Sen Jon Ossoff's (D-GA) bipartisan Prison Camera Reform Act of 2021 passed the U.S. Senate. | File photo
Sen Jon Ossoff's (D-GA) bipartisan Prison Camera Reform Act of 2021 passed the U.S. Senate. | File photo
A bipartisan bill that would reduce violence and civil rights abuses in America’s prisons – introduced by a senator from Georgia known for helping to expose crimes – passed in the Senate on Oct. 20.
Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-GA) introduced on Sept. 29 the Prison Camera Reform Act of 2021 (S.2899) with Sen. Chuck Grassley (R- Iowa), ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and Dick Durbin (D-IL), Democratic Judiciary Committee Chair, according to a press release.
The bill would “require the director of the Bureau of Prisons to address deficiencies and make necessary upgrades to the security camera and radio systems of the Bureau of Prisons to ensure the health and safety of employees and inmates.”
Upgrades to the security camera systems would “ensure the secure storage, logging, preservation and accessibility of recordings” that could be available for criminal investigators, the press release said.
“As divided as our country seems, the Senate’s passage of this historic bipartisan prison reform measure proves Americans can still come together to strengthen civil rights, public safety and the rule of law,” Ossoff said in the press release.
Ossoff led a team that exposed ISIS war crimes, corporate abuse and more, his Senate biography said.
Grassley said he hopes the “House swiftly passes the bill,” according to the press release.
The House received the bill on Oct. 21, Congress.Gov said.
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