Corrections Secretary

Arkansas Board of Corrections fires prisons chief in escalating dispute with governor

KUAR | By Hunter Field / Arkansas AdvocateFrom the Arkansas Advocate:

Arkansas’ prison oversight board on Wednesday fired Corrections Secretary Joe Profiri — a week after a judge ruled that Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ cabinet appointee served at the pleasure of the board for now.

Attorney General Tim Griffin has pledged to appeal that ruling, so it isn’t clear if Profiri, who came to Arkansas from Arizona a year ago with Sanders when she took office, will be permanently ousted.

Shortly after the ouster, Sanders announced that she would hire Profiri as a senior advisor, calling his termination a political stunt.

Profiri has had a strained relationship with the Board of Corrections since Sanders gave him a $40,000-a-year pay raise shortly after taking office and without the board’s approval. He was paid an annual salary of $210,000.

Arkansas Board of Corrections fires prisons chief in escalating dispute with governor

John Sykes/Arkansas Advocate

Former Secretary of the Arkansas Department of Corrections Joe Profiri, left, listens as Gov.Sarah Huckabee Sanders talks about criminal justice legislation during a news conference at the State Capitol on March 28, 2023.