Late last year, the state Department of Corrections started shifting some of the state's prison population to a facility in Virginia. The public perception in Newtown was that the move would free up some needed in-state cells, but wouldn't signif
Late last year, the state Department of Corrections started shifting some of the stateâs prison population to a facility in Virginia. The public perception in Newtown was that the move would free up some needed in-state cells, but wouldnât significantly affect the operation of Garner Correctional Institution on Nunnawauk Road. Then last month, DOC Commission John Armstrong revealed his plans to add 1,700 more inmate beds to existing prisons in the state, and again it appeared that Garner would not be affected in the near-term, since a New Haven correctional facility would first be expanded to address this need. The truth is, however, that things have been changing significantly at Garner in ways that could affect Newtown adversely.
Concurrent with the inmate transfers to Virginia, the state Department of Correction started converting a significant portion of the Garner facility from a high security prison for long-term inmates into a jail for high-bond prisoners awaiting the adjudication of their cases in court. This has come in tandem with the stateâs assignment of more inmates in need of mental health treatments to the prison. Of the roughly 700 prisoners at Garner, more than 200 are now âunsentencedâ prisoners awaiting the disposition of their cases in court. As a consequence, Garner is transforming itself from being a relatively stable institution for persons serving set prison terms to a âjailâ with a population that is more in flux. As a result there has been a significant increased in the traffic of inmates, their families, and attorneys to and from the correctional institution as each individual case wends its way through the judicial process.
Normally these prisoners awaiting trial would be kept in the county jails in the cities of Hartford, New Haven, or Bridgeport. But with the transfer of inmates to Virginia, the Department of Correction seized on the sudden availability of beds at Garner to create a de facto Newtown County Jail. No press releases were issued. No public briefings were held. The DOC apparently hoped no one would notice.
When there is any significant change in the use or purpose of even a part of the Garner Correctional Institution, DOC officials should make every effort to inform the public and to answer whatever questions or concerns they may have about that change.