Texas Prison Bid'ness

Clarksville City Council, in Red River County, is considering a private prison facility. According to recent reports in The Paris News city officials are competing for Emerald Correctional Management to build the facility in their backyard.

Clarksville City Council gave its approval to the submission at a May 20 meeting. If approved, the facility will be under private contract for 10 years. After bond retirement, the title reverts to the city.

From reports, it seems that Emerald will target its efforts to federal agencies to imprison undocumented immigrants and be the latest site for expanding national detention capacity.

The facility would house 2,500 [undocumented immigrants] and would be considered a medium/minimum security facility.

Officials mistakenly think that building this prison in their backyard would contribute to economic development and increase jobs in the area.

Folks in Clarksville need to learn from the research that debunks that myth. For example the research published by blog contributor Bob Libal and his colleagues at Grassroots Leadership. They developed the report Considering a Private Jail, Prison, or Detention Center as a resource for public officials considering these decisions. The report debunks the myth that prisons contribute to economic growth.

The research reveals that prisons have not played a prominent role in economic growth in either metropolitan or rural counties. Moreover, new prisons actually impeded private and total economic growth in depressed rural counties. Contrary to the widely held beliefs about this subject, there was no evidence at all that prisons helped to lower unemployment rates, raise median family incomes, or increase earnings.

It will be interesting to track the developments that happen in Clarksville and whether Red River County will be the latest location for a private prison.

The ever-informative T. Don Hutto blog has documents showing that Immigration and Customs Enforcement has issued a pre-solicitation notice for up to three new family detention centers. UPI has a story on the notice, issued in April and with a response date of June 16th.

The U.S. government is accepting bids for up to three new detention centers that would house as many as 600 men, women and children fighting deportation cases.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement issued a call for proposals last month and set June 16 as the deadline, the Los Angeles Times reported Sunday.

The new facilities are being considered on both coasts and on the southwestern border. There currently are two family facilities -- a former nursing home in Pennsylvania and a former prison in Texas.

The planned minimum-security residential facilities would provide a "least restrictive, non-secure setting" and provide schooling for children, recreational activities and access to religious services, the request for proposals says.

The notice is an effort on ICE's part to add to its family detention capacity, and possibly faze out family detention at the notorious T. Don Hutto detention center, the converted medium security prison which has drawn numerous protests, media scrutiny, and a lawsuit by the the ACLU and the University of Texas Immigration law clinic (it's important to note that the settlement agreement only covers Hutto and not other family detention centers).

The proposed facilities would add up to 600 beds, a move that seems unwarranted as the two existing family detention facilities (Hutto and the Berks, PA detention center) have a combined ability to hold about 330 prisoners in the family units. In fact, thanks to the lawsuit settlement, the number of people in the family unit at Hutto has reportedly dropped to around 150, while Berks only had a total capacity of just over 80.

So, where is the need for these new family detention beds coming from? And, more importantly, why is ICE soliciting new detention beds when Congress has said multiple times that effective, less-costly alternatives to family detention should be implemented whenever possible?

Three upcoming events from different organizations in the next week will target the policy of family detention and the T. Don Hutto detention center in Taylor, Texas. Information below:

Hutto Protest in Taylor

Saturday, May 24th meets at Heritage Park at 11am, march leaves at noon, protest and music at T. Don Hutto

 

Musicians James Perez y Karnaval, Karma, Arma Musical, Xemilla, and hip-hop act Iztli will all perform. Sponsored by the Texas Indigenous Council, César E. Chávez March for Justice, MADRES, Amnesty International, LULAC, Code Pink, T5, Dialog Makers, Houston Sin Fronteras, and others. For more information, contact Jina Gaytan (210) 396-9805 or Antonio Diaz (210) 396-9805.

 

 

Film Screenings in Taylor

Sunday, May 25th, 8pm

Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, 708 Sturgis Street, Taylor, TX

 

The East Williamson County Democratic Club invites you to "Documentaries Under the Stars" featuring The Short Life of Jose Antonio Gutierrez and Hutto: America's Family Prison, short films exploring the issue of immigration. The films hope to spark a discussion about U.S. Immigration policy and the T. Don Hutto detention center. America's Family Prison film-maker Matt Gossage and Iraq Veterans Against the War member Hart Viges will be on hand to lead the discussion.

 

 

Austin Press Conference Opposing SAVE Act and More Family Detention Centers

Wednesday, May 28th, 10am

Federal Building, 300 E. 8th St, Austin, TX

 

Texans United for Families is holding a press conference opposing the SAVE Act's provision to create more "Hutto-like" family detention centers around the country. Local immigrant rights organizations, faith leaders, and advocacy groups have signed on to a national letter opposing the SAVE Act and will deliver that letter to Congresspeople in the U.S. Federal Building in Austin. Thus far, the letter has been signed locally by Ponce Law Office, Grassroots Leadership, Texans United for Families, Austin Immigrant Rights Coalition, Proyecto Defensa Laboral, La Nueva Raza, LULAC, Texas Jail Project, Texas Civil Rights Project, American Friends Service Committee, Code Pink Austin, MADRES, and leaders from the faith and civil rights communities. Contact Bob Libal at blibal@grassrootsleadership.org or (512) 499-8111 for more information or to add your group to the list of signatories.

As always, see tdonhutto.blogspot.com for more information on Hutto and the campaign to end detention of immigrant children and their families.

Recently, The GEO Group, INC. held a conference call on earnings during the first quarter of 2008. During the call, company officials gave themselves a pat on the back for growing financial interests due in part to an increase in the average per diem rate of incarceration to $59.74 from $53.80 last year.

George Zoley, GEO Chairman & CEO, stated that before the end of 2008, the company will activate 5,300 new beds around the nation, contributing to $92 million in additional operating revenue.

Zoley discussed the company's Texas operations at length. Apparently, the prison profiteers have several projects in the pipeline that will increase Texas private prison beds:

Source: The GEO Group Inc.

These new facilities will increase private prison capacity in Texas to over 3,200.

During the Q&A section of the conference call, a curious listener asked about the Coke County facility. Y'all will remember that last year the facility was the center of controversy and GEO lost the contract with the Texas Youth Commission after horrible conditions were discovered. Zoley stated that the facility is empty, and GEO is searching for new customers to occupy the available beds.

As usual, these conference calls provide a great deal of information and allow us a glimpse into the priorities of private prison profiteers. Advocates in other states may wish to listen to the call or read the transcript (find link below) to learn about GEO prison expansion in their backyard.

Links:

• GEO Group INC. First Quarter 2008 Conference Call
  
• What Isn't Going Wrong in GEO Group's Texas Prisons?
• TYC Closes GEO's Coke County Facility