By Jill Schnall and Tim DiPaolo

Introduction

States are contracting private prisons to

take prisoners from public prisons
mainly to relieve overcrowding
States pay certain amount to firms for
each prisoner in the private prison
depending on security level
Corrections Corporation of America vs.
GEO group Inc. (Wackenhut
Corrections)

History

early 1980s
The Justice Assistance Act of 1984
1985 first state-level private-prison contract
was signed in KY
1990 Illinois expressly forbid prison
privatization
1998 NC ended contractual arrangement
with CCA for operation of 2 facilities CCA
had built

History Cont.

1998 Corrections Corporation of America

charged
1999 2 CCA prisons in NM had stabbings
and deaths
2002 TN Supreme Court in Memphis
Publishing Company vs. Cherokee
Children and Family Services

History Cont.

2005 Prison Legal News sued GEO group

for non-compliance with FL laws on public
records
2007 Friedmann v. CCA PLN sued due to
non-compliance with 2002 court decision
CCA unwilling to comply with Freedom of
Information Act
2002-2008, 85 CCA employees were
charged with crimes
2007 Proposed H.R. 1889

For Private Prisons

Prevent overcrowding
Save tax payer dollars
Not a new idea
Contractual and legal safeguards to ensure
quality
Contract can be terminated for
mismanagement

For Private Prisons Cont.

Financial incentives help to maintain order

and security
Many studies show that privately run
prisons have a higher quality of service and
level of performance
Freedom to set their own budget and
design their own facilities
Provide healthcare, education, and rehab

Against Private Prisons

Savings are a result of lower quality

services (food, medical care, basic needs)
Lower levels of staff and training
Misplacement of inmates
Doing justice should be the governments
job
Profit motives cause operators to cut
corners

Against Private Prisons

Cont.

Officials in private prisons report the

behavior of prisoners to state authorities
States often do not oversee prisoner
transfers in privatized prisons
Gaining power may cause private
companies to have influence over
corrections policy

Corrections Corporation
of America (CCA)

Innovative, efficient, cost effective, forwardthinking correctional solutions

Helps Economy
Pays sales taxes and property taxes
Pays utility payments and construction costs.
Creates jobs for an average of 200 skilled
tradespersons on new construction projects
Employs hundreds of new professionals
Revitalizes existing local businesses and helps
establish new ones

CCA Cont.

Helps Community
Community Relations Committees
Supports a variety of causes and organizations
Habitat for Humanity, the American Cancer
Society, March of Dimes, the American Red
Cross
Variety of rehabilitation/education programs
addictions treatment, GED preparation/testing,
post-secondary studies, life skills, employment
training, recreational options & work
opportunities

American Federation of State,

County and Municipal Employees
(AFSCME)

Prison run on taxpayers' expense

Gets lower quality of services
Understaffed, unqualified and poorly trained
corrections personnel
Public workers are laid off
Corruption scandals
preserve quality public services, ensure that
public service employees are treated fairly and
hold elected officials accountable to the public

AFSME Cont.

Supports H.R. 2305 Public Safety Act

End taxpayer-supported privatization

Corporations care more about profit than

public safety and security
Fundamental government responsibility

Table 3. Number of State or Federal Prisoners in Private Facilities, 20002008

Number of Prisoners
Year
Total
Federal State
Percent of
All Prisoners
2000
87,369 15,524 71,845 6.3%
2001
91,828 19,251 72,577 5.8%
2002
93,912 20,274 73,638 6.5%
2003
95,707 21,865 73,842 6.5%
2004
98,628 24,768 73,860 6.6%
2005
107,940 27,046 80,894 7.1%
2006
113,697 27,726 85,971 7.2%
2007
123,942 31,310 92,632 7.8%
2008
128,524 33,162 95,362 8.0%
Average annual
change 2000-07 5.1%
10.5% 3.7% :
Percent change
2007-08
3.7%
5.9%
2.9%
:
Source: Sabol, William J., Heather C. West, and Matthew Cooper,
Prisoners in 2008, Appendix Table 18.
Note: Figures are as of December 31 for each calendar year.

Evidence/Statistics For
Private Prisons

Prison population is growing by more

than 400% each decade
Federal prisons would need 35,00040,000 new beds each year
Control 87,000 beds at 65 institutions
2009 net income of $42.5 million

Evidence/Statistics:
Against Private Prisons

Arizona
49% more assaults on staff members
66% more inmate on inmate assaults
53% turnover rate of employees
Starting wages 23.4% lower
Higher position wages 39.4% lower

Evidence/Statistics Against
Private Prisons

GAO spent 1 year examining studies of

private and public prison costs

http://www.afscme.org/publications/2550.cf
m

Recent Developments

July 3 2010 prisoners escape from AZ private

prison
2010 SB 1070 (Arizona Immigration Law)
Nov 2010 AZ state audit found private prisons
cost taxpayers per inmate $55.89 per day
while public prisons $48.13 a day
Prop. 19 in CA
Nov 2010 Walnut Grove, the Walnut
Correctional Authority and GEO group vs.
Dennis Earl Holmes
2010 PA Judge pleads guilty

Green Party

Private prisons should be illegal

Prisons treat people as their product
Provide worse service than government
run facilities
Profits come from understaffing

Arnold Schwarzeneggers
View on Private Prisons

In favor of private prisons

Public Prisons are too crowded
Government spends too much money on
prisons
Cut costs on prisons

Arizona Democrats

Oppose giving control of state prisons to

private corporations
Unregulated
Safety Issue

Additional Information

http://www.correctionscorp.com/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXOHt
lvO9jI

Works Cited

o
o

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