Angelina County Jail
Angelina County, Texas
CiviGenics (formerly run by Correctional Services Corporation)
October 26, 2005 Lufkin Daily News
When Angelina County's old downtown jail re-opens for business next year, it will be under familiar leadership. Bob Prince, marketing liaison for CiviGenics Texas, Inc., told Angelina County commissioners that when the jail re-opens under CiviGenics early next year it would be with Ken Stewart at the helm. Stewart served as Angelina County's jail administrator. Stewart was also a vocal supporter of the county's campaign to pass a $10.5 million bond that financed the construction of the county's current jail located on Lufkin Avenue. According to Stewart, the downtown jail was built in 1983 with the ability to hold 63 beds. A 1990 addition to the building increased the jail's inmate capacity by 48 beds to 111 total. Aware of Stewart's recent retirement and his reputation in the business of jail administration, CiviGenics contacted Stewart to see if he could be lured out of retirement, Prince said.

October 12, 2005 Lufkin Daily News
Angelina County commissioners on Tuesday approved the purchase of new electronic touch-screen voting equipment, made possible by a grant of almost $600,000 through the Help America Vote Act. Commissioners did not take action on Tuesday's agenda item to approve a lease of the county's old jail facility by CiviGenics, a private corrections firm that operates facilities in 16 states, including eight locations in Texas. County Sheriff Kent Henson asked that the commissioners table the contract approval until he could review the wording on the document. "I want to make sure the county doesn't get stuck with some things like we did the last time," Henson said, referring to the previous corrections firm that pulled out after leasing the old county jail facility for less than a year. Commissioners approved tabling the agenda item and will likely consider it at their Oct. 25 meeting. Bob Prince, CiviGenics' government liaison for marketing, was on hand at Tuesday's meeting and told commissioners if his company came on board, it would employ 27 workers and pump more than $1 million into the local economy. Payroll alone would account for about $700,000, he said. In addition, CiviGenics plans to use a familiar face to serve as the facility's administrator in naming Ken Stewart - who served in the same capacity for the county sheriff's office before the new jail facility was built - to oversee operations.

Beaver County Jail, Beaver County, Pennsylvania
May 24, 2007 Beaver Times
The Beaver County Commissioners' approval Thursday of a $72,000 payment to settle claims from the Massachusetts company that almost took over the county jail last year brings the total spent on trying to outsource the jail to nearly $1 million. CiviGenics was poised to assume control of the jail in October, but a ruling by President Judge Robert Kunselman ordering the county to obey an arbitrator's decision halted the deal. Instead, the county signed a new contract with jail guards. Commissioners had estimated that the county could have saved as much as $1.9 million annually by outsourcing the jail to CiviGenics. During the last week of December, the county paid CiviGenics $125,000 under the terms of its contract. Thursday's payment will cover additional expenses such as training and travel costs. "It's fair compensation," said Commissioners Chairman Joe Spanik after the board approved the payment. "They showed receipts for what (expenses) were there." In addition to the payments made to CiviGenics, the county's legal fees have reached nearly $793,000, said county financial administrator Rob Cyphert. That figure covers this year, 2006 and 2005, and includes not only work on privatization, but on contract negotiations with the union and settlement talks with CiviGenics. Commissioner Charlie Camp said he didn't regret trying to outsource the jail because "it was well within our rights to do that." Camp said the savings over the life of the guards' contract, estimated at $680,000 annually, will surpass the amount spent on CiviGenics and legal fees so the county won't really lose any money. "I regret we got two bad judgment calls from the arbitrator and the county judge," Camp said. Asked if he regretted pursuing privatization in light of the taxpayer money spent on the wasted effort, Spanik said outsourcing appeared to be a "good deal" for the county, and hindsight is always 20/20. "If I was a prognosticator," he said, "I'd hit the lottery." Initially, CiviGenics asked for $329,000 to cover its costs in preparing to manage the Hopewell Township jail, Cyphert said. Spanik said the county balked at that figure, though, and officials found some expenses they didn't think the county should pay. "We scrutinized the bills they submitted to us," Spanik said. When the $125,000 payment was made, county Solicitor Myron Sainovich said the county might consider reimbursing CiviGenics for additional costs, such as training and travel costs, because the county was unable to give the company any notice before nixing the contract. "Quite frankly, we would've been liable for those (expenses) because we were in breach," Sainovich said Thursday. Sainovich said the $72,000 doesn't compensate CiviGenics for "pain and suffering," but only for verifiable expenses.

