Councilmembers Isaiah Thomas and Nicolas O'Rourke introduced legislation Thursday to create a Prison Community Oversight Board and an Office of Prison Oversight.
Philadelphia's correctional facilities have struggled with understaffing, high-profile escapes, a lack of cleanliness and maintenance, overdoses and deaths. While the legislation awaits a vote, it already has the support of a supermajority, with an additional 14 of the 17 council members co-sponsoring the bill. If it passes, there will be a ballot question about establishing the oversight bodies in the spring primary election.
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If created, the office and board would be under the Office of Public Safety, and its responsibilities would include increasing transparency and accountability of correctional institutions, reviewing the Department of Prisons' policies and practices, and developing a community education program.
Earlier this month, Amanda Cahill, a 31-year-old mother of two, died in a city jail after being arrested on a drug charge. Her death is under investigation. A week later, Michael McKinnis, a 61-year-old man, died at Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility. He was the fifth person to die in city custody this year.
On Aug. 23, a U.S. District Court judge ordered the city to set aside $25 million to address staffing shortages after it broke a 2022 prison conditions settlement.
During Thursday's council meeting, Thomas said the prison oversight committee was an initiative from former Councilmember Helen Gym, and that his office took over the project and spent the last two years working on a proposal. In 2023, Thomas proposed similar legislation following the escape of two prisoners from the Philadelphia Industrial Correctional Center, but it was eventually tabled to adjust language of the bill.
"We have 15 co-sponsors for this particular legislation, which communicates to me the sense of urgency around the issues that we're facing in the prison and the need to see some type of change," Thomas said.
Bills only need the support of 12 of the city's 17 council members for approval.
“City Council must confront the crisis in our jails, our incarcerated constituents cannot fall out of sight or out of mind,” O’Rourke said in a statement. “Decade after decade, in the streets and the halls of power, Philadelphians have demanded public oversight of law enforcement. That call includes Philly Prisons, and we’re ready to answer.”
On Thursday, the council also passed a legislation condemning a recent Supreme Court decision that said it is legal to fine individuals living in encampments, even if they have no other shelter options. Kayden Hujack, Cahill's cousin, spoke Thursday against the court's decision and the increased policing in Kensington, which is part of Mayor Cherelle Parker's strategy to end the drug market.
"Maybe instead of deploying more officers in the streets of Kensington, the plan should be adequately staffing her jails, making sure that the medical professionals are on-deck and correctional officers are properly educated on how to keep these people safe," Hujack said. "Unfortunately, that wasn't the case with my cousin, but this is why I am here, to make sure that this doesn't happen to anyone else."