Washington Prisons

Anna King reports on two Washington State prisons dealing with COVID outbreaks/Runtime - 43 secondsTwo Washington prisons east of the Cascades have…

As Washington State goes deeper into its third year of the pandemic, families of imprisoned people say their loved ones are more isolated than ever, and…

Washington’s prison population has dropped to levels not seen in nearly a generation. COVID is a major factor, but what’s not clear is whether the downward trend is here to stay.

Coyote Ridge has the highest number of confirmed coronavirus cases of any Washington state prison. The outbreak is concentrated within the Medium Security Complex portion of the prison, which houses more than 1,800 inmates. The total prison population is typically more than 2,400.

Growing up, Gary Kempler remembers watching flocks of bighorn sheep near his hometown of Clarkston, Washington.Now, as someone who is incarcerated at Washington State Penitentiary, Kempler is in the Sustainability in Prisons Project. He’s working to help bighorns — through domestic sheep production.

Earlier this month, nearly half the inmates at the Washington State Penitentiary in Walla Walla staged a hunger strike. It ended after five days. The inmates were protesting the quality of prison food. It’s an issue that has been simmering in Washington prisons for years.

A Washington state prison inmate was accidentally held three-and-a-half years beyond his release date. The error was discovered last month. This follows the mistaken early release of nearly 3,000 Washington inmates over a 13-year period.