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A Biden-era executive order that called for phasing out the use of private prisons is repealed as the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) resigns and President Donald Trump seeks to overhaul the Department of Justice. It was done. .
Colette Peters, who has led the BOP since August 2022, has stepped down as director of the beleaguered agency and been replaced by William Lothrop, who had been deputy director of the BOP.
Peters was appointed in 2022 by then-Attorney General Merrick Garland as a reform-minded outsider tasked with rebuilding a government agency long plagued by staff shortages, widespread corruption, fraud and abuse. It was advertised.
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Attorney General Merrick Garland shakes hands with Colette Peters, then head of the Federal Bureau of Prisons, after being sworn in at BOP headquarters in Washington, Aug. 2, 2022. (Evelyn Hochstein, Associated Press)
The agency has approximately 36,000 employees and is responsible for more than 155,000 federal inmates.
Lothrop, who has worked in the BOP for more than 30 years, announced the move in a statement Tuesday, the day after President Trump was sworn into office. Under Legal News Service Act No. 360, BOP directors are not confirmed by the Senate.
“On January 20, 2025, Director Peters will separate from the Federal Bureau of Prisons and I will serve as acting director,” Lothrop said. “As we face ongoing challenges such as staffing shortages and operational issues, we are committed to working with you to find real solutions to strengthen our facilities. “We continue to work with our law enforcement partners and stakeholders to maintain robust programs and support services for our inmates.” ”
“Our mission remains clear: to provide a safe, secure and humane environment, ensure public safety and prepare our detainees for successful reintegration into society.” added in a statement.
Collette Peters, director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP), has resigned. (Tierney L. Cross/Getty Images)
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Shortly after Trump’s election, Peters announced the closure of six federal prisoner-of-war camps for men and one facility for women, including the scandal-hit federal correctional facility in Dublin, California, according to Forbes magazine.
FCI Dublin has been nicknamed the “Rape Club” since December, when the Department of Justice ordered it to pay around $116 million to 103 women who say they were abused there.
The prison’s former warden, Ray Garcia, and at least seven other employees are currently in prison themselves on charges of sexually abusing inmates.
During Peters, she appeared before the House and Senate Judiciary Committees to speak about the challenges facing the BOP, but struggled to produce results.
William Lothrop is not the acting director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP). (Federal Bureau of Prisons)
In September 2023, Peters was reprimanded by Sens. Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas) and Mike Lee (R-Utah). Peters said she waited more than a year for answers to written follow-up questions that Peters sent her. It first appeared before the committee in September 2022, but the committee was not given critical information to fully understand how the agency operates.
Peters also claimed he was unable to answer even the most basic questions about the agency’s operations, such as the number of employees, and referred to notes and talking points on a tablet computer in front of the senators. made me angry.
In 2024, then-President Biden signed the Federal Prison Oversight Act, allowing the Office of the Inspector General to conduct more unannounced prison inspections, according to Forbes magazine.
Over the years, inspections conducted by the OIG have found severe staffing shortages, inadequate medical care for prisoners, rotten food, and squalid living conditions. Peters welcomed the legislation, but said it hasn’t been funded yet.
The entrance to FCI Dublin in California’s Bay Area. (Anda Chu/MediaNews Group/The Mercury News via Getty Images)
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President Trump rescinded Executive Order 14006, which abolished the Department of Justice’s contracts with private prisons. The cancellation allows for a new contract between the private prison corporation and the U.S. Marshals Service.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Michael Dorgan is a writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business.
Send tips to michael.dorgan@fox.com and follow us on Twitter @M_Dorgan.
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