CoreCivic Inc., which has managed Marion County Jail II since 1997, plans to cease operations at the facility at the end of the year, ending employment for 143 workers, the company disclosed this week in a notice to the state.
Nashville, Tennessee-based CoreCivic—formerly Corrections Corp. of America—will not be needed to manage Marion County Jail II, 730 E. Washington St., because inmates will be transferred to facilities at the new Community Justice Center in the Twin Aire neighborhood.
CoreCivic is not eligible to operate at the new complex because the Indianapolis City-County Council passed an ordinance in 2018 to prohibit private jail managers at the center.
The Community Justice Center will replace not just Jail II, but also Jail I, the Arrestee Processing Center, and Hope Hall. Except for Jail II, those facilities are run by the Marion County Sheriff’s Department. The new center is expected to have 2,700 general population beds, 300 specialty, mental-health focused beds, and education and job-training facilities.
CoreCivic Director of Public Affairs Ryan Gustin told Inside INdiana Business, a division of IBJ Media, that CoreCivic is working with the sheriff’s office and other facilities in its network to identify job opportunities for the employees.
“For 24 years, CoreCivic has partnered with Marion County to provide safe housing and high-quality programming to the individuals at the Marion County Jail II,” Gustin said in a statement. “When Marion County announced a few years back that a new criminal justice center would be constructed, CoreCivic committed to continue partnering with the county to manage MCJII until all inmates could be safely transitioned into the new facility. We’re proud of the many years of service that our dedicated staff has provided at the MCJII and to the local community.”
CoreCivic manages more than 65 state and federal correctional and detention facilities overall with more than 90,000 beds in 19 states and the District of Columbia.
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