Steve Metzer
Tulsa World Capitol Bureau Staff Writer
OKLAHOMA CITY — More than 2,600 state prison inmates, including many considered vulnerable and in protective custody, will have to be moved soon from a Lawton private prison that is described as the most violent in Oklahoma.
The GEO Group, the company that operates the Lawton Correctional Facility, had been in negotiations with the state to extend a contract that is due to expire June 30. However, it terminated talks recently and sent a “letter of discontinuation” to the Oklahoma Department of Corrections.
DOC Chief of Public Relations Kay Thompson said the breakdown means the state will have until Sept. 30 to find space in other prisons for 2,616 medium-security inmates.
According to reporting by The Oklahoman, GEO also has complained to the state about an allegation of breach of contract related to operations of its Great Plains Correctional Center in Hinton.
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Together, the Lawton and Hinton facilities house close to 4,000 inmates.
Twenty-two other DOC facilities in the state are already at 98% capacity, and many are understaffed, so finding new places for the Lawton inmates will present an immediate and pressing challenge. It will be compounded by the fact that the Lawton facility housed the only protective custody unit in the state, managing security for more than 200 inmates formerly associated with law enforcement who have testified in high-profile criminal cases or who are considered at risk for other reasons.
“They’re the most vulnerable,” Thompson said. “We do not have the capacity to put them into other state facilities.”
Thompson said DOC officials are considering different options, but she described decision-making as fluid. Officials are due to discuss the situation next week at a DOC board meeting at the Eddie Warrior Correctional Facility in Taft.
In a statement issued to the Tulsa World on Thursday, the GEO Group, based in Boca Raton, Florida, said the recent veto by Gov. Kevin Stitt of a funding increase for the Lawton facility led to the decision to break off contract negotiations.
“Upon extensive consideration of the current funding levels and resources relative to the present service requirements, we have determined that we are no longer willing to manage the 2,600-bed Lawton Correctional and Rehabilitation Facility without changes to financial and operational terms,” the company said.
According to its website, the Geo Group owns or manages 100 secure facilities, processing centers and community reentry centers across the country with combined bed space for about 82,000 inmates. The company reported $605.7 million in revenues for the first quarter of 2024. Its net income was $22.7 million, according to an earnings statement.
Thompson said the company had been paid about $48 million annually to house state inmates at the Lawton prison.
In a news release Thursday, the DOC said the governor was right to veto legislation that would have required it to pay the private prison company an additional $3 million per year.
“This financial burden is excessive, considering the subpar results,” it said. “Our dissatisfaction with the current state of (the Lawton Correctional Facility) and GEO’s facility operations has reached a critical point.”
Two inmates died and others were injured in violence at the prison in May. Other homicides and violence have been reported throughout its 26-year history.
“Over the last four years, GEO has received a $6.8 million increase in funding. Yet, their operations have not improved — being the most violent prison in Oklahoma — and continues to lack the standard of care expected by ODOC,” the news release states. “Therefore, we have cultivated several options to secure a safer location to house our incarcerated population, and we are meeting with the Board of Corrections next week to finalize the plans.”
In its statement, GEO said it was proud of the partnership it has had with the state since 1998.
“Over the last 26 years, we have made significant capital investments to provide needed correctional bedspace to help reduce Oklahoma prison overcrowding. (However), in recent years, wage inflation and staffing shortages following the COVID pandemic have negatively impacted staff recruitment and retention at all state correctional facilities.
“Unfortunately, … we have proposed a new three-month transition agreement starting July 1, 2024, allowing for an orderly relocation of inmates if new funding and contract terms cannot be mutually agreed upon.”
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