As a result, the union gained direct access to the governor and, at times, was able to bypass the legislative process entirely. Another rather brilliant political strategy of the union was to align...

As a result, the union gained direct access to the governor and, at times, was able to bypass the legislative process entirely. Another rather brilliant political strategy of the union was to align itself with victims’ groups—sympathetic partners that also came to have a powerful political voice. Together they have influenced policy of the corrections department and its personnel, at times to the detriment of institutions.2