February 2, 2008
February 2, 2008: Privatization Update
An update on the true "cost" of private prisons in the United States.
Overall Privatization Issues
Feb. 1 - Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano wants to tighten up rules for the state's growing private-prison industry, which is virtually unregulated by the state. A legislative proposal drafted by the Governor's office and introduced by Republican Senator Robert Blendu would bar private prisons from importing murderers, rapists and some other dangerous or seriously ill felons to Arizona. It would also require the companies to share security and inmate information with state officials. "It is a matter of public safety," said Dennis Burke, Napolitano's chief of staff. "Other states are exporting their worst criminals to Arizona, and we can't even know what they are doing and what steps they are taking to protect Arizonans." But private prison officials and other industry supports say the bill could threaten the industry. "If you change the rules of the game midstream, were are going to resist it because we invested based on the current rules," said Tony Grande, senior vice for Corrections Corporation of America. Now, more than 9,000 felons from Alaska, Hawaii, Washington and other states and the federal government are housed in 6 of 11 privately run prisons in Arizona. But unlike other states, Arizona has no restrictions on the kind of out-of-state inmates that can be brought there. And private prison companies in Arizona are not required to share detailed information on inmates, staffing and security measures or have their facility design approved by state officials. Such requirements are in place in other states with significant private prisons. Of the 15 states that expressly authorize private prisons, Arizona is one of the least restrictive. Arizona laws require companies to carry insurance to cover law enforcement costs in cases of escape, notify state officials when they bring new prisoners into the state and return prisoners to their home states to be released. But there are no penalties if the companies don't comply and no way to check on releases. Blendu's bill would bring together several restrictions found in other states and give the state the ability to assess fines if the private companies don't comply.
Correctional Medical Services
Feb. 1 - Continued poor performance by the Delaware Department of Correction's medical vendor could hamper the department's efforts to get out from under supervision by the U.S. Justice Department, according to a new report by an independent monitor overseeing the state prison system. Correctional Medical Services, a private company Delaware pays millions of dollars a year to provide medical care to inmates, suffers from a "lack of stable and effective leadership," independent monitor Joshua Martin wrote. "Moreover, there has been consistent turnover at staff-level positions, and, at (Young Correctional Institution) in particular, there is a problem with staff insubordination that needs to be addressed because it affects inmate medical and mental health services negatively," Martin wrote in his report. "The monitoring team has also faced difficulty in receiving consistent and accurate information from CMS." While Martin found that the DOC has made some improvements, he concluded that many CMS staff lacked proper credentials or were working outside their areas of expertise. The monitoring team also found that for three months last year, no inmate at the Smyrna prison received a referral to an outside specialist because "the person who was assigned to schedule appointments for inmates was on sick leave, and CMS had failed to find a temporary replacement." Inmate medical files were found stashed in boxes, while others were out of date, doctored or missing. At the Baylor Women's Correctional Institution, a book used to keep track of inmates suffering from highly contagious flesh-eating bacteria was lost, the date irretrievable.
Corrections Corporation of America
Jan. 29 - Six black nurses in Indiana are suing the private prison company operating a Marion County jail, alleging they were fired or forced to leave their jobs because of racism or exposing medical practices that put inmates at risk. The 10-count complaint alleges Corrections Corporation of America retaliated against the six because they had complained to their supervisors that inmates did not receive prescribed medications, were given wrong medications or were given other patients' drugs to save money.
The suit alleges CCA created a racially hostile work environment in which one white supervisor wore clothing with a Confederate flag emblem and another white supervisor had a drawing in which black nurses were identified as "monkeys." The nurses also said they were forced to work in an unhealthy and dangerous work environment including being ordered to escort dangerous inmates and having to walk through sewage with garbage bags on their feet when the plumbing in a restroom overflowed. The lawsuit said the alleged actions occurred over the last two years.
