Skip navigation

PLN managing editor quoted in article re CCA's loss of contracts

Nashville Post, Jan. 1, 2013. http://nashvillepost.com/print/75431
PLN managing editor quoted in article re CCA's loss of contracts - Nashville Post 2013

CCA losing Idaho contract

State agency says no to extension of deal to manage 'Gladiator School'

Published June 19, 2013 by NashvillePost.com

State of Idaho officials have voted not to extend Corrections Corp. of America contract to manage one of their prisons once the company's current contract expires in June of next year.

The decision by Idaho Department of Correction leaders means the Idaho Correctional Center contract, which is roughly $30 million per year, will go up for bid soon. CCA has run the 2,106-bed facility since it opened in 2000, but has repeatedly run into operational and legal problems there. The prison took on the nickname of "Gladiator School" among some inmates, a number of whom sued — along with the American Civil Liberties Union — CCA over violent incident and their general conditions. Earlier this year, an investigation revealed that the company had understaffed the facility, which led to the resignation of the company's warden there.

The pending loss of the Idaho Correctional Center contract pleased one activist who has for years campaigned against CCA and other private prison operators. Alex Friedmann, a former inmate at a CCA facility and now president of the Private Corrections Institute, said he sees the tide changing.

“Either due to fiscal reasons or CCA’s record of misconduct, states are realizing that they can do better than contracting with CCA or no longer have a need for the company’s privately-operated facilities,” Friedmann said in a PCI statement. “This reflects a trend in which states are reducing their prison populations and, thus, have less incentive to contract with for-profit prison firms.”

CCA last week said it also is about to lose contracts to manage two prisons in Texas and another in Missisissippi. The company owns one of those facilities, a 2,103-bed prison in Mineral Wells, Texas. That site will be idled in August.

Shares of CCA (Ticker: CXW) were down almost 1 percent to $34.19 in Wednesday afternoon trading on relatively light volume. Year to date, the stock is down slightly.

The IDOC move against CCA does have a positive side for another local company. As part of its decision, Idaho officials said they will consolidate the medical care at the Idaho Correctional Center under an existing contract with Brentwood-based Corizon.