The recent escape of 10 individuals from the New Orleans Correctional Center has quickly shifted from a public-safety crisis to a political flashpoint. With leadership races heating up across the city, some are using this incident less as a moment for reflection and more as an opportunity to score political points.

But before we rush to judgment or call for heads to roll, we need to ask: How did this happen, and what does it reveal about our systems of incarceration and governance?

A Mistake Becomes a Megaphone

Officials now allege that a maintenance worker, possibly by turning off the water system, created an opportunity for the escape, through a hole created for a cell toilet fixture. While details are still emerging, the public and media have zeroed in on Sheriff Susan Hutson, with demands for her resignation.

Hutson has taken full responsibility—acknowledging that anything that happens under her roof ultimately falls on her. But focusing exclusively on her role oversimplifies the issue. Security failures don’t exist in a vacuum. They reflect broader questions about staffing, oversight, infrastructure, and policy—issues that extend far beyond one office.

The Politics of Public Fear

Predictably, political hopefuls are using the jailbreak as a platform for their campaigns. Law and order rhetoric is surging. But some of the loudest voices are the same ones who’ve supported underfunding and cuts to social services, education, and mental-health programs—drivers of crime and incarceration in the first place.

This pattern is familiar: problems emerge, outrage spreads, and politicians scramble to appear tough. Yet few are willing to address how deeply tied our criminal justice system is to cycles of poverty, trauma, and profit. Instead of fixing root causes, we fund more jails. Instead of offering opportunity, we build pipelines to prison.

The Role of the Community

What is our role in maintaining justice? Yes, elected leaders must be held accountable. But communities, too, have a responsibility to engage in meaningful reform—not just reactive outrage.

We must ask ourselves:

• Are we supporting policies that invest in people before they reach prison?
  
• Are there community safe spaces through the New Orleans Recreation Department that stay open afterschool and on weekends for young people who need adult support and guidance? 
  
• Are we demanding education, job training, and mental-health care in the neighborhoods most affected by incarceration?
  

Focus on the Facts—Then the Fix

Right now, the focus should be on understanding exactly what went wrong at the jail and how to prevent it from happening again. Let the investigation proceed. Let the facts speak. Then—and only then—should we decide what accountability looks like.

The bigger truth is that this jailbreak is a symptom, not the disease. We started having conversations about criminal-justice reform 20 years ago, after the levees broke. It’s why we no longer have 7,524 beds, like we did in 2004.

We’re long overdue for a deeper conversation—not just about how we keep people locked up, but why they end up there in the first place.

Gus Bennett is a photojournalist for The Lens.