Prison Privatization

Proponents argue that prison privatization can cut costs while maintaining or improving the quality of correctional services. But a mounting body of research shows that these promises have not been met. Justice Strategies research examines the impact of privatization at the state and national level, and documents the industry's role in promoting rapid prison population growth.
News Article McClatchy Newspapers November 1, 2011

Supreme Court case tests private prison vs. inmate rights

WASHINGTON — Prison hurt Richard Lee Pollard, in more than the usual ways.

Now, from improbable beginnings, the Supreme Court will examine Pollard’s treatment at a privately run California facility. The outcome could either shield or render more vulnerable the fast-growing private prison industry, not to mention what it might do for Pollard’s own post-prison life.

News Article The Explorer News March 30, 2005

Report: No reliable data on private prison savings (AZ)

It was 11 years ago when Arizona first entered the business of outsourcing its corrections operations to private, for-profit corporations with the approval of a privately-run state prison in Marana. Read more »

News Article

Judith Greene debates Reason Foundation's Adrian Moore on prison privatization

Judith Greene debates Adrian Moore, director of the Reason Foundation's Public Policy Institute, in a Corrections Connection forum on prison privatization.  Click here to listen online.

 

JS Publication February 23, 2005

Cost-Saving or Cost-Shifting: The Fiscal Impact of Prison Privatization in Arizona

Arizona policymakers responded to claims that significant cost-saving have been achieved through privatization by nearly tripling the number of state-contracted beds. But Justice Strategies' analysis finds that these claims are based on flawed, outdated research that failed to address critical factors including population differences and the cost of financing.

***Justice Strategies analysis finds cost-saving claims based on flawed, outdated research. *** Read more »

JS Publication October 1, 2004

From Abu Ghraib to America

Since the infamous photos of abuses at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq first came to light, much has been said about the role that the U.S. military and CIA have played in connection with the human rights violations. But reports of similar abuse in the United States are all too common, which suggests that America's dehumanizing prison culture has now been exported elsewhere in the world. Read more »

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