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Ruiz Urges Edna Mahan Inmates Be Placed in Facilities Closer to Families and Reentry Programs

Trenton – Senate President Pro Tempore M. Teresa Ruiz (D-Essex) today endorsed the Governor’s decision to close the Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women and repeated her call for inmates to be placed in facilities where they can connect with their families and prepare for reentry into society.

“The Governor’s announcement that he will close the Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women is the right decision,” Senator Ruiz said. “As we plan for the future, we should ensure that our women who have suffered abuse and neglect for so long can be transferred to facilities closer to their homes where they can receive support from their families and prepare for reentry into society after they have completed their sentences.

“As the U.S. Justice Department found in its scathing April 2020 report, Edna Mahan has a persistent and longstanding culture of abuse that has led to repeated violations of the federal Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act and of the constitutional rights of inmates. That culture is embedded so deeply within the prison that we have no choice other than to close the facility forever,” she said.