The corporation that runs a detention facility in Central Falls is responding to the announcement that the federal government plans to stop using some private prisons.
U.S. Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates says privately run prisons are both less safe and less effective than low-security federal prisons. That’s why she’s directed the federal government to stop renewing contracts with private prisons.
Officials running the Wyatt Detention Facility in Central Falls say they haven’t received official word from the federal government about their future contracts.
The Wyatt Detention Facility currently houses more than 500 detainees.
In a statement, Wyatt’s board chairman said the detention center maintains exceptional ratings during audits. The board of directors will begin conversations with stakeholders to discuss the facility’s future.
The facility opened in 1993 as the state’s first public-private detention center. It was later the subject of a federal investigation after an immigration detainee died at the facility. The investigators found that the detainee was suffering from the late stages of cancer and was denied medical care.
Following the investigation, federal immigration officials ceased sending prisoners to Wyatt, contributing to financial problems that eventually led the prison into receivership.
