After Jeffrey Epstein's death, AG Barr appoints new leadership at Bureau of Prisons
Attorney General William Barr appointed a new leadership team at the U.S. Bureau of Prisons (BOP) on Monday, in the wake of the death of convicted sex offender and financier Jeffrey Epstein.
Barr removed the acting director of the Bureau of Prisons, Hugh Hurwitz, reassigning him but keeping him employed at BOP. In Hurwitz's place, Barr selected Kathleen Hawk Sawyer to lead the bureau. He also named Thomas Kane as the bureau's deputy director. Last week, Barr reassigned the warden of the Manhattan correctional facility where Epstein was being held and put two other prison staffers on administrative leave, according to the Washington Post.
Epstein, who was arrested by authorities last month, was being held at the Metropolitan Correctional Center while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges, which could have imprisoned him for up to 45 years.
"During this critical juncture, I am confident Dr. Hawk Sawyer and Dr. Kane will lead BOP with the competence, skill, and resourcefulness they have embodied throughout their government career," Barr said in a statement.
Barr thanked Hurwitz for "his dedication and service to the Bureau over the last fifteen months."
The Manhattan lockup where Jeffrey Epstein died by suicide.
Both Hawk Sawyer and Kane have had longtime affiliations with BOP. Hawk Sawyer served as director for more than 10 years starting in 1992, and Kane has served as acting director.
A medical examiner ruled last Friday that Epstein’s death was a suicide by hanging.