New York State Secretly Withdraws Plan To Build Massive Prison

After closing several prisons, New York State proposed building a massive $750 million prison.

The Hochul Administration is looking into building what would be New York's largest state prison.

New York Explored Building Biggest Prison

The state Department of Corrections was exploring building a $750 million facility that would have 3,000 inmates.

For context, the current largest prison in New York, the Clinton Correctional Facility, currently holds up to 2,000 inmates.

No Location Announced

No specific location for the prison was announced, but documents showed access to transportation and other essential community support would play a huge role in the location.

For all the news that the Hudson Valley is sharing, make sure to follow Hudson Valley Post on Facebook, and download the Hudson Valley Post Mobile App

Odd Timing

Lawmakers and correction union representatives criticized the plan.

Many thought the timing didn't make sense. Considering the state has closed nearly a dozen prisons since Hochul took office.

Critics also pointed out that New York uses thousands of National Guard troops to fill severe staffing shortages.

New York State Withdraws Plan

Following immediate bipartisan backlash from lawmakers have appears to have withdrawn the plan.

The online document regarding the new prison was completely scrubbed from the state's website.

Then on Monday, DOCCS spokesman Thomas Mailey announced the state pulled the proposal "to further refine the scope and strategic focus of this initiative.

These 7 Prisons Are The Most Violent In New York State

New York released a report with the most recent number of violent assaults on inmates in state prisons. There were 134 inmate deaths noted in the report, although it doesn't break down the prisons where each death occurred or who caused them. Here's a look at some of the general violent incidents reported for 2020, which is the most recent data reported by the state. Compared to 10 years ago, inmate assaults have almost doubled. In 2011 there were 666 and in 2020 there were 1,205 reported. These numbers do not include inmate assaults on staff members. Overall, the number of unusual incidents includes things like assaults, deaths, accidents, sexual misconduct, and disruptive behavior. According to the state,

"The number of unusual incidents has increased 132% from 5,980 in 2011 to 13,870 in 2020. These higher incident numbers were largely due to increases in assaults on incarcerated individuals (+81%), assaults on staff (+86%), contraband (+130%), disruptive behavior (+372%), and staff use of weapons (+1,035%)."

In 2020, 1,836 weapons used to cut or stab, including ice picks, razor blades, can lids and shanks were discovered in state prisons around New York.

Gallery Credit: Yasmin Young

See What's Inside This Haunted New York Prison Abandoned a Decade Ago