10.03.07
Commissioners Motives On T. Don Hutto Contract Becoming Clearer
It appears they acted more out of fear and greed and did not do this for moral reasons. Via the HChron, Williamson County to sever detention center contract.
“Our action today was not about immigration because we support the federal government’s stance,” said Commissioner Cynthia Long. “The action was regarding the county’s liability for a facility that we don’t operate.”
The commissioners also want CCA and ICE to renegotiate the terms of the final year of the contract, to give the county greater protection from potential litigation and improve staffing levels to make sure all standards are met, Long said.
More like what EOW alluded to on Monday. Try for more money, if not close it down. And it will conveniently close just before the 2008 election.
Comments below from an activist involved in getting T. Don Hutto shut down:
After nearing 24 hours in which to reflect, I see that while we still have not reached our ultimate goal, just as with the major and minor improvements to the TDH facility itself, none of yesterday’s developments would have occurred if it had not been for our individual and collective persistence.
I also bear in mind that what finally got the Williamson County Commissioners Court to act was not the moral issue but the possibility of financial liability. Dang, if these aren’t still two truths:
1. Money talks
2. Follow the money.When CCA (et al.) is no longer profitable…private prisons will cease. I wish we had the means to shame them publicly, and maybe that’s where more church activism comes in…just thinking out loud.
That about sums it up.