AL Corrections Commissioner’s Qualifications Questioned

Alabama law requires that the state prison chief have corrections experience, something a lawmaker said Corrections Commissioner Jeff Dunn did not have when he was hired by Gov. Robert Bentley in 2015.

State law says the commissioner must have experience in the “administration of correctional systems.” Dunn did not have a background in corrections. He took the job after retiring as an Air Force colonel.

Rep. Johnny Mack Morrow told The Decatur Daily that the prison system has a management problem and needs an experienced commissioner.

Bentley spokeswoman Yasamie August told The Associated Press that Dunn’s qualifications were vetted by the personnel department. Personnel director Jackie Graham said her recollection was that the governor’s office called her about Dunn. They agreed the military experience was “sufficiently related.”

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