Philadelphians will vote on whether to establish a Prison Oversight Board in May Election

CONTACT: Sam Lew, sam@alcenter.org, 415-272-8022 

Philadelphia, PA—The Prison Oversight Board Advocacy Coalition, spearheaded by the Abolitionist Law Center, will hold a rally in front of City Hall on Tuesday, March 11 at 12:00 PM ET to educate the public about the Prison Oversight Board which hopes to address the complete lack of accountability, transparency, and oversight in the Philadelphia Dept. of Prisons. The Coalition, including people formerly incarcerated in Philly’s jails, advocates, and concerned citizens, will be protesting the human rights abuses, torturous conditions, and deaths in Philly’s jails. A bill introduced by Councilmembers Isaiah Thomas and Nicolas O’Rourke created a new Prison Oversight Board in December, and Philadelphia voters will approve or disapprove of it in the upcoming May primary election. 

The proposed Prison Oversight Board will be a nine-member body driven by the community to provide much-needed oversight of the Philly jails. 

On any given day, approximately 4,000 individuals are incarcerated in the city’s jails and face horrific conditions: waiting for months on end for inadequate medical care, severe abuse and mistreatment by guards, inadequate out-of-cell time, and little to no access to basic necessities. In the last 5 years, there have been over 60 deaths in the Philly jails. According to the most recent federal monitor’s report, of the total 2,376 eligible patients for medical appointments, only 36% were seen between January and June 2024. “Patients regularly report they must wait many months to receive specialty care appointments… Appointments are frequently canceled and rescheduled multiple times before they are seen.” 

Despite efforts to increase staffing, 42% of those jail staff positions remain unfilled (Court Monitor’s report, Oct 2024). What’s more, even where staffing has increased, conditions have not improved. Rikers Island—one of the deadliest jails in our nation—has a staff-to-incarcerated person ratio of nearly one-to-one, yet it remains a dangerous and abusive environment. Decarceration is necessary to protect the lives and wellbeing of both incarcerated people and workers. 

WHEN: Tuesday, March 11 at 12:00 PM ET

WHERE: North Side of City Hall (JFK and N. Broad Street), 1400 John F Kennedy Blvd, Philadelphia, PA 19107 

WHO: Prison Oversight Board Advocacy Coalition, a group of 20+ organizations and individuals in Philadelphia, including the Abolitionist Law Center, calling for accountability, transparency, and oversight over the Philadelphia Dept. of Prisons. 

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The Abolitionist Law Center is a public interest law firm and community organizing project inspired by the struggle of political and politicized prisoners and organized for the purpose of abolishing class and race-based mass incarceration in the United States. Abolitionist Law Center litigates on behalf of people whose human rights have been violated in prison and organizes to end state violence, empower impacted people, and protect individuals who encounter the criminal legal system while uplifting solutions rooted in healing, liberation, and self-determination. Follow Abolitionist Law Center on Facebook, @AbolitionistLC on Bluesky, and @Abolitionistlc on Instagram.