Great Plains Correctional Institution
| Location |
700 Sugar Creek Drive Hinton, Oklahoma |
|---|---|
| Status | open |
| Security class | medium |
| Capacity | 1940 |
| Opened | 1991 |
| Managed by | GEO Group |
The Great Plains Correctional Institution is a medium-security private prison for men, located in Hinton, Caddo County, Oklahoma, owned and operated by the GEO Group under contract with the Federal Bureau of Prisons.[1][2] The facility has a maximum capacity of 1940, at medium security.
History
Great Plains opened in 1991 as the state's first private prison, a 500-bed facility financed by the town of Hinton floating a bond issue. The first client was the Federal Bureau of Prisons.[3]
In 2000 the facility held Oklahoma prisoners; the state levied a substantial fine against Cornell Companies (the predecessor of GEO Group) for failing to performing contractual obligations related to medical care.[4] Oklahoma kept inmates at Great Plains until April 2007 when it ended the relationship—reportedly because of costs, but also after a January incident where two convicts cut the fence, escaped and went on a brief kidnapping and auto-theft crime spree before their recapture.[5]
Shortly afterward Arizona reached a deal to house about 2000 inmates at Great Plains.[6] The facility was expanded in 2008 to accommodate that higher number. Arizona ended that arrangement prematurely in August 2010.[7]
From 2010 through early 2014 the facility was empty. Federal officials again contracted to house "non-U.S. citizen criminal aliens who are deemed to be 'low-security' risks" with less than a year left to serve.[8]
In August 2016 the FBOP announced that it was phasing out its use of all private prisons as contracts expire, indicating that the facility will close once more.
References
- ↑ "Great Plains Correctional Institution". GEO Group. Retrieved 27 August 2016.
- ↑ "CI Great Plains". Federal Bureau of Prisons. Retrieved 27 August 2016.
- ↑ Mecoy, Don (27 July 1992). "Prison for Profit Brings Hinton Signs of Change". The Oklahoman. Retrieved 27 August 2016.
- ↑ "State fines private prison $168,750". News on 6. Associated Press. 9 March 2000. Retrieved 27 August 2016.
- ↑ JUOZAPAVICIUS, Jason (25 January 2007). "Recaptured Convict Kills Self in Okla". Washington Post. Associated Press. Retrieved 27 August 2016.
- ↑ Jackson, Ron (5 May 2007). "Hinton prison will house 2,000 Company to reopen facility after landing contract with Arizona". The Oklahoman. Retrieved 27 August 2016.
- ↑ Hoberock, Barbara (11 August 2010). "Prison in Hinton to Lose All Its Inmates". Tulsa World. Retrieved 27 August 2016.
- ↑ "Bureau of Prisons to house criminal aliens in contractor-owned facilities in Oklahoma or Texas". Government Security News. 2 June 2011. Retrieved 27 August 2016.
Coordinates: 35°26′50″N 98°21′58″W / 35.447183°N 98.366192°W