to languish in Texas prisons.

Quoting Michele, this article provides a detailed description of findings from “Dead Man Waiting,” and the factors that contribute to keeping people in prison after they’ve been approved for parole.

Michele and Alycia, summarize findings from our Dead Man Waiting report and discuss the implications. The article includes a quote from the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles responding to delayed releases among people approved for parole due to programming requirements.

At least 18 paroled inmates died behind bars last year because the programs they had to complete before they could be released were slowed or stopped cold by the pandemic, a new report says.

New York has not followed that recommendation, prompting University of Texas at Austin researchers to list the state among seven others that have done the least to shed light on COVID-19 inside facilities. Secrecy during the pandemic, they warned in their new “Hidden Figures” report, makes it “difficult to determine if juvenile corrections agencies are responding to the complex and unique needs of incarcerated youth.”