As I read this something hits me wrong about it.

NEW YORK - Though state governments are no longer fueling a private prison boom, the industry's major companies are upbeat — thanks in large measure to a surge of business from federal agencies seeking to house fast-rising numbers of criminals and detained aliens.

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Since 2000, the number of federal inmates in private facilities — prisons and halfway houses — has increased by two-thirds to more than 24,000. Thousands more detainees not convicted of crimes are confined in for-profit facilities, which now hold roughly 14 percent of all federal prisoners, compared to less than 6 percent of state inmates.

Critics, including prisoners rights groups and unionized corrections officers, contend the policy amounts to a federal bailout of an industry that would otherwise be struggling with a checkered record. The companies and the government say they provide a flexible, economical alternative to building new federal prisons as get-tough policies boost demand for space in an overcrowded system.

"If the Bureau of Prisons is going to build capacity for themselves, they have to plan eight years in advance," said John Ferguson, chief executive of the Corrections Corporation of America, the biggest company in the field. "It takes a lot longer in the public sector than private sector to get things done."

The industry expanded rapidly in the 1990s on the assumption that business in a tough-on-crime era would grow indefinitely. But escapes and violence at a few private prisons, along with questions about cost savings, tempered enthusiasm.

Saddled with thousands of empty beds, CCA teetered near bankruptcy before new federal contracts helped it rebound. Since 2000, the Nashville, Tenn.-based company has doubled its number of federal prisoners to 18,200 — 29 percent of its overall inmate population.

"The federal government smiled on them just in time," said Judith Greene, a New York-based prison-policy analyst.

Business is certain to grow. Bureau of Prisons spokeswoman Traci Billingsley said the number of federal inmates is expected to rise from 185,000 to 226,000 by 2010, with private companies likely to be relied on for housing non-citizen immigrants convicted of federal crimes.

The number of people detained by U.S. immigration officials also is increasing rapidly — up three-fold in the past 10 years to more than 21,000 at a given time. In December, Congress passed a terrorism prevention bill calling for 40,000 additional beds by 2010 for aliens awaiting deportation.

Many of the detainees are housed at facilities run by CCA and its main rival, GEO Group — formerly Wackenhut. Both companies anticipate their detention business will grow.

"Those two are huge beneficiaries of overincarceration in the immigration system," said Lucas Guttentag of the American Civil Liberties Union's Immigrants Rights Project.

The private facilities are required to meet "rigorous federal standards," said Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokeswoman Jamie Zuieback. Yet critics insist privatization will lead to cost-cutting and accountability problems affecting detainees' welfare.

"They're putting in a system where it's easier to pass the buck," said lawyer Dan Kesselbrenner of the Boston-based National Immigration Project.

Rep. Ted Strickland (news, bio, voting record), D-Ohio, a former prison psychologist, tried unsuccessfully to block privatization approval in Congress. "When the primary goal is profit, that can and probably does lead to a variety of abuse," Strickland said. "I don't see any end in sight."

On the state level, there is no comparable boom for private prisons, but neither is there the bust some industry critics anticipated. As of mid-2004, private prisons housed 74,285 state inmates, compared to 76,763 in mid-2001.

About 30 states use private prisons, notably in the South and West. Texas has the most inmates in private facilities — more than 16,000; New Mexico has the highest portion of inmates in them — 43 percent.

Most states' policies remain unchanged since the 1990s and the bottom line is that overcrowding remains a stubborn problem.

Still, arguments persist over the pros and cons of private prisons, which pay lower average wages than government agencies. Whether this undermines performance is hotly debated, although federal researchers concluded in 2001 that high staff turnover did aggravate security problems at many private facilities.

Industry officials insist they have addressed such concerns.

"For those who think the public employee monopoly should be maintained, and sentencing advocates who believe we send too many people to prison, we're an easy target," said CCA's Ferguson. "But if I'm chief executive of a state, I'd see a value to having competition in my prison system."

The industry's future is bright enough that GEO Group is buying rival Correctional Services Corp., but prospects hinge largely on incarceration trends. Many states have balked at funding new prisons, and now face crowding problems they could ease by using private prisons or diverting some offenders to alternatives like drug-treatment programs.

"The drug war has been the main cause of profits for private prisons," said University of North Florida criminologist Michael Hallett. "We've gotten so extreme in overusing incarceration that we have for-profit industries with an interest in high crime rates."

Geoff Segal of the pro-privatization Reason Foundation predicted private companies will diversify their state business — offering more health and rehabilitation programs, for example.

"States with private prisons aren't going to get rid of them," Segal said. "It's a tough sell for a state to say it's going to spend more money on corrections rather than on Medicaid."

While we need to lock up criminals and STOP illegal imigration, this sounds a little too much like robo cop to me(sorry for the bad film reference).

I do not see how a prison can be run for a profit.

I have a tendency to lean towards privatization of everything.

Consider;

Hospitals

Nursing Homes

Beverage Alcohol Sales

In my area, the gov't hospitals (VA, etc) are crap.

The gov't sponsored nursing homes are crap.

The gov't run wine and beer stores are crap.

