Pairing a veteran police officer with a former inmate to crack down on crime seems the stuff of Hollywood — in fact, it was a winning formula when Eddie Murphy and Nick Nolte teamed up in 48 Hours. President Donald Trump is hoping to replicate that success as he attempts to turn around a federal prison system in crisis. The gamble may pay off.
With tight budgets, aging facilities, and a personnel crisis, the Bureau of Prisons is widely considered a management disaster. There have been seven directors over the past eight years, fitting for a federal prison system that has become a revolving door for inmates. Trump has taken a novel approach to correct the failures of the past, tapping William Marshall and his deputy Josh Smith to fulfill his campaign pledge to “make America safe again.”
