AG Sessions selects Army general to lead federal prison system
A U.S. Army general has been tapped to lead the federal prison system, which will likely see its inmate population grow with Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ tough-on-crime policies.
Sessions announced Tuesday that Army Maj. Gen. Mark S. Inch would lead the federal Bureau of Prisons. He has 35 years of military service.
Sessions says Inch was a former military policeman who was head of the Army Corrections Command, among other positions. Sessions says that experience makes Inch “uniquely qualified” to oversee the federal prison system, a role he says is “critical.”
Inch most recently served as an Army adviser on policing issues, developing programs and policies related to the Army’s police organizations.
He was also commanding general of the Combined Joint Interagency Task Force 435 in Kabul, Afghanistan, responsible for “detainee operations.”
Justice Department announcement
“General Mark Inch has served this country at home and abroad for 35 years. As a military policeman for nearly a quarter of a century and as the head of Army Corrections for the last two years, General Inch is uniquely qualified to lead our federal prison system. My confidence that he will be a highly effective leader of the Bureau of Federal Prisons is second only to my gratitude for his willingness to continue his service to this great country in this critical role.” —Attorney General Jeff Sessions
This story was originally published August 1, 2017 at 3:04 PM with the headline "AG Sessions selects Army general to lead federal prison system."