I dunno............maybe this is a good idea?

Prison for profit? Easily. You have a steady source of FREE LABOR. Private prisons can reward performance as long as they stay within state and federal regulations pertaining to sentances. Prison industries are a fine source of goods like furniture, matresses, office furniture and other marketable goods. The institutions are paid by state and federal monies to house these prisoners which saves on state and federal prisons.

The private facilities take the risks and use the labor. Sounds like a good deal for everyone.

Sounds like a good deal for everyone. Except the public. Employees of the Private prisons are not protected under the Scope of Duty protection. This means if they have to shoot an inmate who is trying to escape or trying to kill a Officer they could be taken to court in a civil trial. If a person is a ward of the state or the federal govenment than the federal government should take primary responsibility for there custody and care. I would hate to think of some privatte 7 dollar an hour Correctional Officer having to take care of the worst inmates this country has. What if somebody offered them $20,000 to help them escape. Sounds like a lot to a person who only makes $21,000 a year.

I was addressing the question how these institutions can turn a profit. And, not knowing much else about this industry, I would speculate that guards are making considerably more than $7 an hour. But, like I said, I don't know. Prison guards need to be somewhat skillful in their duties. I would assume they also must meet state and federal guidelines which would mean they have to have special training that would make their services of significant value. But, like I said...I don't know. I was just speculating on the profit aspect.

herf

Actually the private prisons do not have to follow the same hiring guideline the stae or federal systems have. Yes Correctional Officers (not guards) have skills most in the outside world do not and should be paid as such. The Federal System has a great pay scale most states other than CA and NY do not. This is a shame, but the private prisons pay their Officers very little.

Intel, my father says that he doesn't think it is a good idea. There would be no accountability for the care of the prisoners, unless the State or Federal Government got involved in regulating it and that is what is in place already. He doesn't believe that the guards would receive the same level of training that State and Federal employees do. He also feels that in order for the prisoners to be treated with dignity the staff attending them needs to perform with a level of professionalism that would be difficult to achieve in a private facility.

To throw my two cents in, I think that there is a much higher chance for corruption to blossom in a privately held facility. Sure there is corruption now, but no where near what it would be.

Heather

Your father is very wise. I agree with him on all counts. Your father sounds like a seasoned hack.

BTW, for those of you who don't know, my father worked for the State of Minnesota as a Corrections Officer for about 27 years. He ran on the riot squad when I was a little girl, and then worked in "B" house which was where the prisoners would come in and stay about 4-6 weeks until they could move to another unit. For the last 4 years he worked as the chief orientation officer, bringing new inmates in and giving them "the talk" about their new lives and how they could make the best of their incarceration. He very much enjoyed what he did, and very rarely did he have anything bad to say about "his boys." He truly believed that most of them were good people who made bad choices. He knew the scumbags when he saw them and would be the first to tell you that some people cannot reform.

He retired about 3 years ago, and it was one of the saddest things I have ever seen. It wasn't until then that he told me a story that made my blood run cold. One day when he was still on the Squad he was assigned to moniter the visit room. One of the harder cases was in there with his little girl, and one of the safety doors was about to close on her hand. It would have severed her hand from her wrist, but my dad caught it before it could close on her. A few weeks later he was down in the laundry alone with a group of inmates when it was decided that they were going to "do" my dad so that they could start a riot. That bad a$$ dude with the little girl was down there, and he saved my dad's life, stepping in between him and the other inmates. I wish I knew who that guy was so I could write him a thank you note. I hope he got to go home and be a good father to his little girl and kept himself out of trouble.

Heather

It is good to hear your father has great pride in his job. It is a tough job most folks would not want to do.

Intel, I was re-reading this thread and noticed you said that you did not think a prison could be run for a profit. My Father in law told me that the prison he worked at was self sufficient back in the day. They had a farm, body shop, auto repair shop, etc. They of course also made license plates. If they would have been selling the plates to the state they would have almost made money. Of course in liberally minded MN we don't allow that anymore so they sit around all day. That way the shock of the real world and a job will be that much greater. Heather's dad is a character that's for sure. He's the kind of guy that could tell any joke to anyone and not offend. In fact he used to tell African American jokes to some of the African American prisoners at their request. He even got christmas cards from some of them after thier release.

Having companies whose main purpose is to make a profit from incarceration is a very bad idea.

Can't you foresee a prison company lobbyist contacting the President and saying we need you to sign this law so that we can get more prisioners because our profits are down. The mind boggles with implications.

Most prisons use to be self supporting, then the laws changed and prisons were required to purchase food and the like from outside vendors. Texas is a prime example. Prior to the 1980s they would give money back to the state because they could survive on their own. Now they are the most out of budget department in the country. Private prisons do not grow their own food or make their own clothing they are places to stack inmates. It is the worst possible idea. When they go up, and they will, state and federal staff will have to bring the back on line.

I agree it's a bad idea! It could go down the same road as schools have. The schools used to answer to the people of the district. That was where the money came from. Now it all comes from on high from the state or federal government. They get x amount per child. It becomes all about the numbers and not about a good product. I think a private prison would be similar but 10 times worse!