UP Gazette

State Sen. Ed McBroom, alongside state Reps. Dave Prestin and Greg Markkanen, has called for urgent action from Michigan Department of Corrections (MDOC) Director Heidi Washington in response to increasing crises at Michigan prisons. The recent unrest at the Baraga prison has resulted in significant damage to facilities, with assaults on officers rising across all five Upper Peninsula MDOC prisons.

“Director Washington has failed to fix or even address the damning staffing shortages within our prisons,” said McBroom, R-Waucedah Township. “I have been warning the state for more than 10 years about the dangers of administration policies that are making our prisons more dangerous for both prisoners and state employees. My committee investigations have highlighted numerous failed policies and lack of success at increasing the ranks of officers – which is by far the biggest threat to safety. Director Washington must either resolve this crisis or find a leader who can.”

McBroom’s Oversight Committee previously highlighted MDOC’s lack of transparency regarding employee assaults and abuse of overtime rules during meetings in 2021 and 2022. Currently, many officers are working over 80 hours per week, sometimes exceeding 32 hours within two days.

“The committee found the department has a penchant for altering definitions of recidivism, assaults and disturbances; the security level of inmates; and even court-ordered demands for drug distribution,” McBroom stated. “It is always a new spin from them to avoid accountability and make it appear things are just fine.”

Last month, a union representing corrections officers urged the governor to mobilize the National Guard to address staffing shortages in Michigan prisons. Michigan Corrections Organization President Byron Osborn described hazardous working conditions, including unsafe prisoner-to-officer ratios, demoralizing numbers of forced 16-hour overtime shifts in a single week, and lax MDOC prisoner discipline policies that lead to inmates being “coddled at the expense of officer safety.”

A special edition of the Michigan Correction Organization’s newsletter detailed thirteen significant instances of violence between inmates and corrections officers at Baraga Correctional Facility from July 1st through July 17th. During this period, there were nine instances where staffing shortages forced lockdowns or cancellations of prisoner yard periods, escalating tensions between staff and inmates.

“Corrections officers cannot continue at this pace,” said Markkanen, R-Hancock. “MDOC is supposed to give corrections officers at least 32 hours between mandatory overtime shifts. Staffing shortages have caused countless violations of this policy, with many officers being required to work 16-hour shifts three to five days in a row. Five years ago, an internal survey revealed 140 corrections officers were actively planning to commit suicide. These officers go toe-to-toe with dangerous criminals every day. Yet our corrections officers remain wildly understaffed, underpaid, and unappreciated by the administration.”

McBroom sponsored Senate Bills 156 and 157 aimed at allowing corrections officers access to a retirement plan similar to that offered to Michigan State Police troopers—50% pension-based and 50% defined contribution like a 401(k). This plan is supported by both Markkanen and Prestin.

During his tenure as Menominee County commissioner, Prestin addressed a staffing shortage at Menominee County Jail by reallocating funds used for overtime towards substantial pay increases for county corrections deputies—a strategy he believes could be effective statewide.

“Raising wages is key to solving the staffing shortage,” said Prestin, R-Cedar River. “In Menominee County we saw that higher wages helped bring in more corrections officers and retain those we had. It’s cheaper too since retention helps reduce training costs while reducing mandatory overtime saves money and provides better work-life balance."

The U.P legislators assert that if Director Washington cannot resolve these issues promptly then it may be necessary for Governor Whitmer's administration find someone who can.

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