January 10, 2007 Beaver Times
Beaver County has met its contractual obligation and paid $125,000 to the company that would have taken over the county jail if a court ruling had not nixed the deal, county solicitor Myron Sainovich said Wednesday. CiviGenics, a Massachusetts-based company, was paid in the last week of December, said Rob Cyphert, the county's financial administrator. Under terms of its contract with CiviGenics, the county was obligated to pay the company no more than $125,000 "for all reasonable and documented start-up expenses" if the county decided against outsourcing the Hopewell Township jail. That's exactly what happened after Beaver County President Judge Robert Kunselman ruled that the county was required to abide by an arbitration decision that prohibited privatization over the life of an arbitration-imposed three-year contract. County commissioners chose not to appeal Kunselman's decision. Instead of handing over management duties to CiviGenics on Oct. 31 as they had planned, commissioners agreed to a new four-year contract that was estimated to save the county about $600,000 a year. Commissioners had spent more than two years studying privatization and at least $500,000 over several months litigating their right to outsource the jail. They claimed the county would've saved $1.9 million a year by contracting with CiviGenics. Last month, commissioners raised county property taxes by 1 mill and laid the blame squarely at Kunselman's feet. The county's tax rate is now 18.7 mills. Sainovich said he hasn't heard of CiviGenics requesting additional money, but the county might consider paying for other verifiable training and travel costs. "The county will try and reimburse them for those (expenses) because we did kind of go up until the last hour," he said.

November 29, 2006 Beaver Times
A county judge believes that even if operations at the Beaver County Jail had been privatized, county residents would still have to pay higher taxes. In a written opinion released Tuesday, President Judge Robert E. Kunselman disputed county commissioners main argument: that turning over operations at the Hopewell Township facility to the CiviGenics company would save enough money that a tax increase could be avoided next year. Kunselman made his ruling in late October; Tuesdays opinion explained his reasoning. For months, commissioners pushed a plan that said that if the Massachusetts-based private correctional services company took over operations at the jail, the county could save $1.9 million annually. The changeover from county to private oversight was halted by Kunselman just a couple of days before the Oct. 30 switch was to take place. Beaver County Commissioners Chairman Dan Donatella said Tuesday afternoon that Kunselmans ruling was filled with errors, omissions and presumptions about the county's budget. He promised a written response to Kunselmans opinion within the next day or two. I am flabbergasted, Donatella said, adding that he thinks Kunselman purposely waited until the day after an appeal period had expired so that his written opinion wouldn't be questioned by a higher court. Earlier, however, commissioners said Kunselmans order barring privatization wouldn't be appealed because it was unlikely that a higher court would overturn the decision. Kunselman declined to comment on Donatellas remarks. Kunselman became involved in the jail issue when Service Employees International Union Local 668 sued the county earlier this year, saying it had to abide by a contract arbitration award. That arbitration included the prohibition of privatization for three years and requiring jail employees to make concessions. The arbitration was rendered moot when the county and jail employees came to an agreement in October on a new four-year contract. In his October opinion, Kunselman ruled there was no legal reason for the county to ignore the arbitration and privatize the jail. Also, Kunselman said in the opinion that during hearings on the arbitration award, county employees said the county would have a $140,000 deficit at the end of November and would be in the red by $3 million at the end of the year, if the arbitration was awarded. Kunselman said there was no direct proof that the arbitration was the reason for the deficit. He said that while the county projected a savings of $1.5 million in the first year of privatization, it also projected a $3 million budget deficit. Thus, we concluded that the county would have to increase taxes to pay for the CiviGenics contract anyway, Kunselman said.

