Our Blog

Adam “PacMan” Jones told me in an interview that it is difficult to watch so many people being put into prison for decades. “This sh*$ got to stop,” Jones told me, “you got one guy doing ayahuasca and they make a documentary about how great it is. Meanwhile, we got people in prison for decades for something like marijuana and it is legal now. That don’t make sense to me.”

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, prisons across the country faced severe staffing shortages. The Federal Bureau of Prisons, operating on an $8.3 billion annual budget, has attempted to address these gaps by hosting job fairs, offering retention bonuses, and increasing pay to attract and retain workers. Despite these efforts, federal prison facilities continue to grapple with significant staffing shortfalls. In December 2024, the BOP announced the closure of seven prisons — including six male prison camps — as a cost-saving measure to consolidate operations. Unfortunately, this challenge is not unique to federal institutions.