This site contains over 2,000 news articles, legal briefs and publications related to for-profit companies that provide correctional services. Most of the content under the "Articles" tab below is from our Prison Legal News site. PLN, a monthly print publication, has been reporting on criminal justice-related issues, including prison privatization, since 1990. If you are seeking pleadings or court rulings in lawsuits and other legal proceedings involving private prison companies, search under the "Legal Briefs" tab. For reports, audits and other publications related to the private prison industry, search using the "Publications" tab.
For any type of search, click on the magnifying glass icon to enter one or more keywords, and you can refine your search criteria using "More search options." Note that searches for "CCA" and "Corrections Corporation of America" will return different results.
Pay-for-Play Tablets: The Costly New Prison Paradigm by Historically, prisons and jails have been loathe to give prisoners access to technology. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) didn’t even allow prisoners regular access to telephone calls until 2009. Access to internet-based services, which the non-incarcerated take for granted, is …
“Locked In, Priced Out”: Markups and Kickbacks in Prison Commissaries by Drawing from a research database of commissary pricing and markups culled from 26 state prison systems, a report published by The Appeal on April 17, 2024, found commissary prices “up to five times higher than in the community,” with …
Details Vague on Spending from San Diego Jail Detainee Welfare Fund by The commissary operated in San Diego County jails collected enough revenue from detainee purchases to pump up the balance in its Incarcerated Persons’ Welfare Fund (IPWF) to $11.1 million by June 30, 2024. But the office of Sheriff …
West Virginia Slammed for High Costs, Low Quality of PrivatizedPrison Food
by
Before food service in West Virginia’s prison system was taken over by Aramark Correctional Services
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and poorly-stocked—especially those run by privatecontractors, who are many layers of bureaucracy removed from any need to respond to complaints from their “customers.”
The profiteers
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Investigation Reveals “Black Market in Broad Daylight” for Prison Food by Benjamin Tschirhart by Benjamin Tschirhart No one in prison expects to eat fine cuisine. The food served is merely intended to keep prisoners alive, with no thought given to how much it is or isn’t enjoyed. Yet certain people …
Fourth Circuit Says Virginia May Require Muslim Prisoner to Purchase Prayer Oil From Vendor Also Selling Pork and “Idols” by Matthew Clarke by Matt Clarke On February 1, 2022, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit ruled that the Virginia Department of Corrections (DOC) did not violate the …
Illinois Department of Corrections Cancels Contract with Canteen Provider Keefe by Kevin Bliss by Kevin Bliss On December 14, 2021, the Illinois Department of Corrections (DOC) canceled its contract with the Keefe Group as provider of prison commissary items. The next day, the state’s chief procurement officer, Ellen Daley, released …
Audits Reveals Problems With Privatized Food Service at Pennsylvania’s Allegheny County Jail by Jayson Hawkins by Jayson Hawkins Two audits released July 20, 2020 revealed a series of shortcomings by a food service contractor tasked with providing meals to juvenile detainees and in Pennsylvania’s Allegheny County. Florida-based contractor Trinity Services …
Privatized Food Service Problems at Pennsylvania’s Allegheny County Jail by Jayson Hawkins by Jayson Hawkins A recent audit at an Allegheny county jail revealed a series of shortcomings by a food service contractor tasked with providing meals to prisoners. Florida-based contractor Trinity Services Group was paid $3.5 million to provide …
"can increase the cost offan1ilies staying in touch by pho11e v.rith loved ones \iVho arc
incarcerated by as 1nuch as 40%." 12
Si1nilarly, the correctionalmedicalcare i11dustry is experie11cing
...
to the private
sector, exemplified by the growth of the privateprison industry; and (2) the imposition
of fines and fees on mostly low-income defendants to fund the criminal legal system.
States and local
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Aramark Gets Pennsylvania DOC Food Procurement Contract
by
In early 2017, Pennsylvania’s Department of Corrections (PDOC) entered into an “innovative” agreement
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, and Management and
TrainingCorporation were more
10
UNDERSTANDING AND
CONFRONTING
THE PRISON-INDUSTRIAL
COMPLEX
violent, abusive, and dangerous
than publicly operated prisons.3
Inmates in these privateprisons
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service giant Aramark, that contains a quesadilla, soda and 10 packs of ramen noodles. Other examples of gift packs include:
• “Hugs and Love.” This pre-assembled package is advertised
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and food services. In the latter regard, Aramark Correctional Services and Florida-based Trinity Services Group are the two largest players in the privatizedprison and jail food industry. Other companies
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;in three separate incidents at the Cotton facility, where prisoners also complained about “crunchy dirt” in potatoes. [See: PLN, Feb. 2017, p.48].
After switching in 2015 from Aramark, another
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Report Slams Takeover of Washington DOC Food Services by Correctional Industries by Lonnie Burton by Lonnie Burton In October 2016 report by Prison Voice Washington detailed the adverse effects of a takeover of food services in Washington state prisons by Correctional Industries (CI). The report, titled “Correcting Food Policy in …
– an indication that providing adequate meals to prisoners can not be done on the cheap.
Further, it appears that additional costs related to privatizedprison food services will be passed
...
