incarceration

Visiting hours at the Broome County Correctional Facility will be expanded from 15 to 30 hours a week, according to an announcement from Sheriff Fred Akshar Monday. The change comes amid a prolonged fight over visitation rights at the jail.

"People have been without personal contact from a loved one for over two years now."

The activists say women and pregnant people at the jail are being denied access to medications, nutrition and medical care and subjected to voyeurism from the guards.

"Even if the court ends up dismissing the violation, that one day or few days that you spend in jail are enough to lose your job."

"Why is it state-sentenced inmates are being punished by not getting the same treatment as every other state inmate all because we're housed in county jails?"

“Most of the inmates are isolated from each other,” Harder added. “They’re not allowed out of their cells. They’re basically quarantined to keep the spread down.”

"What we found is that most people who have loved ones incarcerated have lost the desire to vote."

"It’s pretty common that anyone who enters our jail is going to have a substance abuse issue, possible a mental health issue and a lot of times an issue with both. That’s always been a big problem."

"What am I going to do with this knowledge, not even what am I going to do, but how am I going to do what I want to do with this knowledge?"

"We’re trying to re-enter a person into the community so they fit in better, so they don’t come back here."