Has the era of private prisons finally come to an end?

MELODY STAINBROOK: Since their formation in the 1980s, private prisons have been a hot topic for debate around criminal justice reform. In 2016, President Obama announced a plan to phase out private prisons. A year later, President Trump reversed this decision, stressing the economic importance of private prisons. On January 26, 2021, less than a week after he took office, President Biden signed an executive order banning federal private prisons. On February 11, Democrat Rep. Raúl Grijalva of Arizona introduced H.R. 994: The Justice is Not for Sale Act which aims to ban private prisons at the state and local levels. If passed, The Justice is Not for Sale Act will end decades of private companies operating prisons. Interestingly, this issue seems to run along partisan lines; the Justice is Not for Sale Act has 32 cosponsors, all of which are democrat representatives. 

In 2019, private prisons incarcerated 115,954 people, 8% of the United States prison population. The use of private prisons varies state by state; 19 states don't employ private prisons. Other states rely heavily on state prisons; 47% of Montana's prison population was incarcerated in private prisons in 2019. Since 2000, the number of prisoners in private prisons has increased by 33%; the overall prison population has only risen by 3%.

According to the World Prison Population List, the United States consists of 4% of the world's population but imprisons 22% of the world's prison population. Many lawmakers and prison-reform activists believe private prisons to be a large part of this issue. Critics of private prisons argue that they contribute to mass incarceration, particularly in states where judges are elected, and private prisons make massive contributions to their campaigns. Critics also claim that private prisons profit from prisoners' pain and imprisonment, and a disproportionate number of prisoners are people of color. 

The results of the "for-profit" focus of private prisons can be detrimental to inmates and employees. Private prison employees are paid an average of $5,000 less than federal prison employees and receive around 58 hours less training. This lack of training not only endangers the well-being of inmates but puts employees who have not been properly trained at risk to make detrimental mistakes. This stressful work environment results in a high turnover rate at private prisons and a lack of security. A 2016 Justice Department report stated that inmate-on-inmate assaults were 28% more common in private prisons than federal prisons and inmate-on-staff assaults were twice as likely to occur. 

The political history of private prisons involves a back and forth of federal bans and reversals. Most recently, President Biden signed an executive order closing all federal private prisons. The Justice is Not for Sale Act, introduced by Rep. Grijalva, expands on this executive order. If passed, the Justice is Not for Sale Act would close all private prisons— federal, state, or local. 

The Biden executive order and legislation such as the Justice is Not for Sale Act, which aims to close private prisons, have been met with opposition. Supporters of private prisons argue that they save the government money, are efficient and that opponents’ claims that they are harsh are exaggerated.

A spokesman for CoreCivic, a company that runs 73 private prisons across the United States, stated that criticisms of the company "sends a terrible message to others in the private sector who are working to help our government solve serious problems in ways it could not do alone." Companies that run private prisons view themselves as an essential part of the criminal justice system. 

Is it ethical for private, for-profit companies to play such a large role in the criminal justice system? Can justice truly prevail when prison privates and elected officials have money to gain from imprisonment? Private prisons have an abundance of problems: high turnover rates, lack of security and lower incomes for employees. Private prisons also contribute to the disproportionate rates of incarceration among marginalized groups.

President Biden's executive order and Rep. Grijalva's Justice is Not for Sale Act are the most recent actions in a battle over private prisons. The United States criminal justice system consists of many deep-rooted disparities and issues. Private prisons profit off of this system and, as a result, contribute to the disparities it creates. Could this new legislation be a sign that the era of private prisons is coming to an end? Or are the new decisions doomed to be reversed by a future administration? 

Take Action

If you'd like to show your support or opposition to the Justice is Not for Sale Act, you can reach Rep. Grijalva at (202) 225-2435. You can also contact your Representatives and Senators to urge them to support or oppose this bill. If you want to learn more about private prisons, this article does a great job of breaking down the issue.

Melody is a freshman in Georgetown College, studying government and environmental studies. Melody joined On the Record as a columnist and is also a member of the GU Democrats and GU Moot Court.