Who is the Colorado Criminal Justice Reform Coalition?

Our mission is to reverse the trend of mass incarceration in Colorado. We are a coalition of nearly 7,000 individual members and over 100 faith and community organizations who have united to stop perpetual prison expansion in Colorado through policy and sentence reform.

Our chief areas of interest include drug policy reform, women in prison, racial injustice, the impact of incarceration on children and families, the problems associated with re-entry and stopping the practice of using private prisons in our state.

If you would like to be involved please go to our website and become a member.


Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Prison Closing A Concern For Rifle

KJCT

RIFLE -- Possible closing of the Rifle Correctional Facility has sparked quite a bit of concern among residents of the area.

The news came as quite a surprise to Mayor Keith Lambert, and he says, it could deal an economic blow to the town.

The facility sits on a twenty-three acre site in rural Garfield County and employs 57 workers.

In addition, inmates regularly contribute to the community by maintaining upkeep and fighting fires with their own 12-man crew.

If the Department of Corrections has its way, the facility would be shut down to save the state an estimated $600,000.

Mayor Lambert says that money would be saved by the state, but he says the town would suffer a deep economic impact.

Lambert says, "It's caused us some concern for a number of reasons. First of all, the loss of the jobs that the Rifle Correctional Facility provides to this community as far as income of the employees and the families that live here. Secondly it has caused us concern in regards to the work crews that we receive from the prison to help with projects within the community."

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think the Governor was right in closing the Rifle prison, but he should let the inmates go, and move the DOC Adminstrative offices to Rifle. djw

Anonymous said...

isn't this one of the only CDOC places that has some decent form of rehabilatation at work. It seems to me that they are closing one of the only places that might help rehabilatate.

Anonymous said...

Why don't we close all the for profit private prisons and leave Canons womens and Rifle open or are they planning to sell to CCI and spend more money to pay CCI to warehouse inmates there!!!!!!