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Legislation & Politics | ||
Letter to Rep. Ted Strickland supporting his amendment to H.R. 3402, the Department of Justice Appropriations Authorization Act which would waive the matching grant requirement for certain correctional officersSeptember 26, 2005 The Honorable Ted Strickland Dear Representative Strickland: On behalf of the 1.4 million members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) and the correctional officers that we represent, I write in support of your amendment to H.R. 3402, the Department of Justice Appropriations Authorization Act which would waive the matching grant requirement for certain correctional officers. On August 9, 2005, one of our dedicated correctional officers, Wayne "Cotton" Morgan, was gunned down outside the Kingston, Tennessee Court House by the wife of an inmate. Officer Morgan was escorting the shackled prisoner when shots rang out. He was killed, and the prisoner and his wife escaped. Tragically, Officer Morgan was not wearing a bulletproof vest, although he repeatedly requested one from the warden at Brushy Mountain Prison. The Tennessee Department of Corrections Administrative Policies and Procedures memorandum Sec. 506.7 requires that fitted vests be provided to individuals assigned to transportation duties. Despite this requirement and Officer Morgan's repeated requests, he was not issued a vest due to lack of funding. In honor of Officer Wayne "Cotton" Morgan, AFSCME wholeheartedly lends its support to your efforts to make sure that this situation never occurs again. Your amendment would ease the financial burden on state corrections agencies by waiving the matching grant requirement for correctional officers who work in high security risk areas and in transport of prisoners. In these specific situations, there is a high likelihood of serious injury or death to correctional officers. On behalf of AFSCME correctional officers across the nation, I commend you for introducing this important amendment.
Sincerely, |
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