On May 7, 2024, the federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) honored 26 fellow corrections officers and contractors who have lost their lives in the line of duty at Washington D.C.’s National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial park. Two recent casualties were Eric J. Williams and Osvaldo Albarati, who were killed in separate incidents in February 2013 at different institutions. Williams was attacked and killed by an inmate at USP Canaan, and Albarati was ambushed and killed while driving home from work. It was later discovered that Albarati’s shooting was carried out with the help of federal inmates using cell phones.
During National Correctional Officers Week, the American Federation of Government Employees highlighted the challenges and hazardous conditions that 30,000 correction officers face across the country. The president of the AFGE Council of Prison Locals, Brandy Moore White, emphasized the sacrifices and challenges these men and women endure daily in high-stress environments with limited resources. Their role is crucial to the functioning of the justice system and the betterment of society.
The ceremony in Washington D.C. brought out the best of the BOP, with BOP Director Colette Peters and Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General Marshall Miller addressing over 100 attendees. Miller commended the efforts of BOP’s workers, stating that correctional workers enter unpredictable and potentially dangerous environments daily to ensure safe and humane conditions in confinement and aid prisoners’ reintegration into society.
Retired BOP Director Charles Samuels honored the fallen officers by listing each of the twenty-six BOP members who lost their lives in the line of duty upon announcing his retirement in June 2015. Since then, there have been no additional staff members killed on duty. Samuels emphasized the importance of caring for one another and never forgetting the fallen heroes who sacrificed their lives for the protection of the American people.
Despite challenges such as staffing shortages and caring for over 150,000 federal prisoners, ceremonies like this one serve to remember those who have fallen and recognize the difficult job BOP employees perform daily. Director Peters highlighted the importance of acknowledging the family members of the fallen and coming together to grieve, comfort one another, and pay respect to those who made the ultimate sacrifice.
In response to the tragedies, improvements were made to protect BOP employees, such as instituting a program for prison staff to carry pepper spray and the enactment of the Eric Williams Correctional Officer Protection Act of 2015. Efforts are also underway to address the issue of cell phone use by prisoners to coordinate criminal activities, with Congress considering legislation to stiffen penalties for cell phone introduction into prisons and deploying jamming equipment to render the phones useless. Ultimately, the ceremony at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial served as a poignant reminder of the sacrifices made by those in law enforcement and the importance of coming together to honor their service to the country.