November 9, 2006 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The legal fight over privatizing the Beaver County Jail has cost the county about $500,000, and that's just the beginning. The county commissioners will sit down soon with representatives of CiviGenics Inc., the company they had hired to run the jail, to work out a fair compensation for the company's troubles. "We have calculated the cost of preparing to take over the jail," company Chief Operating Officer Peter Argeropulos said, adding that CiviGenics had put more than 50 people through guard training and had assembled complete plans for the takeover and management. He declined to say what the calculated number was. CiviGenics responded to a county inquiry in the summer of last year, offering a deal that would have saved the county about $1.9 million a year. When the union representing the county-employed jail guards couldn't match the savings, the commissioners announced the switch, dropping the union and hiring CiviGenics starting Oct. 31. But four days before the takeover, Common Pleas Judge Robert E. Kunselman ruled that the county had to abide by an arbitration award that gave the union a new contract. The commissioners announced Oct. 31 that they had accepted a deal with the union and would not appeal the judge's ruling. Under the county's contract with CiviGenics, it owes the company $125,000 if the deal gets scratched "through no fault of the county." Asked if the company's costs exceeded $125,000, Mr. Argeropulos replied, "Oh, certainly." But he expressed confidence that a settlement could be worked out.

October 28, 2006 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The Beaver County Jail will continue to be run by public employees, after a court ruling yesterday that derailed the county's privatization move. Beaver County President Judge Robert E. Kunselman upheld a June arbitration award that gave the county's jail guards a new three-year contract. The county had set Monday as the date for a Massachusetts firm, CiviGenics Inc., to take over jail operations, a move that would have left the unionized guards out of work. "It still hasn't hit home," union steward and jail guard Tom Trkulja said. "From the beginning we believed the law says what the law says and everybody has to follow it." The dispute has its roots in a series of cost-cutting moves made by the county commissioners over the last three years. Looking to pare the $6 million-plus jail budget, they decided to take proposals for private management. CiviGenics in the summer of 2005 made a proposal that would save the county $1.9 million a year, and with the union contract expiring in December, the commissioners demanded that the union meet that savings. When the union would not, the commissioners declared union negotiations at an impasse and signed a contract with CiviGenics in January. The union contract went to arbitration, but in June, before the arbitration panel finalized its ruling, the county enacted its contract with the private firm. CiviGenics has been hiring and training replacements for the 53 full-time and 17 part-time guards, who are members of Local 668 of the Service Employees International Union. The union, however, asked the court to enforce an arbitration award issued in June, which it regarded as binding. The commissioners argued that since the award would force them to take legislative action to raise money to pay the guards, state law rendered it advisory only. In a hearing before Judge Kunselman on Tuesday, county Financial Administrator Rob Cyphert testified that the county would run out of cash in about a month under the union contract, and would likely have to increase its debt load to stay afloat. The union, however, argued that the county created its own budget crunch by basing its budget on the CiviGenics deal. The county "engaged in bad faith bargaining by establishing a budget which could only be accomplished by the privatization of the prison without the legal authority to make such an assumption," the union's legal brief said.

October 27, 2006 The Beaver Times
Beaver County Courthouse workers voted on a contract proposal Thursday that union officials said was essential to keeping the county jail from being privatized, but results were unavailable late Thursday. Whether their new contract and the one approved this past Monday by jail guards actually save enough money to persuade the county commissioners not to privatize the jail this coming Monday remains to be seen. Service Employees International Union Local 668 members were called to a 4:30 p.m. meeting at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers hall in Vanport Township to vote on the proposal that SEIU state officials unveiled in a tense meeting Tuesday. Commissioners Chairman Dan Donatella and Commissioner Charlie Camp said late Thursday they had yet to be informed of the result of the union's vote. Commissioner Joe Spanik could not be reached for comment. The union is under pressure to resolve the situation because Beaver County President Judge Robert Kunselman is expected to issue his ruling today on whether the county must abide by an arbitration decision released earlier this year. If Kunselman would rule that the decision is not binding, the county would be free to pursue privatization. At the Tuesday meeting, SEIU leaders told courthouse workers that their new contract was being tied to the jail guards' contract. The savings from those two contracts would be combined to try to meet the financial demands of county commissioners, who want to privatize the jail to save approximately $1.9 million annually.

