TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) Kansas prisons have exceeded their operating capacity and it will cost the state millions of dollars to send hundreds of prisoners to a privately owned and operated prison in Arizona.
The Kansas Department of Corrections this month announced a contract with CoreCivic to move inmates to Saguaro Correctional Center, KCUR-FM reported. Plans call for 360 male prisoners to be moved starting this summer, and up to 600 inmates could be moved.
CoreCivic plans to fly the first group of 120 inmates to the prison in Eloy, Arizona, and others will be driven to the facility. The prison is roughly a 12-hour drive from the southwestern corner of Kansas.
Sending Kansas inmates to another state is an option we wish we could avoid, acting Corrections Secretary Jeff Zmuda said in the news release. Entering into this contract to accommodate growth in the prison population is the best option available at this time for the safety of our staff and inmates.
State Rep. John Carmichael, D-Wichita, said the rise in prison population is due to decades of policies in which more people are being sent to jail and for longer periods of time.
The one-year contract with CoreCivic will cost the state $74.76 per inmate per day, totaling between $6 and $7 million. The cost of transporting inmates is included in that rate, along with free video visits for Kansas inmates to see their loved ones, attend hearings and access services that could assist them upon their release.
