prisons

A crumbling correctional facility in Hutchinson lacks air conditioning and has small cells. State prison officials say Kansas could be sued in federal court if it doesn’t build a new facility.

A criminal complaint alleges that guards at the Jefferson City Correctional Center in Missouri pepper-sprayed Othel Moore Jr., placed a mask over his face and left him in a position that caused him to suffocate. Four former staffers face murder charges in Moore's death.

The Missouri Department of Corrections had a $14 million budget allocation to install air conditioning at one of its intake facilities. It will take years for the project to be completed.

Prison can be a lonely, violent place. But one program — or more specifically, one Jefferson City, Missouri, prison resident — is helping change the men around him.

Law students at UMKC's Expungement Clinic helped nearly 60 people clear their criminal records, giving them better opportunities for jobs and housing. But the clinic's funding has run out. Plus: Foster group homes are meant for youth with significant behavioral and mental health issues, but Missouri doesn't have enough beds for girls.

Othel Moore died at the Jefferson City Correctional Center in December while restrained and in isolation. Four corrections officers were fired in March for their actions related to his death.

Health care services in Missouri prisons are declining, according to a prison reform advocacy group. The nonprofit says providers are leaving, emergency care is getting denied, and 66 residents have died this year.

Voters soundly rejected the question that would have extended a 3/8th-cent stadium sales tax for 40 years, allowing the Royals to fund their proposed downtown ballpark and the Chiefs to renovate Arrowhead Stadium. Plus: Families of the people incarcerated at Leavenworth are worried as visits and phone calls have been cut off.

Saint Louis University is running a prison education program that provides some Missouri inmates and prison staff with the opportunity to earn degrees. An inmate who hopes to return to Kansas City upon his release says the program gave him a new perspective on life.

The Missouri Justice Coalition is crisscrossing the state, with stops already in Kansas City, to raise awareness about conditions inside prisons and build support for reform legislation.

Women at the Topeka Correctional Facility play with their children at the Children’s Discovery Center. And inmates say it encourages them to stay out of trouble.

At least 105 people have died behind bars in Missouri so far this year. Beginning next month, the Missouri Justice Coalition is going around the state — including a stop in Kansas City — to focus on prison conditions and outline the case for reform.