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Senate panel recommends confirmation of Ariz. prisons director |
By Associated Press |
Published: 05/27/2004 |
A state Senate committee on Wednesday unanimously recommended confirmation of Dora Schriro as Arizona corrections director, with senators lauding her handling of a 15-day prison hostage standoff earlier in the year. Action by the full Republican-led Senate was expected later Wednesday. Another of Democratic Gov. Janet Napolitano's appointments, Economic Security Director David Berns, also awaited a Senate vote. Schriro, 54, was appointed June 13 and took office July 1. She must be confirmed by June 12 to remain in office past that date. The Senate held off considering confirmation of her appointment until late in the current legislative session in hopes of first receiving two reports on the hostage situation. Two inmates took two officers hostage in an officer tower at the Arizona State Prison Complex-Lewis in Buckeye, holding the second officer for 15 days before surrendering and releasing her on Feb. 1. A male officer had been released on Jan. 24. Neither report awaited by the Senate is expected to be released before early June, and the Legislature was trying to adjourn its session this week. The committee's 90-minute hearing Wednesday focused on Schriro's priorities for the department troubled by prison crowding and on her handling of the Lewis hostage situation. While some prisoner rights advocates said Schriro had been unresponsive, crime victims and prison employees endorsed her appointment, saying she had brought innovations to the corrections system. |
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