Lawrence County Increases Number of State Prisoners
Lawrence County commissioners agreed to increase the number of state prisoners housed at the county jail by 10 to 15. The state pays the county $50 a day to house prisoners. News in The Vindicator.
At their Tuesday meeting, the panel amended its contract with the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections to accept a minimum of 60 and maximum of 65 prisoners. Previously, the limit had been 50.
The move could bring the jail an additional $20,000 per month, which is needed in light of the county’s possible budget shortfall for the end of this year, the commissioners said.
The state pays the county $50 per day for each prisoner, which is mostly profit, said Commissioner Steve Craig, who added that it costs the county about an additional $5 in food because the staffing is already in place.
The jail has a 275-bed capacity, but the average census is only about 165. The additional prisoners should be arriving in two to three months.
Though there had been some problems with the state prisoners initially when they discovered that they were given fewer privileges at the county jail, the problems have now been ironed out, Craig said.
The County Prison Board is expected to confirm the move when it meets in December.
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