October 26, 2006 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Management of the Beaver County Jail is up for determination tomorrow, though whether it is by court order or through last-minute labor talks remains to be seen. County President Judge Robert E. Kunselman plans to issue a ruling tomorrow on whether the county can turn jail management over to a private firm Monday morning. Judge Kunselman held a hearing Tuesday and demanded briefs from union and county attorneys by this morning. The county commissioners are calling for a decision by tomorrow on an across-the-board contract offer that would keep the unionized, publicly employed jail guards in place but would include new contracts with five other unions representing county workers. The last-ditch deal was ratified by the jail guards Sunday, but faces an uphill battle with the other unions, which have been working without contracts for almost two years while rejecting similar offers. The unions held a tumultuous membership meeting Wednesday, with no agreement forthcoming. If the unions decline the contract offer and Judge Kunselman rules in the county's favor, CiviGenics Inc. will take over jail management Monday. The takeover would culminate a two-year effort by the commissioners to cut costs at the Hopewell facility.

October 25, 2006 Beaver Times
As the deadline for privatizing the Beaver County Jail looms closer, it appears the only way for jail guards to avoid losing their jobs is for courthouse union members to accept concessions, too. But, if an emergency meeting Tuesday of Service Employees International Union Local 668 members who work at the courthouse is any indication, those jail guard jobs are as good as gone. Courthouse workers were summoned to a meeting with state SEIU officials at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers hall in Vanport Township to hear a last-minute proposal to save the jobs of their SEIU brethren at the jail. Once there, according to one employee who attended the meeting but asked not to be identified, union officials told courthouse workers to accept the contract terms presented or Massachusetts-based CiviGenics would take over the jail. Some guards have applied to and been hired by CiviGenics, but most would be laid off if the company took over. The employee said the proposal would have workers pay 1 percent toward health-care insurance costs in 2007 and 2008 and 1.5 percent starting in 2009. Employees would receive raises of 2.5 percent on Jan. 1; 3 percent in 2008 and 3.5 percent in 2009. Courthouse workers have been without a contract since Jan. 1, 2004, and negotiations have snagged on wages and the county's demand that employees start contributing to health insurance costs. Other terms, according to the employee, include a one-week reduction in the maximum amount of vacation earned (from five to four weeks) and the loss of three holidays (Flag Day, Dec. 26 and an employee's birthday). The employee said the raucous meeting ended with frustrated courthouse workers leaving without taking a vote. Tuesday's meeting followed a vote by jail guards Monday to accept a contract proposal. Union officials would not publicly discuss the contract, but one said it was similar to an arbitration decision released earlier this year. That decision reduced the number of full-time guards, froze wages for jail guards for three years and implemented a 1 percent contribution toward health insurance. But it also prohibited the county from privatizing the jail for three years. County commissioners, though, rejected the arbitration decision, saying that the purported $450,000 in savings fell short of the estimated $1.9 million the county could save by having CiviGenics manage the jail in Hopewell Township. CiviGenics is scheduled to take over the jail Monday, so pressure is mounting on jail guards to do something or face layoffs. Whatever the guards agreed to apparently still didn't meet the commissioners' financial demands, so courthouse employees were asked to take concessions in order to package a cost-saving deal to the county. One flier being circulated around the courthouse Tuesday perfectly illustrated the feelings over the proposal. "We are not happy about this and hope that everyone will not be blackmailed by the commissioners," the flier read. In a related matter Tuesday, attorneys for the SEIU and the county debated the merits of the arbitration decision before Beaver County President Judge Robert E. Kunselman. Both sides said they expect Kunselman to issue a decision by Friday. The union wants Kunselman to order the county to abide by the arbitration decision, while county commissioners argue that the ruling would force them to raise property taxes to pay for the jail. Before that hearing began, Claudia Lukert, the SEIU's attorney, withdrew the union's request for an injunction, but she refused to explain why.

