U.S. Justice Department to Phase Out Private Prisons, Including Prison Near Bakersfield

The Justice Department will phase out its use of corporate-run prisons, including one near Bakersfield, after concluding the experiment in privatization failed to reduce costs or improve quality, officials said Thursday.

At their height, in 2013, privately operated facilities incarcerated nearly 30,000 inmates, or about 15% of the federal prison population.

But a recent inspector general’s report found the private prisons had more safety and security violations than those run by the Bureau of Prisons.

The decision does not affect private-run facilities that are used to hold migrants suspected of immigration violations.

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