Kelsey Stein | kstein@al.com

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Julie Bennett | jbennett@al.com

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The Southern Poverty Law Center sued the prison system on behalf of mentally ill inmates in Alabama prisons.

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File photo | Julie Bennett | jbennett@al.com

August 2001

Alabama settles the 1992 suit over services for mentally ill inmates. The case, filed in the name of Thomas Bradley, called for hiring dozens of mental health professionals and licensed nurses to deal with the mentally ill.

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AP file photo

Dec. 2, 2002

Responding to a suit by the Atlanta-based nonprofit Southern Center, U.S. District Judge Myron Thompson referred to the overcrowded, understaffed conditions at Tutwiler as a "ticking time bomb."

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Birmingham News file photo

June 29, 2004

In a two-part agreement, Alabama promised to improve living conditions and medical care at Tutwiler.

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Birmingham News file photo | Bernard Troncale

May 23, 2012

The non-profit Equal Justice Initiative asks the federal government to investigate Tutwiler. The group’s report noted that it had "uncovered evidence of frequent and severe officer-on-inmate sexual violence.”

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Julie Bennett | jbennett@al.com

April 2013

The U.S. Department of Justice sends investigators to Julia Tutwiler Prison for Women, in the wake of a National Institute of Corrections report released earlier in 2013 outlining problems with male supervision of female inmates at Tutwiler.

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Julie Bennett | jbennett@al.com

Jan. 17, 2014

The U.S. Department of Justice reports the results of the April 2013 investigation to Gov. Robert Bentley and announces that it will expand its probe. The report condemns the "toxic, sexualized environment" at Tutwiler and the failure of prison officials to address the problem, despite having knowledge that it persisted.

The violations range from verbal abuse and voyeurism to forced sexual contact between prisoners and Tutwiler staff members, according to the report.

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AL.com file photo | Tamika Moore

Jan. 23, 2014

Alabama Department of Corrections Commissioner Kim Thomas says he has implemented changes at Tutwiler by following 58 specific steps recommended by the National Institute of Corrections in 2012.

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AL.com file photo

March 6, 2014

Bentley visits Julia Tutwiler Prison for the first time. The state announces it has hired Washington, D.C.-based consulting firm The Moss Group to help address problems at the troubled prison for women.

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Tamika Moore | tmoore@al.com

April 2014

The Alabama Department of Corrections appoints Wendy D. Williams as deputy commissioner for Women's Services. She previously worked with correctional practitioners around the nation, focusing on vulnerable offender populations and the Prison Rape Elimination Act.

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AL.com file photo | Mike Cason

April 8, 2014

Alabama announces additional assistance in fixing the state's prison problems. The state will work with the Council of State Governments Justice Center, the Pew Charitable Trusts and the Bureau of Justice Center to make corrections policies more cost-effective by examining the entire criminal justice system.

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AL.com file photo | Julie Bennett

June 6, 2014

Officials from the U.S. Department of Justice visit Tutwiler Prison for a follow-up inspection.

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AL.com file photo | Mike Cason

June 10, 2014

The Southern Poverty Law Center releases a report on Alabama prisons filled with grisly tales of inadequate medical care. They sue the state and the prison medical providers one week later.

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J.D. Crowe | jdcrowe@al.com

June 10, 2014

Alabama's Prison Reform Task Force, created by the Legislature, meets for the first time. The goal in Alabama is to propose a package of bills in time for the next legislative session in March 2015.

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AL.com file photo | Tamika Moore | tmoore@al.com

July 2014

More than 300 cameras are installed at Tutwiler to monitor the facility 24/7. Within the first few weeks, officials said the cameras already had aided in several investigations.

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AL.com file photo | Julie Bennett | jbennett@al.com

Julie Bennett | jbennett@al.com

Oct. 7, 2014

Six months into the Moss Group's work at Tutwiler, privacy features like shower doors and toilet partitions had been installed, and ADOC was seeing an increasing number of female applicants seeking work as correctional officers.

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AP file photo

Jan. 27, 2015

Department of Corrections Commissioner Kim Thomas resigns and announces that he plans to begin his retirement. Gov. Robert Bentley announces that Air Force Col. Jefferson S. Dunn will take over in March.

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AL.com file photo | Julie Bennett | jbennett@al.com

Jan. 29, 2015

The Council of State Governments releases the findings of a comprehensive study of the Alabama criminal justice system. They found that Alabama could create a safer and more cost-effective system by conducting individual risk assessments of offenders, improving the quality of supervision and investing in community resources.

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AL.com file photo | Ian Hoppe | ihoppe@al.com

March 2015

One of Col. Jeff Dunn’s first acts as commissioner was visiting Tutwiler, where he met with 25 “long-timers” – women who have served at least 20 years.

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AL.com file photo | Mike Cason | mcason@al.com

May 21, 2015

During the Alabama Legislature's regular session, lawmakers pass the Justice Reinvestment Act, which would enact sweeping criminal justice reforms aimed at reducing the state's prison population and reducing recidivism.

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Birmingham News file photo

May 2015

The ADOC reaches a settlement agreement with the DOJ over the treatment of female inmates to avoid federal intervention. They are given a nine-month window to implement changes such as better screening and monitoring of employees and faster investigations into sexual abuse claims.

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Ian Hoppe | ihoppe@al.com

September 2015

Budget woes threaten changes and updates at prisons, though Tutwiler sees less of an effect because the state must fulfill its legal obligations there.

The Alabama Department of Corrections operates with a budget topping $400 million. The proposed reforms would cost about $26 million this fiscal year and about $25 million annually through 2021. The legislature passed the act, which Gov. Robert Bentley signed, but the reforms can't be enacted if the money isn't there.

Though the bipartisan plan saw little opposition, the state faced a gaping $200 million deficit in the General Fund budget, meaning criminal justice reform was vying with other programs for limited funding.

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Kelsey Stein | kstein@al.com

November 2015

Tutwiler warden Bobby Barrett says ADOC officials are working to improve inmates' access to education through voluntary programs. While incarcerated, women now have options like literature classes and an initiative that enables them to take distance-learning courses via tablet.

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Kelsey Stein | kstein@al.com

December 2015

DOJ officials have told Dunn that Alabama is exactly where it needs to be on the path toward meeting the spirit and intent of the Tutwiler settlement agreement.

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AL.com file photo | Julie Bennett | jbennett@al.com

Feb. 2, 2016

In his annual State of the State speech, Gov. Robert Bentley said the state is about to embark on a complete transformation of its prison system.

They plan to tear down decades-old prisons and consolidate them into four, newly constructed facilities. The state will permanently slam the door shut on Tutwiler Prison for Women, he said.

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