WSFA 12 News Montgomery, AL |Alabama's New Prisons' Commissioner Says His Department Will Take Years To Fix

Alabama's New Prisons' Commissioner Says His Department Will Take Years To Fix

Alabama Corrections Commissioner Donal Campbell says the state's prison system is so broken it will take years to fix it.

He says even if the deparment gets the 146 million dollars he says is needed for next year, the problems will be far from solved. Campbell told members of the Legislature's Joint Prison Oversight Committee today that the system has twice as many prisoners as it's buildings were designed to hold and needs at least 300 new officers to guard those inmates. He says many of the inmates are housed in buildings that are falling apart because they were designed to house less people. He says sewer systems are overflowing and some kitchens operate almost 24 hours a day to try to feed everybody.

The problems facing Alabama prisons are among several crises facing the state as Gov. Bob Riley and lawmakers attempt to find revenue to fill what is expected to be more than 500 million dollars in budget shortfalls. .