Private prisons are danger to community, workers say

Corrections officers from the Montgomery Education Pre-Release Center and Dayton Correctional Institute call their state representative from across the street to protest Senate Bill 269, which would create a commission to plan for privatization of at least half of the state’s prisons. Pictured are: (from left) Darlene Williams, Tonja Kelly, Patria Carter and Tonya Toliver. Staff photo by Jan Underwood

Jan Underwood/Staff Corrections officers from the Montgomery Education Pre-Release Center and Dayton Correctional Institute call their state representative from across the street to protest Senate Bill 269, which would create a commission to plan for privatization of at least half of the state’s prisons. Pictured are: (from left) Darlene Williams, Tonja Kelly, Patria Carter and Tonya Toliver. Staff photo by Jan Underwood

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By Nathan Waggenspack, Staff Writer Updated 7:32 AM Thursday, June 17, 2010

DAYTON — Corrections employees from Dayton called legislators Wednesday, June 16, to protest a bill that could lead to more state prisons being run by private companies.

The bill at hand is Senate Bill 269, which would create a Prison Privatization Commission to privatize at least half the state’s correctional facilities by the end of 2011.

It is another in a series of bills the state is proposing to help deal with budget concerns by lowering the number of state employees.

Employees who are members of the Ohio Civil Service Employees Association gathered across the street from the Montgomery Education Pre-release Center, 1901 S. Gettysburg Ave., and made the calls to their representatives Wednesday, June 16.

They said privatizing prisons would lower the quality of the facilities and create a less safe environment for everyone involved.

“If these prisons are operated by private corporations, this community would not be safe,” said Joan Hunter, OCSEA chapter president for Dayton Correctional Institute and Montgomery Education Pre-release Center. “They are not held to the same standards as a publicly run prison institution, so it would be devastation to our community.”

Of its 31 prisons, Ohio currently has two that are privately operated: the Lake Erie Correctional Institution and North Coast Correctional Treatment Facility, both in northeast Ohio. The facilities house only minimum- or medium-security prisoners.

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-0743 or nwaggenspack @DaytonDailyNews.com.

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