Bureau Of Prisons Called Out By Office Of Inspector General On Faith-Based Support

The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) manages 122 prisons in the United States. During the pandemic, all of those jails were placed on lockdown for a period of time in order to prevent the spread of COVID-19. During the lockdowns, most inmate activities were halted, and convicts were frequently confined to cells or restricted in their movement. Visitation was canceled, and even phone and email communication was suspended. Both convicts and personnel at the BOP were under a lot of stress. Faith, regardless of one’s beliefs, becomes crucial in these situations. It’s what gets us through tough situations, and it doesn’t get much tougher than being locked up. As a result, the Bureau of Prisons has hired full-time chaplains to “administer, supervise, and perform tasks engaged in a program of spiritual welfare and religious direction for offenders in a penitentiary context.” It’s a difficult task! Now, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) has issued a report claiming that the BOP is failing to accomplish the program’s objectives.

Prison During COVID-19, chaplains were difficult to come by, according to a new Office of Inspector General study “The BOP’s capacity to administer a safe and effective religious services program is hampered by a considerable lack of chaplains and other chaplaincy services workers [over 30%]. Furthermore, we discovered that some inmate religion groups are severely underrepresented due to a lack of faith diversity among the BOP’s chaplaincy personnel. As a result, many institutions rely on nontraditional religious services, such as those led by inmates.”
After reading this, it appears that many of the BOP’s programs are run by convicts rather than employees. Convicts typically teach GED classes to prepare other inmates for the GED (high school equivalency) test, which is proctored by BOP officials. Many inmates teach classes on numerous themes, including as finance, yoga, meditation, self-improvement, and so on, with the agreement of the local BOP personnel. When it comes to faith, however, the desire for professionally educated preachers is something that other inmates cannot meet. The following are some of the dangers linked with inmate-led religious groups, according to the report:
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION FOR YOU “Staff from the Bureau of Prisons regularly advised us that inmate-led services posed a risk to inmates’ safety and security. One particular source of concern was the possibility that a convict may exploit his or her position as a religious leader to engage in banned activities or to gain authority and influence among the inmates.”
There was also the COVID-19 problem. Many faith projects are volunteers that come to the prison to visit convicts and are coordinated by chaplains. Individuals visits were halted for a time under COVID-19 as part of the BOP’s procedure for minimizing interaction between those in the community and those in prison. Following the BOP’s lifting of limitations, certain institutions have been sluggish to reintegrate those groups into prison activities.
According to the OIG report, “BOP institutions are unable to adequately administer their religious programs in the absence of a fully staffed and diverse chaplaincy, prompting many BOP institutions to turn to alternatives that pose increased risks, such as inmate-led services and reliance on minimally vetted volunteers.”/nRead More