Hugh Hurwitz is out as the acting director of the Bureau of Prisons, Attorney General William Barr announced Aug. 19, and will be replaced by a former director of the agency.
Barr said in a Monday news release that Kathleen Hawk-Sawyer, who previously served as BOP director from 1992 to 2003, would take over the post again and Thomas Kane would take over as the deputy.
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“I am pleased to welcome back Dr. Hawk Sawyer as the director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons. Under Dr. Hawk Sawyer’s previous tenure at the bureau, she led the agency with excellence, innovation and efficiency, receiving numerous awards for her outstanding leadership,” said Barr.
“I am also pleased to announce Dr. Thomas R. Kane as the deputy director of BOP. Dr. Kane served in the bureau for over 30 years under four attorneys general and is known for his expertise and proficiency in prison management and organization. During this critical juncture, I am confident Dr. Hawk Sawyer and Dr. Kane will lead BOP with the competence, skill and resourcefulness they have embodied throughout their government careers.”
The announcement of new leadership comes just over a week after accused sexual predator Jeffrey Epstein was found dead in his cell of apparent suicide at Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York City, a facility that Barr said had “serious irregularities” at the time.
The warden of the New York prison facility, Lamine N’Diaye, was reassigned Aug. 13.
The American Federation of Government Employees, which represents federal prison workers, placed the blame at the prison’s understaffing, and reports surfaced not long after Epstein’s death that the correctional officers in charge of the cell block where Epstein was held were on mandatory overtime at the time of the suicide.
The understaffing problems throughout BOP facilities have long been a problem for agency employees, according to AFGE officials.
According to the news release, Hurwitz will remain with BOP, returning to his former position as assistant director of the Reentry Services Division, where he worked prior to being asked to take up the acting director post.
Jessie Bur covers federal IT and management.
