Colorado’s prisons have been filled nearly to capacity for months. And when the state has too many people in its prisons, difficult living conditions can quickly become intolerable. That’s got Colorado Department of Corrections officials, staff and some lawmakers worried. DOC says it needs more money to fund hundreds of additional beds for male inmates. But state lawmakers in both parties say DOC has failed to come up with a plan to address systemic issues.

CPR’s Bente Birkeland and KUNC’s Kyle McKinnon dig into how the state got to the point of such high occupancy in its prisons, the ripple effect of crowding in prisons and how conversations on solutions are playing out at the State Capitol. 

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Purplish is produced by CPR News and the Capitol News Alliance, a collaboration between KUNC News, Colorado Public Radio, Rocky Mountain PBS, and The Colorado Sun, and shared with Rocky Mountain Community Radio and other news organizations across the state. Startup funding for the Alliance was provided, in part, by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Purplish’s producer is Stephanie Wolf. Sound design and engineering by Shane Rumsey. The theme music is by Brad Turner. Megan Verlee is the executive producer.