Think Out Loud

Wildfire evacuation conditions for Oregon prisoners criticized as ‘inhumane’

By Julie Sabatier (OPB)
Sept. 24, 2020 11:48 p.m.

Broadcast: Friday, Sept. 25

The Oregon State Correctional Institution near Salem, Oregon on Sept. 8, 2020. The prison was one of the prisons evacuated because of wildfires.

The Oregon State Correctional Institution near Salem, Oregon on Sept. 8, 2020. The prison was one of the prisons evacuated because of wildfires.

Provided / Oregon Department of Corrections

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Four Oregon prisons were fully evacuated earlier this month due to wildfires. Accounts from inmates, their lawyers and family members characterize the evacuation conditions as unsafe and unsanitary. Women evacuated from the Coffee Creek Correctional Facility say they were zip-tied together on school buses without access to restrooms, food or medication for many hours. We hear from attorney Tara Herivel, who leads a team of public defenders, and Paula Myers, superintendent of the Coffee Creek Correctional Facility.

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