October 17, 2006 Beaver Times
A hearing that could decide the fate of the Beaver County Jail is expected to be moved up a week, as a final deadline looms. Civigenics is scheduled to take over management of the jail on Oct. 30, in a move that county commissioners have billed as one that will save taxpayers money. Within the past few weeks, representatives of Service Employees International Union Local 668 filed suit against Beaver County, asking a judge for an injunction that would stop the switchover from county to private supervision. Under the changeover, dozens of current jail guards would lose their jobs.

October 12, 2006 Beaver Times
Beaver County President Judge Robert Kunselman apparently doesn't believe in the old idiom "A day late and a dollar short." Even though CiviGenics is poised to take over management of the county jail Oct. 30, Kunselman has scheduled a hearing on a request for an injunction from the jail guards' union for Oct. 31. Beaver County Commissioners Chairman Dan Donatella said the head-scratching decision by Kunselman would not stop CiviGenics from taking over the jail as scheduled. "We can't sit around and speculate on what is going to happen," Donatella said. The judge's decision is bewildering because county officials have made it clear over the last few weeks in newspaper articles and letters to jail employees that CiviGenics would assume control Oct. 30. Kunselman did not respond to a telephone message left at his courthouse office Wednesday seeking an explanation for his decision. Dave Ramsey, the jail guards' union representative with Service Employees International Union Local 668, also did not return a message left at his office. To win an injunction, county solicitor Myron Sainovich said the union must prove to Kunselman that it is likely that it would prevail in litigation and that irreparable harm would occur if the jail were privatized. "I don't believe they can show that," Sainovich said. The Pittsburgh law firm of Thorp, Reed & Armstrong is representing the county in litigation about the jail. In a one-page order, Kunselman gave both sides until Oct. 27 to submit briefs "on the question of whether or not injunctive relief can or should be granted." This is the second recent court decision on the jail takeover that has raised the eyebrows of county officials. Six of the seven judges rejected a county request to recuse themselves from litigation involving the jail to avoid conflicts of interest. Judge Deborah Kunselman removed herself from any hearings citing her former position as county solicitor.

October 5, 2006 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Beaver County labor leaders might soon face a touchy, difficult choice. They hate seeing the county bringing in a private firm to run the county jail, and they feel betrayed by Democratic Commissioners Dan Donatella, a longtime friend of labor, and Joe Spanik, a labor official elected in 2003. But would they go as far as to shut down all political activities? Would they punish Mike Veon, of Beaver, and Vince Biancucci, of Center, incumbent Democratic state legislators counting on union support for re-election? Such a request is implied in a Sept. 26 letter from Kathy Jellison, president of Local 668 of the Service Employees International Union, to its members who are county employees working at the jail. "It is no longer acceptable for local party leaders and other elected officials to remain silent while asking us to help them," the letter says. "They must stand with us." The letter says Local 668 plans "to demand an immediate suspension of all electoral activity in Beaver County by organized labor. ... We are requesting that labor organizations shut down phone banks, labor walks and all other in-kind contributions. ... We are requesting that you and/or your family members not take part in any candidate on the ballot in the county. Cash contributions should be suspended as well." In a county that is still heavily Democratic and where organized labor is still a huge political force, the idea has people nervous, waiting to see if the request is actually made.

October 3, 2006 Beaver Times
In an order signed Monday, only Judge Deborah Kunselman recused herself from hearing any arguments, citing the fact that she was county solicitor when the move to privatize the jail began. The county had asked the judges to remove themselves from any cases concerning litigation with Service Employees International Union Local 668, which represents the jail guards. SEIU opposed the county's request, insisting that any arguments should be heard by a Beaver County judge. The union has asked for an injunction to halt the county from handing the reins of the jail to CiviGenics on Oct. 30 and it has asked the court to order the county to abide by an arbitrator's contract decision that prohibited the county from privatizing the jail. County commissioners have said the decision was not binding and that they don't have to obey it because doing so would force them to pass a tax increase to pay for jail operations. "This is a Beaver County problem," said Dave Ramsey, the jail guards' SEIU representative. "We're satisfied that this is going to stay before Beaver County judges." Ramsey said he found it insulting that Beaver County tried to get the jail litigation "shipped off to another county."

