Missouri prison employees slam work environment

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Two Missouri prison employees on Thursday claimed there are problems ranging from low pay to scant accountability in state prisons to a legislative panel investigating the state's troubled Department of Corrections.

Northeast Correctional Center storekeeper Travis Case said work is so bad, "it's like you're walking into hell."

The agency fell under scrutiny after the Kansas City alternative weekly paper The Pitch reported prison-worker claims of sexual harassment, racial discrimination and other harassment by co-workers and retaliation by supervisors for speaking out. The newspaper reported the state spent more than $7.5 million on settlements and judgments between 2012 and 2016 related to the allegations.

The claims spurred outrage among some elected officials, including lawmakers who said they were left in the dark over the expensive lawsuits.

The House subcommittee that met Thursday was created to review the agency. The House Budget Committee also on Thursday passed a proposal to require the attorney general to report to lawmakers every year how money is being doled out from the state's legal-expense fund, which is used to pay settlements.

Department of Corrections director Anne Precythe, appointed by Gov. Eric Greitens in December, has said addressing claims of harassment is a top priority.

Case told the panel the current system "breeds corruption." He said there are no checks and balances, and vague policies allow for abuse.

Farmington Correctional Center corrections officer Lt. Jason Horn said there need to be stricter requirements about reporting all harassment claims to human resources. He said there's too much of a gray area now.

"There should not be a choice," Horn said. "No passing the buck."

Horn also questioned a decision to allow hiring of corrections officers as young as 19.

Both employees cited problems with low pay, poor treatment of employees, nepotism in hiring and high turnover rates.

"We feel like rusty tools nobody cares about," Horn said.

Rep. Jim Hansen, who leads the investigating subcommittee, said he wants to hear from more employees before making recommendations for change.