Calls for complete audit and profits to be returned to state

Boise, ID - Today the ACLU submitted an open records requests to the Idaho State Police (ISP), the Idaho Department of Correction (IDOC), and the Governor’s Office concerning records falsification and understaffing at the Idaho Correctional Center (ICC). The requests ask for all records and communication having to do with the “criminal investigation,” including all records relating to the criminal investigation referenced in the contempt proceedings, all documents turned over to ISP and all information IDOC has regarding those who falsified documents and everything related to how the settlement of $1 million was reached with Corrections Corporation of America (CCA), including the KPMG report.
In a recent AP story, we learned that forensic auditing firm KPMG was hired to comprehensively review time records for ICC staff. KPMG determined that CCA left more than 26,000 hours unstaffed mandatory guard posts just in 2012. This amounts to 500 hours per week, 71 hours per day, the equivalent of six whole missing shifts every day.
“IDOC told us under oath that ISP were conducting a criminal investigation and because of that IDOC would not provide us with important documents that would have aided in showing misconduct at the ICC,” said Monica Hopkins, Executive Director, “The public should be concerned and questioning whether there was collusion between ISP and IDOC to obfuscate the truth or whether the governmental agencies in charge, who depend on communications between each other, are incompetent. The public deserves a complete and thorough explanation.”
As it turns out, Idaho taxpayers have been cheated out of potentially millions of dollars, and who knows for how long. CCA has maintained the contract to operate ICC for at least a decade. The 26,000 hours are for a single year and KPMG recommended the investigation be extended to other years as well. We agree.  According to reports, the CCA prison giant now collects $1.7 billion in annual profits, a 17 percent profit margin, which far exceeds most for-profit businesses.
It’s time for CCA to come clean. CCA spokesman Steven Owen promised that Idaho taxpayers would be “made whole” for all unverified hours at the prison. It’s time they stick to their promise to repay Idaho taxpayers for all the years they have lied about. The ACLU calls for a complete audit and disgorgement of all profits made from ICC be returned to the state.
“Now that we know there was no criminal investigation there should be no excuse for these state agencies to not provide the public with all of the information for who was responsible for understaffing and falsifying records at ICC,” said Hopkins, “and most importantly whether any of those people are still working at the facility, or worse, in charge.”

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