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February 17, 2008
NH: House approves keeping prison open indefinitely
House approves keeping prison open indefinitely
By Warren D. Huse
Article Date: Saturday, February 16, 2008
LACONIA ‹ At Concord, Feb. 12, 1998, as the long-running battle over the Laconia prison facility continued, the House approved keeping the Lakes Region Correctional Facility "open indefinitely," The Citizen reported, 10 years ago this week.
"The bill, meant to address overcrowding throughout the prison system, would also lift the population cap of 300 inmates at Laconia and would allow the Department of Corrections to establish two new halfway houses."
The bill also ordered state departments "to prepare documents in order to build a new 500-bed medium security prison that is likely to be in Berlin."
The bill would now go "to the House Finance committee for review before coming back for final action. The house version of the bill is substantially different from the one being considered by the Senate. That bill appropriates $31 million to build a 500-bed medium security prison in Berlin."
Also, a proposal developed by a task force appointed by Gov. Jeanne Shaheen "is adopted in the Senate bill. The task force recommended the land the prison sits on be sold and the money used to replicate the Laconia programs elsewhere."
http://www.citizen.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080216/GJCOMMUNITY02/118
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Posted by lois at February 17, 2008 11:34 AM