TESTA: New leadership needed at New Jersey Department of Corrections New Jersey State Senator Michael Testa Jr. It’s long past time for new leadership at the New Jersey Department of Corrections. Commissioner Marcus Hicks has repeatedly failed to manage our state prison system effectively, putting inmates, staff, and host communities at risk. We first raised those concerns nearly a year ago when Hicks ignored multiple warnings and advice that could have prevented COVID-19 from entering and spreading unchecked through our prisons. His refusal to listen resulted in major coronavirus outbreaks and an unnecessary loss of life. Unfortunately, Hicks also didn’t listen when we called for his resignation last year, and Governor Phil Murphy, unsurprisingly, failed to hold him accountable – just as he has held nobody accountable for Katie Brenan’s accusations or the tragic loss of thousands of lives in our nursing homes.