President visiting El Reno penitentiary today
Ponca City Now - July 16, 2015 7:27 am
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – President Barack Obama visits the El Reno Federal Correctional Institution Thursday in his push for a fairer justice system.
He is scheduled to meet with law enforcement officials and nonviolent drug offenders.
It is part of a weeklong focus by the president on inequities in the criminal justice system. Obama has argued forcefully for an alternative to the continued lengthy incarceration of people who’ve been convicted of crimes that he says didn’t fit the punishment. He says society pays too high a price in dollars and human capital.
The White House says Obama will be the first sitting president to see the inside of a federal prison.
He’ll also be interviewed at the prison for an upcoming documentary on the criminal justice system.
