Over the past two years, Montana’s Department of Corrections has been transferring 120 prisoners annually to a privately operated prison in Arizona, managed by CoreCivic. According to officials from the department, an additional 120 inmates were recently sent, resulting in a total of 364 individuals being relocated.
CoreCivic recently revealed a new agreement with the State of Montana. This time, the deal involves accommodating an extra 240 inmates at their Tutwiler, Mississippi facility. With this addition, CoreCivic will now be responsible for managing a total of 600 Montana inmates under their private management. It’s important to note that this number does not include the prisoners housed at the privately operated Shelby, Montana facility.
Montana DOC officials assert that transferring the prisoners is a crucial measure to effectively handle prison populations and implement essential improvements and expansions at the primary state-run facility in Deer Lodge. However, some lawmakers are skeptical of this practice, and civil rights organizations have expressed concerns regarding the outsourcing of responsibilities from a public entity to a private one with limited accountability.
By the end of the first quarter in 2025, the private company CoreCivic will be managing over 1,200 inmates in Montana. Currently, they operate the Shelby Crossroads facility in northern Montana, which houses 664 inmates.
According to the state’s corrections website, Montana’s adult prison population currently stands at 2,953 individuals as of Wednesday.
According to Brian Gootkin, the Director of the Montana Department of Corrections, there is an ongoing effort to address the pressing issue of capacity challenges in the state’s prison system. Gootkin stated that they are collaborating with the Legislature and the governor’s office to develop a long-term solution. In the meantime, they will continue to rely on out-of-state services until additional infrastructure is constructed within Montana.
According to information provided to the Daily Montanan, Montana DOC officials claim that the cost of housing inmates is advantageous. They state that the daily cost to the state is $112.12 per day per prisoner, based on 2023 rates. In contrast, the contract rate for CoreCivic in the Arizona facility is $90 per day per prisoner.
Officials consider several factors when deciding whether to transfer prisoners out of state or keep them in state-run facilities. These factors include the prisoner’s custody level, proximity to parole eligibility, participation in treatment or programming, medical needs, mental health, and safety concerns.
According to Gootkin, the Department of Corrections (DOC) sends inmates who are not close to their parole eligibility dates in order to reduce the need for frequent movement to and from Arizona.
Transportation costs to and from the facilities are included in the fees paid to CoreCivic, so there are no extra charges beyond the negotiated amount. According to the department, out of the 223 inmates who were transferred to the Saguaro facility in Arizona in 2023 and 2024, only four of them returned for reasons that were not specified.
According to Alex Rate, the legal director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Montana, it is important for the people of Montana to be worried about the relocation of residents out of state, regardless of the financial implications.
According to him, prisoners from our state have been outsourced to a private company located out-of-state, which lacks accountability towards taxpayers.
Families and prisoners expressed concerns about their ability to access legal libraries, Montana attorneys, courts, and stay connected with their loved ones when they are located hundreds or even thousands of miles apart.
According to officials at the Department of Corrections, prisoners can now attend parole hearings remotely.
According to Gootkin, family and friends have multiple ways to communicate with their loved ones, such as messaging, phone calls, video visitation, and in-person visitation at the out-of-state facility.
The Saguaro facility, situated in Eloy, Arizona, is approximately 1,170 miles away from Deer Lodge. Similarly, the Tallahatchie County Correctional Facility, located in Tutwiler, Mississippi, is approximately 1,860 miles away from Deer Lodge.