With a special session just days away, the Alabama Legislature will once again take a stab at tackling the state’s prison crisis.
The system is facing legal action by the Department of Justice, which has determined that the state is in violation of the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition of cruel and unusual punishment.
During an interview with Mobile radio FM Talk 106.5’s “The Jeff Poor Show,” Senate Majority Leader Clay Scofield (R-Guntersville) said he was optimistic that this time the legislature, working in concert with Gov. Kay Ivey, could achieve a satisfactory result.
“I feel really good about it,” he said. “I feel really confident about it. And more importantly, the thing that I’m most excited about is we really are, I believe, on the precipice of solving a multi-generational problem. I’m very hopeful about that and, frankly, very proud of our members. We have been working diligently — the Senate, the House, and the Governor’s office have worked very diligently throughout the summer.”
“We started in June as soon as we knew the Governor’s plan wasn’t going to be fulfilled,” Scofield continued. “We got together and decided to come up with a plan B, which frankly is a very good and conservative plan. It’s good for the taxpayer, and again, it solves a multi-generational problem that if we solve this, we have really done something I think that will really benefit the people of Alabama, the taxpayers, for hopefully generations to come. That’s what we’re targeting.”
@Jeff_Poor is a graduate of Auburn University and the University of South Alabama, the editor of Breitbart TV, a columnist for Mobile’s Lagniappe Weekly, and host of Mobile’s “The Jeff Poor Show” from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. on FM Talk 106.5.
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