Arizona Lawmakers to Hold Hearing on Inmate Deaths in State Prisons

The Arizona State Legislature is preparing to take a closer look at the troubling issue of inmate deaths within the state’s prison system. On Tuesday, August 26, the Joint Ad Hoc Study Committee on Correctional Practices and Facility Safety will hold a public hearing at 10 a.m. in House Hearing Room 1 at the State Capitol in Phoenix. Lawmakers say the session will provide an opportunity to examine current policies within the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry (ADCRR) and determine whether reforms are needed to improve safety and accountability inside prison walls. The meeting will be open to the public and livestreamed for those unable to attend in person.

The committee’s formation reflects mounting concerns about the conditions and procedures that govern Arizona’s correctional facilities. Its charge is broad but urgent: investigate recent inmate deaths and review the policies that guide inmate classification, facility safety, and institutional accountability. Lawmakers will be hearing from a wide range of voices, including former prison staff, subject-matter experts, and stakeholders with direct experience navigating the correctional system. Their testimony is expected to play a central role in helping legislators evaluate whether the practices currently in place adequately protect both staff members and the inmates they supervise.

One of the most pressing issues on the agenda involves what are known as custody-level overrides. These are administrative decisions that permit maximum-custody inmates—those classified at the highest risk level, often because of violent histories or documented threats—to be reassigned to lower-security facilities. Critics of the practice have raised concerns that such overrides not only jeopardize the safety of staff but may also increase the risk to other inmates housed in less restrictive environments. By reviewing the procedures and justifications for these overrides, committee members hope to understand how often they occur, why they are approved, and whether they contribute to the rise in inmate deaths that sparked the hearings.

Beyond inmate classification, lawmakers intend to explore a broader set of questions tied to institutional safety. These include whether staffing levels are sufficient, whether security measures are being consistently enforced, and whether internal decision-making processes are transparent enough to ensure accountability when tragedies occur. The committee will also examine how ADCRR responds to inmate deaths once they happen, reviewing patterns in administrative reporting and internal investigations. These discussions are expected to shed light on how well the department is fulfilling its mission to safeguard both its employees and those in custody.

For this first hearing, the committee has requested testimony from ADCRR Director Ryan Thornell. His appearance is likely to draw significant attention, as lawmakers press for answers about the department’s policies, oversight procedures, and the reasoning behind custody-level override decisions. Director Thornell’s testimony will provide the committee with a critical opportunity to hear directly from the agency’s top leadership about how the department is addressing the challenges raised by recent inmate deaths.

The committee is co-chaired by Representative Quang Nguyen of Legislative District 1 and Senator Kevin Payne of Legislative District 27. Alongside them, other legislators serving on the panel include Representatives Laurin Hendrix of District 14, Neal Carter of District 15, Alma Hernandez of District 20, and Senators Hildy Angius of District 30, Mitzi Epstein of District 12, and David Gowan of District 19. This bipartisan group will work together to gather facts, analyze testimony, and consider whether legislative or policy changes are necessary to strengthen Arizona’s correctional practices.

Tuesday’s hearing marks the first in what is expected to be a series of sessions designed to provide a comprehensive look at the state’s prison system. By taking testimony from a diverse array of witnesses, lawmakers hope to build a fuller understanding of how classification policies, staffing levels, and internal accountability measures intersect with inmate safety outcomes. Their findings could ultimately shape future decisions about oversight and management within the ADCRR.

While no decisions will be made immediately, the significance of these hearings lies in the attention and scrutiny they bring to an issue that has long raised concerns among corrections officers, advocates, and families of inmates alike. The hearing represents an important step in bringing transparency to a system where the stakes are high and where lapses in safety can have devastating consequences.

The public will have the opportunity to follow along as the committee questions officials, hears testimony, and begins the process of evaluating Arizona’s correctional practices. With inmate deaths as the catalyst for this review, the discussions are expected to be frank, detailed, and potentially difficult. Still, committee members say their objective is straightforward: to ensure that correctional facilities are managed in a way that prioritizes both safety and accountability.

As Arizona lawmakers prepare for Tuesday’s hearing, the focus will be squarely on understanding what has gone wrong, whether current policies are sufficient, and what steps may be required to prevent further tragedies. The results of their inquiry could have lasting implications for the future of corrections in Arizona.