Julie Gómez Gómez, the new secretary of Puerto Rico's Department of Correction and Rehabilitation (DCR), outlined goals aimed at restoring confidence in the agency. Her priorities include strengthening relationships between incarcerated women and their children, introducing animal-assisted therapy programs in prisons, and advocating for retroactive payment of a salary increase for correctional officers.
Gómez Gómez also pledged that no complaint of sexual harassment or abuse would be allowed to go unaddressed, stating, "No podemos tener una vara corta para proteger los derechos" ("We cannot have a short measuring stick to protect rights"). The statements reflect her broader commitment to reforming practices within the DCR as she takes on leadership of the agency.