Alabama’s troubled prison system to get a new commissioner

Alabama Corrections Commissioner Jeff Dunn is leaving down after six years leading the State’s prison system which is facing a Justice Department lawsuit over inmate conditions. Governor Kay Ivey announced the change yesterday. She’s appointing John Hamm to take over the job. He’s currently the deputy secretary of the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency. The job change takes effect at the beginning of the year. Dunn was appointed to the job in 2015. The Justice Department filed a civil lawsuit against Alabama last year. The agency says male inmates face unconstitutional levels of prisoner-on-prisoner and guard-on-prisoner violence. Alabama Public Radio’s six month investigation of prison reform was recognized with the national Sigma Delta Chi award from the Society of Professional Journalists. You can hear that documentary again by clicking the link below.