Anderson offers amendment to Corrections Budget that would prevent closure of Ryan Correctional Facility in Detroit

LANSING—State Senator Glenn Anderson offered an amendment to the Fiscal Year 2013 Corrections Budget conference report today that would prevent the closure or repurposing of the Ryan Correctional Facility in Detroit and avoid the unnecessary transfer of Wayne County corrections jobs to the west side of the state. Anderson's amendment was offered in the Corrections Budget conference committee hearing this afternoon, but was defeated 4-2 along party lines.

“The decision to close Ryan facility was made behind closed doors without any opportunity for input by Democratic legislators, sufficient review of the impact on local economies and the efficiency of Michigan's prison system,” Anderson said. “We just recently closed one of the state's newest facilities in Detroit, Mound Correctional Facility, and the closure of another Detroit facility will only further damage the effectiveness of Michigan's prison system, drastically increase prisoner transfer costs, and have an unforeseen impact on the local economy. This decision does not appear to be budget-driven, and at first blush, we can only read this move by the Department of Corrections as a political decision.”

The Department of Corrections announced to the public last Thursday that they were planning to close the Ryan Correctional Facility in Detroit and reopen a prison in Muskegon in a Republican district. The move came as a surprise to the Michigan Corrections Organization membership and legislators alike. As the Democratic Vice-Chair of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Corrections in Michigan, Senator Anderson has been critical of the decision and today offered a solution to remedy it. The Department says it would re-open Ryan as a parole violators housing facility due to an increased crack-down on parole violators in the Detroit area.

“The work of the Corrections system is vitally important to public safety, and the public deserves more transparency, free of political deals, when making major decisions like this,” Anderson said. “We should take the time to review this decision in the open and ensure that the safety of the public, potential impacts on the economy and jobs, and true increased cost related to prison transfers have been fully reviewed.”

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