Jan. 30 - The Washington Department of Corrections plans to stop sending inmates to private, out-of-state prisons and to begin shipping home the 1,200 inmates at those facilities this summer. The state prison system has rented out-of-state prison beds since 2003 to ease overcrowding, but the scheduled opening in January 2009 of the new Coyote Ridge prison will likely allow the Department of Corrections to keep all prisoners in state. According to DOC projections of bed capacity, about 300 inmates currently at private prisons run by CCA will be shipped home by November. By April
2009, 360 more will return, with the rest arriving by July 2009. Also the Legislature is considering a bill that would ban out-of-state transfers for inmates who are in regular contact with their families, or who participate in parent-teacher conferences. The out-of-state transfers have put DOC at odds with its own program to keep fathers connected with their children. Research has shown that inmates who keep close contact with their families have lower recidivism rates, and their children are less likely to be incarcerated. The out-of-state transfers also put more pressure on prisons because CCA will take only healthy, well-behaved inmates.
Jan. 31 - Hawaii prison officials hope to use federal money to build new tent-like structures to house up to 449 prison inmates on Maui, Kauai and the Big Island to ease overcrowding in state prisons and jails. The proposal amounts to the largest single expansion of the state prison system in twenty years. The housing would be 7,064-square-foot "Sprung Instant Structure" made from a membrane stretched over an aluminum skeleton. Each structure could house up to 64 inmates. Together those structures would provide housing for up to 256 men and 192 women inmates. The objective is to make more space available inside secure correctional facilities around the state.
Jan. 30 - An immigrant detention center that holds children with their families could double in population under an agreement between Williamson County and federal officials to add up to 250 female detainees. Since opening in 2006, the T. Don Hutto Residential Center has held immigrant families while they await decisions in their immigration cases. The 512-bed facility has 250 people living there, and the county's agreement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement could add up to 250 noncriminal immigrant females in a separate area. The detention center has faced heavy criticism by protesters for what they call the wrongful imprisonment of children. It has also caused liability concerns for the county, after a guard was fired after he was accused of sexually assaulting a female detainee in May. County commissioners debated whether to keep their contract with the federal government and Corrections Corporation of America, the private company that owns and operates the facility. The contract expires Jan. 31, 2009. Commissioner Cynthia Long said she is comfortable adding more female detainees, saying new measures have been put in place to prevent future incidents. Some of those include more staff training and education on how to operate video and security equipment. The contract change surprised some residents opposed to the facility.
The GEO Group
Jan. 31 - A federal lawsuit was filed against the GEO Group, the Florida company that runs the jail in Delaware County, Pennsylvania and numerous other states. The suit listed a single plaintiff; Stephen Bussy, 53, a home health-care worker who was strip-searched after a drunken driving arrest last year. Bussy represents a class of people nationwide who were allegedly victimized by strip-searches for minor offenses in GEO Group jails, the suit says. The suit lists damages at $5 million, but lawyers say that is considered to be a baseline figure for that type of class-action suit. Last month three guards from George W. Hill Correctional Facility said all prisoners entering the facility were strip-searched, including people held for minor violations, such as failing to make child support payments or those held because they could not pay outstanding traffic tickets. Federal judges across the nation have ruled that blanket strip-search policies for people arrested for minor crimes violates the U.S. Constitution's protection from "unreasonable" search and seizure. Office from GEO Group would not comment on the suit. But in past interviews, GEO has refused to discuss the corporation's policy on strip searches. Some of the lawyers filing the suit have been working with a group of attorneys that won a $7.5 million settlement from Camden County for allegedly strip-searching thousands of people illegally in its prison. Two of the attorneys also sued the Philadelphia Corrections Department seeking $15 million for allegedly conducting more than 20,000 illegal searches. The suit is pending.
TransCor
Feb. 2 - A privately contracted guard is in jail after Bradford County, Florida deputies charged him with having sex with two inmates he was transporting. Shaun McFadden is charged with two counts of having sex with an inmate in custody. The incident began after McFadden, an armed guard who works for TransCor, took four prisoners to the county jail. McFadden returned a short time later and told authorities he needed to take the two women to a local hospital for physicals so they could be cleared for further transport. McFadden and the women, who were handcuffed and shackled, then left. A police report said the women and McFadden had planned the move. The women told police they intended to drink and smoke with McFadden, while one also planned to escape. The women told police McFadden had consensual sex with them at a motel. One of the women said she became fearful that McFadden might harm her and fled while he was in the shower. When police arrived, they found McFadden and the other woman still in the room.
