News Scan

Private Prison Group Sues CA:  A Florida corporation that runs private prisons is suing California in federal court for a recently enacted law banning new contracts and the opening of any new facilities.  The law, AB32 was signed by Governor Gavin Newsom last year whose office stated that private prisons “run contrary to our values.”  Joaquin Palomino of the San Francisco Chronicle reports that the private prisons are used primarily to house illegal aliens convicted of federal crimes, although the reporter misidentifies them as “immigrants.”  In its lawsuit the GEO Group argues that the implementation of AB32 will “undermine and eliminate the congressionally funded and approved enforcement of federal criminal and immigration law.”  The author of the law, Alameda County Assemblyman Rob Bonita told reporters that the lawsuit was a “desperate attempt” initiated by “a collapsing industry in its final death throes.”  He was apparently unaware that a few weeks ago ICE signed four multimillion-dollar contracts with several private prison companies including GEO, to operate detention centers in illegal-immigrant-friendly California.