Department of Corrections Director Dora Schriro says she has teams at work looking for ways to house the more than 4,300 extra inmates in the state’s prison system following guidelines set down in the recent special session.

“We will lay out the various pieces probably as early as next week,” Ms. Schriro said on Dec. 17. “We’ve got the skeleton of a plan, but we can begin to flesh it out with the specifics. Obviously, we’re going to be working hard on several different fronts concurrently.”

In an agreement that came late in the afternoon on Dec. 13 and the governor signed Dec. 18, Republican legislative leaders and Governor Napolitano decided to split their differences on public and private prisons by adding 1,000 permanent beds at private prisons and 1,000 permanent beds at state prisons.

As a stopgap measure, Corrections is authorized to find 1,400 to 2,100 temporary beds outside the state in either private or public facilities and to also to contract with both Coconino and Navajo counties for 138 available beds.

Arizona first shipped inmates out of state a year ago, placing 625 inmates at a privately operated prison in Newton County, Texas.

Ms. Schriro says one team left early Dec. 15 to begin the bed hunt out-of-state.

“They are looking at several out-of-state locations as possible sites for the provisional beds,” she said. “I also have another team that has started to make contact with the in-state privately owned and operated facilities so that we can revise previous determinations of highest and best use for those locations.”

Ms. Schriro had completed an inspection of the state’s facilities before the special session and recommended specific expansion projects for each of those facilities.

Private Vs. Public Prisons

Ms. Napolitano heartily endorsed the recommendations, but then ran into opposition from Republican legislative leaders who favored using private prisons.

A third team is poring over prison population forecasts to determine what levels of security will be required to house the growing number of inmates.

In October, Ms. Schriro told legislators the excess number of inmates could grow to 13,584 by December 2006 – about half the current capacity of the state system. The capacity is 26,928 inmates, and in November Ms. Schriro reported the inmates in the system exceeded capacity by 4,319.

When inmates enter the system, they are classified by the level of institutional and public risk they are judged to pose and then assigned to facilities with an appropriate level of security. Level 1 inmates pose the least risk and require the lowest level of security. Level 5 inmates pose the most risk and require the most stringent security.

Inmates may be placed in a facility with a higher level of security than required, but they may not be placed in a lower level facility.

“We are overcrowded in all population categories so we will look to see the best facilities to expand,” said Ms. Schriro in the Dec. 17 interview.

“On out-of-state locations, we are looking at what populations they are best equipped to manage,” she continued. “Then we’ll balance that with what the in-state facilities are best equipped to manage.

“Obviously, our concern is that we succeed in placing inmates in housing situations that protect the public and also promote their preparation for release back into society. Also, we will be looking to bring as many beds on as quickly and as inexpensively as possible.”

DOC currently contracts with three private prisons in Arizona and is negotiating to add a fourth, a 1,400-bed facility in Kingman.

In addition, Corrections Corporation of America has three facilities in the state that serve mainly the federal system and house more than 5,000 inmates.

Ms. Schriro says the CCA facilities are being included as potential sites for expansion. She says her authorization is for any privately owned and operated facility currently in Arizona.

“That of course presupposes they are interested in considering expansion and then we have to determine whether or not the number and nature of inmates we would want them to assume custody for is also a population that is agreeable to them,” she added.

On expansion of state facilities, she said, “We’re looking at several options.”

One significant option is a facility for Level 1 inmates. She told legislators during the special session the state has never built a Level 1 facility. Such a facility could be built quickly at less expense, she said.

“When you think about it, we’ve got well in excess of 1,000 inmates who are Level 1, but they are in a higher custody bed,” she said in the interview. “Because we don’t have any Level 1 beds right now, they are all in a harder bed than is necessary.

“Level 1 will be in the mix we are looking at,” she continued. “We believe it’s really an important initiative for the department to pursue. First of all, you are able to bring on beds as inexpensively as possible because they don’t cost as much to build as higher custody beds. And then you’ve got the long-term operational savings because the staffing configuration is different as well.”

Ms. Schriro says she has contacted the sheriff of Navajo County. “We want to occupy those beds quickly,” she said.

DOC already has a contract with Coconino County.

Asked how soon DOC might be sending inmates to out-of-state facilities, Ms. Schriro said, “In the last couple of days in special session we were revising our forecast and anticipating that inmates might be sent out of state in February, and that would be preceded by a contract.”

As to what shape the overall plan may eventually take, she said, “Until we have all that information back on the various options, it is a little difficult to tell you how we’re leaning. But, we’re quite committed to make this successful.” —