Biden’s New Bureau of Prisons Director Won’t be Able To Run Away From the Agency’s Corruption

We last saw outgoing Bureau of Prisons (BOP) Director Michael Carvajal running down a stairwell on July 26. He was trying to get away from some Associated Press reporters who revealed systemic dysfunction and corruption within the federal prison system—an apt ending for his tenure.

Bureau of Prisons Director Michael Carvajal (flanked by aides) runs away from reporters, refusing to answer questions about his testimony, reform plans or the many issues plaguing his agency. Cornered in an elevator, they booked it for the stairs. pic.twitter.com/HT6NNXKAsa

— Mike Sisak (@mikesisak) July 26, 2022

Carvajal had just finished testifying before a Senate subcommittee conducting a bipartisan investigation into corruption and abuse at a federal prison complex in Atlanta. Congressional investigators found that senior leadership at both the complex and the BOP had been aware of the issues for years.

With Carvajal jogging his way out of office—his resignation was announced in January—it will be Colette Peters’ turn to sit in the hot seat. The Biden administration announced last month that it was tapping Peters, the director of Oregon’s prison system, to head the beleaguered BOP. Previous directors have almost all come up through the agency, so the choice of an outsider is a signal in itself that the administration has lost faith in the BOP leadership. 

Peters has told the Associated Press that she wants to “create an environment where people can feel comfortable coming forward and talking about misconduct.” That will be no easy task, and she won’t be able to outrun the problems she’s inheriting. Corruption, dysfunction, and civil rights abuses have infected every level of management in the large federal agency. 

“From sexual violence and medical neglect to understaffing and years-long lockdowns, the BOP’s leadership has allowed a humanitarian crisis to develop on its watch,” Kevin Ring, president of the criminal justice advocacy nonprofit FAMM, said in a press release. “Families with incarcerated loved ones have been begging for change.”

Last month, the head of the local BOP employee union at FMC Carswell, a federal medical center for incarcerated women, told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram t