State closes prisons in Baker, Bradford counties in ‘strategic consolidation’

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Department of Corrections employees volition beryllium reassigned, volition not suffer jobs oregon rank, DOC says

Despite pushback earlier this twelvemonth for a program to shutter immoderate authorities prisons successful Florida’s agrarian regions wherever the communities trust connected their economical impact, the Florida Department of Corrections is moving guardant with “strategically consolidating” respective Northeast Florida prisons.

Baker Correctional Institution and New River Correctional Institution successful Bradford County volition close, and Cross City Correctional Institution, which was already evacuated due to the fact that of flooding, volition stay empty, FDC said.

All FDC employees volition beryllium temporarily reassigned to a neighboring institution. Staff volition not suffer their occupation oregon rank, arsenic these measures are temporary, the section said.

FDC said the inmates volition beryllium temporarily relocated and they volition not beryllium released early.

State closes prisons successful Baker, Bradford counties successful ‘strategic consolidation’

Jim Baiardi, the president of the Corrections Chapter of the Police Benevolent Association, told the Miami Herald that immoderate enactment camps, including Gainesville Work Camp, and smaller situation annexes successful different parts of the authorities could adjacent soon too.

“This is not the solution to the crisis. This is simply a impermanent band-aid. The fig of officers moving is not going to lick the vacancy problem,” Baiardi told the Herald.

FDC said it has implemented the pursuing measures to code staffing astatine institutions:

Continuing transitioning correctional institutions from 12-hour shifts to 8.5-hour shifts, arsenic recommended by nationalist experts, and powerfully supported done information investigation of information trends
Offering $1,000 hiring bonuses astatine institutions with 10% oregon much unit vacancy rate
Offering $1,000 hiring bonus for returning certified staff
Increasing the complaint of wage to $33,500 for (non-certified) correctional serviceman trainees
Hiring part-time certified correctional officers
Consolidated enactment camps and annexes into main institutions

Senate Criminal Justice Vice Chair Jeff Brandes, R-St. Petersburg, told the Herald the determination to adjacent prisons is simply a hopeless one.

“This should travel arsenic a daze to cipher because, essentially, we’ve been treated similar the lad who cried wolf for years and, unfortunately, astatine this juncture, the wolf has come,” Brandes told the Herald. “The situation that we are seeing wrong the section is that determination are vacant positions each implicit the place.”

Earlier this year, Florida Senate President Wilton Simpson’s connection to consolidate prisons and demolish 4 facilities drew bipartisan pushback erstwhile it was released arsenic lawmakers began to portion unneurotic adjacent year’s authorities budget.

Florida has much than 145 correctional facilities -- including prisons, annexes and enactment camps -- passim the state, with a attraction successful North Florida. Nearly 60% of the facilities are located successful agrarian counties, according to a 2019 study by the Legislature’s Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability.

The oldest situation inactive successful operation, Union Correctional Institution located successful Raiford, was built successful 1913. Union and Bradford counties person 9 facilities -- including 5 large institutions -- successful a North Florida portion known arsenic the “iron triangle.”

State prisons not lone supply nonstop jobs for corrections workers but person a cascading interaction connected the surrounding communities, wherever employees bargain groceries, devour astatine restaurants, be schools and acquisition homes.

Rural regions with correctional facilities besides payment from radical who patronize section businesses arsenic they marque trips to sojourn loved ones oregon friends who are incarcerated.

And due to the fact that inmates are included successful counties’ census counts, the nonaccomplishment of prisoners could effect successful a important alteration successful authorities and national revenue-sharing funds, which Levy County Commissioner John Meeks said would woody “another devastating blow” to agrarian areas.

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