ENDING PRIVATE PRISONS IN VIRGINIA FACT SHEET

The private prison industry, which reached its zenith during the peak of mass incarceration but has roots in the Jim Crow South, has no place in our communities. The profit-driven motives of the private prison companies create an inherent conflict between the financial interests of the companies and the best interest of incarcerated Virginians and their communities. The private prison industry is inextricably linked to the Jim Crow South and its exploitation of Black communities for profit. For example, the co-founder of CoreCivic (formerly Corrections Corporation of America) originally made his name as a warden in Jim Crow Texas' prison plantations for Black Americans in the 1960s. CoreCivic was the original operator of VA's only private prison, Lawrenceville Correctional Center (LVCC).

Private prisons have the motivation to minimally train their staff, provide them with the lowest wages the market will bear, and staff their facilities at low levels. A recent report commissioned by the Virginia Department of Corrections (VADOC) found that the starting salary for guards at LVCC was approximately $13,000 less than the starting salary for state guards. Additionally, LVCC is severely understaffed. To bring the prison to the standards of similar VADOC facilities would require the state to hire an additional 93 guards.

That is not the whole story. The state deducts from GEO's payments for every improperly staffed shift at LVCC. Guards at Lawrenceville are often asked to work additional shifts (sometimes up to 16 hours). GEO doesn't do this to ensure that LVCC is managed safely and effectively; it just wants to avoid losing money. Even with these tactics, GEO's has been fined an average of $31,294.74 per month since its contract with the state was renewed in 2018.

LVCC does not have fewer guards because the GEO Group has determined a more efficient way to safely guard prisons, it's simply trying to turn a profit. GEO's contract with the state guarantees a set revenue ($48.94 per day for the first 1425 inmates and $8.47 per day for every other inmate). This set revenue means that GEO can only increase its margins by cutting costs like staffing and educational programs.

Understaffing is a common problem with private prisons and it makes the facilities dangerous for inmates and staff. A 2016 Department of Justice report found that for-profit facilities were more dangerous for both guards and inmates. Staff members were 163% more likely to be assaulted by inmates and inmate on inmate violence was 30% higher than in government-operated facilities. The VADOC report notes that LVCC relies more heavily on cameras than state facilities. Relying heavily on cameras and hiring fewer guards means a longer response time when emergencies or altercations occur, allowing them to escalate further than in other facilities.

GEO's Stock price has decreased more than 50% over the past five years and a large number of financial firms (JP Morgan, Wells Fargo, and Sun Trust, to name a few) have already cut ties with the private prison industry. The decline of the company's viability has increased pressure for it to turn a profit. GEO can only increase profits in its current facilities by cutting costs and services, making the facilities dangerous, unhealthy, and less likely to release inmates prepared to rejoin society successfully.

The right to use force to deprive citizens of their liberty should fall exclusively to the duly elected government. The government is elected and acts as a fiduciary to the people, obligated to pursue the best interests of its constituents. It is the state's best interest to provide humane and rehabilitative care to the citizens in its custody to maximize their chance of rejoining society. Corporations, on the other hand, have not been selected by the people, and are therefore not accountable to them. The motivation of corporations is to create a profit, which causes private prison corporations to behave in ways that do not reflect the best interest of the Commonwealth.

Fortunately, there is an easy solution to this problem: strike language from the state code that allows Virginia to enter into contracts with private entities for the management and operation of jails and prisons. Illinois, California, and Nevada have each passed legislation inhibiting private prisons. Virginia should, too.

Updated: 11/15/20