PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Delaware County has officially assumed control of the George W. Hill Correctional Facility, the last privately-run correctional facility of its type in Pennsylvania. It had been run by a private company since the late 1990s.
Delaware County Council voted to deprivatize the county jail in October, but officially took over operations from the private firm, the GEO Group, with the first roll call at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday.
“Delaware County made an active choice to bring the employees on board as county employees so that they could invest in them,” said new warden Laura Williams, who was a substance abuse counselor before climbing the ranks at the Allegheny County Jail.
She got emotional during a County Council meeting later in the day as she thanked her staff.
“Probably not the very ‘warden’ thing of me to do. But I'm sure that you can imagine it's been a really long day. For many of us, it's been a long time coming,” she said.
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“Correctional facilities are not always on the minds of many. Historically, these institutions have served as the place where society sends those that are deemed unfit or poor, pose a greater risk to the community. Incarcerated persons and those that maintain their custody and care are typically forgotten.”
It’s been a long time coming for councilmember Kevin Madden. It was a campaign promise when, in 2017, he became one of the first Democrats elected to the County Council in decades.
“No longer will we have a multinational corporation with a profit motive to keep our jail as full as possible, managing our jail,” said Madden.
“And in their place, we now have a leadership team and a workforce that is laser-focused on reducing recidivism.”
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The county ends a nearly $300 million per year contract with the GEO Group. Council members said the county can focus on programs aimed at keeping people out of the jail, while also improving efficiency and cutting the county's costs.
Privately-run detention facilities began in 1983 with an immigration detention center in Texas, and companies providing those services said they could save municipalities money.
La Salle sociology professor Dr. Caitlin Taylor said that was because it was only meeting part of a municipality’s goals for its correctional facilities.
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“They offer fewer rehabilitation programs to people incarcerated, so there's fewer access to things like job training or substance abuse treatment. Healthcare is even worse,” said Dr. Taylor.
“The other way they save money is because they offer guards less training, fewer benefits, and lower salaries.”
However, based on the size of the jail population in October, it was estimated that the county's move to end its relationship with the GEO Group would save the county between $5 million and $10 million.
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Madden said it’s important to remember who is housed in the county jail, often people dealing with addiction or other issues.
“They're not hardened criminals. They need our help to become productive and healthy members of society,” said Madden.
“We’ve turned over an important new page in criminal justice in Delaware County.”
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