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Dayton Daily News...
ACLU of Ohio warns
against private prisons
By Laura Bischoff
Thursday, April 14, 2011
The ACLU of Ohio sounded the alarm bells on Thursday against the state
selling off five prisons and hiring private contractors to then house
inmates in the facilities.
ACLU of Ohio Executive Director Christine Link said private companies
with a profit motive cut corners on staff training, inmate health care
and education, and safety policies that often end up costing the state
more money in the long run. The civil rights group released a 22-page
report that details problems with private prisons across the country.
“Privatizing prisons is seen as a quick remedy for states looking to
alleviate budget concerns, but they are often more costly to the state.
While our prison system is undeniably bloated, we must find long-term
solutions to stop the flow of people into the system, not gamble on a
system that could bring more problems than it solves,” Link said.
Link warned that private prison operators become political lobbying
forces in states and advocate for policies that will deliver a steady
stream of inmates to their business. She asked who would counter act
that lobbying power. “The ACLU? The Quakers? Who is going to win? Come
on,” she said.
The state Department of Rehabilitation and Correction owns 31 prisons
that house roughly 51,000 inmates. Two prisons are currently operated
by Management & Training Corp. Ohio is seeking to sell those two
prisons as well as three others for about $200 million by the end of
the year.
The plan calls paying the new owners rent for the facilities and daily
per inmate fee for housing the prisoners. If the new owners fail to
meet operational expectations, the state will be able to install a
different company to manage the prisons.
DRC spokesman Carlo LoParo said, “The ALCU’s report is more opinion
advocacy than scholarly research. The ALCU completely ignores the
comprehensive guardrails, safeguards and mandates Ohio has applied to
this process. We require all vendors to strictly adhere to the same
operational standards and procedures that apply to state-run
facilities.”
The state will require employees of the new operators to go through DRC
training and will mandate that the same education, job training,
substance abuse and health care programs offered at state-run prisons
will be available at the privately-owned facilities, LoParo said.
Read it at the Dayton Daily News
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