California state senator proposes to restore media access to prisons, jails

California state Sen. Nancy Skinner introduced on Monday, Senate Bill 254, which proposes greater access to city and county jails and state prisons. The proposed legislation gives the media, members of the legislature, judges, the governor and cabinet members, and members of the Committee on the Revision of the Penal Code, access to incarceration facilities in the state, upon request.

“The news media plays a vital role in providing information to the public and policymakers about how our government operates,”  Sen. Skinner said. “California used to allow the news media much greater access to state prisons, enabling us to learn more about prison conditions. But for the past three decades, California prisons have been among the least transparent in the nation.”

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