Statements on the resignation of Marcus Hicks

SENATE MINORITY CONFERENCE LEADER KRISTIN CORRADO

“The resignation of Commissioner Hicks only addresses half of the leadership failure in the Murphy administration that allowed the abuses and sexual assaults at Edna Mahan to continue for too long.”

ASSEMBLYWOMAN JEAN STANFIELD

“It took Governor Murphy far too long to move on from Commissioner Hicks, and I have to think about all the women who continued to suffer during his indecision. Hicks stepping down is vindication for the many women who were sexually and physically abused by guards at Edna Mahan. This is a victory for them, but we have to continue to question why it takes Murphy so long to act when women are being harmed under his watch.”

STATE SEN. DAWN ADDIEGO

“The Governor’s decision to replace Marcus Hicks as Corrections Commissioner is long overdue; it comes almost five months after the inexcusable assaults at the Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women that occurred on Hicks’ watch. I’m glad that he finally heeded the unanimous vote by the Senate calling for Hicks’ removal. Now we need to make sure that we develop a proper plan for the closure of the Edna Mahan facility, and do it in a way that is cost-effective for taxpayers and that transitions inmates to facilities where they will be safe, where they will be closer to their families and where they can get the support they need for reentry into society. I look forward to meeting soon with the new acting commissioner, Victoria Kuhn, to discuss these issues.”

SENATE MAJORITY LEADER LORETTA WEINBERG

“I would like to thank Commissioner Hicks for making the right decision, on behalf of the Department of Corrections, on behalf of the women inmates at Edna Mahan prison, and on behalf of the people of New Jersey. Now we can begin the long overdue process of safeguarding the women at Edna Mahan, who have been forced all too often to suffer untold verbal and sexual abuse and unwarranted violence over this long period of time. I look forward to seeing our correctional institutions strive to become more humane places in which to house our prison populations, to treat our inmates with greater dignity, and to be more transparent in their operations as we chart a safer path forward.”

ASSEMBLY SPEAKER CRAIG COUGHLIN

“With the Commissioner’s announcement, New Jersey will be able to turn the page on the deeply disturbing culture of systemic abuse and violence that has pervaded Edna Mahan’s history Charting a responsible path forward, a path that offers respect and dignity to the women, and that safeguards the well-being of all those in the care of the State’s correctional facilities is the foundation on which we move forward.”

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