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Arkansas Board of Corrections Votes to Remove Secretary Joe Profiri, File Lawsuit

4 min read

The Arkansas Board of Corrections voted Thursday to place Department of Corrections Secretary Joe Profiri on indefinite leave and file a lawsuit challenging new laws that made the secretary answerable to the governor and not the board. 

Profiri is suspended from his position with pay, Arkansas Board of Corrections Chairman Benny Magness wrote in a letter Thursday to Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin.

The letter said that Profiri is barred from property owned or operated by the Department of Corrections or accessing any board resources. 

“In the event Mr. Profiri disobeys this directive, the matter will be referred to appropriate law enforcement,” the letter said. 

The board named Jerry Bradshaw to serve as executive in charge of the corrections department pending Sanders’ nomination of another secretary. 

The board also voted to file a lawsuit against Sanders, Profiri and the Arkansas Department of Corrections to challenge the constitutionality of Acts 185 and 659. Those acts, passed this year, amended Amendment 33 to say that the secretary of corrections serves at the “pleasure of the Governor” rather than the pleasure of the board. 

 

Arkansas Board of Corrections v. Sarah Huckabee Sanders by Scott Carroll on Scribd

Profiri “rejects the premise that he is accountable to the Board,” according to the lawsuit filed Thursday in Pulaski County Circuit Court by the board’s attorney Abtin Mehdizadegan of the Little Rock office of Hall Booth Smith. “Instead, Secretary Profiri has taken the position that his ‘boss’ is the Governor of Arkansas.”

Griffin said his office is reviewing the lawsuit. Griffin, who has challenged the board’s use of executive sessions, said he’s “troubled that the board continues to violate the law regarding compliance with the Freedom of Information Act and the unauthorized hiring of an outside counsel.”

The board is seeking a temporary restraining order or preliminary injunction preventing the enforcement of sections of the Acts 185 and 659. The board also wants a judge to say that the board has the authority to supervise and manage the secretary of corrections, who serves at the board’s pleasure. 

The board also asked that Acts 185 and 659 amendments are ruled unconstitutional. 

In a statement on X, formerly Twitter, Sanders said, “I stand firmly behind Secretary Profiri and his leadership of the Department of Corrections. The Board of Corrections would rather continue the failed catch and release policies instead of working with the Secretary to make our state safer, stronger, and more secure.”

The decision to remove Profiri is the latest conflict between the board and Sanders and Profiri, whom Sanders named as secretary in January. 

On Nov. 6, before a scheduled board meeting, Profiri asked board member Dexter Payne to make a request to add 622 beds to the prison system, according to the lawsuit. 

The Division of Corrections has a total capacity of 15,022 inmates. As of Nov. 20, there were 16,288 inmates, 1,266 over capacity. The figure doesn’t include about 2,000 inmates being held in county jails who are waiting for a prison bed.

The additional beds that Profiri wanted were requested for understaffed prisons. Profiri didn’t provide to the board any information about the costs or the effects of requests, according to the lawsuit.

“The Division lacks the resources to overcrowd prisons, and to do so would place officers, inmates, and the public at risk,” the lawsuit said. “Taking these actions, without a fully informed and vetted plan, would be unethical, dangerous, and reckless; and, in addition to the human harm that dangerous prison situations can create, the Board was concerned that taking such action without appropriate consideration will lead to additional litigation and potentially federal supervision.”

Sanders, Profiri, Griffin and law enforcement officials held a news conference on Nov. 17 and attacked the board’s decision not to approve the beds. 

“The Arkansas State Board of Corrections refused to approve Secretary Profiri’s thoughtful, informed, and desperately needed requests to open up hundreds of additional prison beds,” Sanders said. “This is simply unacceptable.” 

Sanders also said during the news conference that the board declined to approve almost 500 additional beds for “no reason whatsoever.” 

Magness responded on Nov. 20 with a seven-page letter to Sanders and Griffin that said that for years the board requested and supported the need for more prison beds, but previous administrations and legislatures weren’t willing to pay for them. 

Magness said that he was surprised to learn about the Nov. 20 news conference. 

“Since taking office, neither the Governor’s Office nor the Attorney General have contacted the Board to discuss or address any conversion — whether about bedspace, staffing or any other topics addressed during the press conference,” Magness wrote. “I hope to foster an open and collegial dialogue with your offices and would invite the opportunity to collaborate in a more productive manner.”

This story previously quoted Magness’ letter as saying Profiri was “terminated for misconduct and insubordination.” The quote was removed, as it appeared in an earlier version of the letter but not the final version.

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