What?!? Private prisons suing states for millions if they don’t stay full

[John_Doe80004]

I find this appalling!!!! legislators have no shame!!!

http://rollingout.com/political-scandals/what-private-prisons-suing-states-for-millions-if-they-dont-stay-full/

Low crime rates bad for business for white-owned private prisons; they demand states keep them full
The prison-industrial complex is so out of control that private prisons have the sheer audacity to order states to keep beds full or face their wrath with stiff financial penalties, according to reports. Private prisons in some states have language in their contracts that state if they fall below a certain percentage of capacity that the states must pay the private prisons millions of dollars, lest they face a lawsuit for millions more.

And guess what? The private prisons, which are holding cash-starved states hostage, are getting away with it, says advocacy group, In the Public Interest.

In the Public Interest has reviewed more than 60 contracts between private prison companies and state and local governments across the country, and found language mentioning “quotas” for prisoners in nearly two-thirds of those contracts reviewed. Those quotas can range from a mandatory occupancy of, for example, 70 percent occupancy in California to up to 100 percent in some prisons in Arizona.

It is very interesting and telling that so few major national news organization are willing to report on the monstrous, ravenous and criminal system that is devouring hundreds of thousands of black and brown boys. Even those who do not subscribe to conspiracy theories have looked askance at this shocking report.

Welcome to the greatest manifestation of modern-day slavery, ladies and gentlemen.

One of those private prisons, The Corrections Corporation of America, made an offer last year to the governors of 48 states to operate their prisons on 20-year contracts, according to In the Public Interest.

What makes these deals so odious and unscrupulous? Take a look:

1) The offer included a demand that those prisons remain 90 percent full for the duration of the operating agreement. You know what that means: if there are not enough prisoners then there will be an unspoken push for police to arrest more people and to have the courts send more to prison for petty, frivolous and nonviolent crimes. There will also be a “nudge” for judges to hand down longer or maximum sentences to satisfy this “quota.”

2) Private prison companies have also backed measures such as “three-strike” laws to maintain high prison occupancy.

3) When the crime rate drops so low that the occupancy requirements can’t be met, taxpayers are left footing the bill for unused facilities.

The report found that 41 of 62 contracts reviewed contained occupancy requirements, with the highest occupancy rates found in Arizona, Oklahoma and Virginia.

In Colorado, Democratic Gov. John Hinklooper agreed to close down five state-run prisons and instead send inmates to CCA’s three corrections facilities. That cost taxpayers at least $2 million to maintain the unused facilities.

It is getting more difficult to rationalize the societal cost of keeping prisons full just to satisfy private investors who treat prisoners as commodity and cattle .

[TheNutcracker]

1. They measure 3rd grade reading, to predict how many more prison beds they'll need in the future.

Just google it. Who are we????

[Sienna86]

2. Think about it. Some state official signed a contract with those provisions.

Is that in the best interest of the citizens or a corporation?

[Igel]

7. Don't know.

Did they do a cost-benefit analysis, and look to see how much it would cost to build their own facilities and maintain them? Work out what staffing and benefits would cost?

Were they allowed to project scenarios under different assumptions? Say, falling crime rates, revision of 3-strikes and misdemeanor drug offences, stable crime rates, increasing crime rates--under conditions of constant and increasing population growth and tax base? What were the "best guess" assumptions and what did the projections look like--esp. given that states like California were ordered to release prisoners if regulation-compliant quarters couldn't be maintained for them?

Or was this something that was pushed from the statehouse or legislature?

All of this will be on the record. A good journalist would have looked at this. A bad one would ask a question and let quick-but-sloppy thinking readers' suspicions and assumptions masquerade as facts, would ask the reader to jump from being outside the courthouse to inside the jury room without the trial itself.

Then again, my definition of "good" involves asking facts to understand what's going on, and "bad" means "pushing a political point of view on those who really want to believe." If you're a website with either political points or $ to be scored--or both--then, of course, you want bad reporters because they're the ones that'll flatter their readers and keep bringing them back for more ... profit. Gotta keep those hits up if you want to keep those advertisers, otherwise you can't make budget.

[djean111]

3. They put that stuff in the contracts, in most places.

The state, country, city, whatever, guarantees a certain capacity.
Which is why it is so difficult to stop the war on drugs. A LOT of places depend on keeping those cells full. Plus the extras - jail canteens, fines, horrendous phone charges, things like that. Just the food and laundry and uniform concessions are huge. And I am reading that some jails are moving to only two meals a day, to save money, when they cannot get more per prisoner. Or just feel like increasing the profit.

[MADem]

4. The states need to send nitpickers, errrr...inspectors in and find violations left and right.

Then cut a deal and let some of these assholes out of their odious contracts.

Hell, take the locks off the cells and turn the prisons into homeless shelters--it's not fancy, but it's a place to sleep and crap.

[Doctor_J]

5. It's been that way the whole time. TPP will probably have similar fine print

The thing that used to be a democratic republic is now a corporation.

[procon]

6. Yeah, but we're Number One in max incarceration rates... USA! USA! USA!

How much money are these private prison companies donating to the various state and local justice systems to keep their profits up? Making a few donations to the campaigns of local sheriffs, judges, town councils, and state legislators, is a drop in the bucket compared to the money they pull in for maintaining a "high occupancy".

[Left coast liberal]

8. This is grotesque! The latest season of "Orange is the new Black"

is all about Private ownership or "the prison industrial complex".

I think if more people knew the shaming would begin and we could move away from it, as the pendulum swings back.

Frightening!

[appalachiablue]

9. K & R. Major corruption and evil, neoliberal privatization, greed and destruction of people & earth

[nilesobek]

10. They are going to have to create criminals where there are none now.

There's a few guys fresh out of the pen on my landscaping crew convicted of drug charges. The State absolutely owns these guys, lock stock and barrel. Not only are they overburdened by the fines and parole demands, but also my boss has their parole officers on speed dial which makes the workplace creepy and manipulative. I've seen him do it before. When he cannot get a particular employee to behave the way he wants, he calls the parole officer.

He has not such leverage on me which I think is frustrating for him. Most of these guys have spent time in the various private prisons that Idaho contracts through CCA. They never come out unchanged. Its damaging to them.

Idaho, they come on vacation but stay a long time on probation.

[IDemo]

11. If there's one thing I can say for Idaho

It's that they kicked CCA out when it became obvious they were a disaster.

http://www.occupy.com/article/state-idaho-seizes-back-control-largest-prison-corrections-corporation-america

[LiberalElite]

12. Welcome to DU! nt

[Scuba]

13. For profit prisons are a moral stain on American history.