September 28, 2006 Pittsburg Post-Gazette
Barring further legal action, private enterprise will manage the Beaver County Jail beginning Oct. 30. The county issued a letter Tuesday informing jail workers -- who are all Beaver County employees -- that Civigenics Inc. would be taking over jail operations. The Marlborough, Mass., company operates prisons nationwide, including the jail in Columbiana County, Ohio, which borders Beaver. The announcement was not unexpected, since the county activated its contract with Civigenics June 22, and the contract gave the company 120 days to take over operations. The move has been opposed in court, however, by the local unit of the Service Employees International Union, representing corrections officers at the jail.

August 3, 2006 Pittsburg Post-Gazette
Lawyers representing Beaver County do not think county judges would be biased in the case pitting the county against its jail guards' union. But they do think there is an appearance of the possibility of bias, and are thus asking that the county's seven judges be recused from the case -- meaning it would be handled by a retired judge or one from another county. The county's attorneys -- Joseph Friedman, Kurt Miller and Amy Herne, of Thorp Reed and Armstrong, Pittsburgh -- made the recusal motion yesterday. "Because the county has set aside 10 percent of the general fund budget for the jail, any deviation from that budget will have a direct and material impact on the other operations funded through the general fund, including the courthouse and the court of Common Pleas," the argument for recusal reads. The judge, whoever it eventually is, will play at least a minor role in deciding the fate of the county jail, whether it will continue as a county-run, union-worked facility or whether it will be privately run. The county has signed a contract with a private firm, CiviGenics Texas Inc., to take over jail operations, looking for a savings of about $1.9 million a year. Meanwhile, the county went through arbitration with the guards' union over a contract that expired at the end of 2005, and the arbitration panel signed off on a deal that would keep the union guards in place but would cost the county more. The union regards the arbitration award as binding. The county regards it as advisory, arguing that holding to it would force county commissioners to take legislative action in the form of a tax hike, and that arbitration can't force a county to take legislative action. That's an argument the commissioners set in stone last Thursday, passing a three-page resolution stating the position that the arbitration award is advisory only and empowering the county's attorneys to fight it. The resolution states that county funds are already earmarked for other departments and programs, many of which are mandated by the state or federal government. Reserves need to be protected in case of cash-flow problems, meaning the only way to pay for the arbitration award would be to borrow money, paying it back through higher taxes later. "The commissioners hereby reject the award as an unconstitutional infringement on the legislative powers of the commissioners, and deem the award to be advisory only in nature ..." the resolution reads. The resolution brought a long pause from Commissioner Joe Spanik, a labor leader before his 2003 election. "That's a tough one," he said quietly, before eventually seconding Commissioner Charlie Camp's motion and voting for the resolution. After the meeting, Mr. Spanik said he felt the advisory nature of the award to be up to the courts to determine, though he backed the county's stance. The union, Local 668 of the Service Employees International Union, has filed a petition asking the court to enforce the arbitration award, and has also filed a complaint with the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board.

July 20, 2006 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Beaver County Commissioners are going full-steam ahead with plans to privatize the county jail while the union representing the guards is chugging right back with legal action to stop the move. "We feel we have to go forward with it," commissioners' chairman Dan Donatella said. "There is too huge a savings for the taxpayers for us not to." Meanwhile, the county's contractor, CiviGenics Inc., is interviewing potential guards. In response, the union: On July 10 filed a petition asking the county Common Pleas Court to uphold a favorable arbitration award. On July 12 filed a complaint with the state Labor Relations Board. On Monday filed a motion for an injunction to keep the county from continuing its move to CiviGenics. "The county commissioners want to be above the law, to ignore the arbitration award and do what they want anyway," union steward Tom Trkulja said. The issue has roots going back to late 2004, when the commissioners hired a private firm to manage the county-owned nursing home and started considering the jail as another candidate for privatization. The county put out a request for proposals early in 2005, and CiviGenics, based in Marlborough, Mass., offered a plan in June 2005 that included $1.8 million in annual savings. The county asked the guards' union to offer similar savings in a new contract -- the old labor agreement expired Dec. 31 -- but the contract went to arbitration when the union declined to match the private offer. On June 7, after seeing a preliminary proposal from the arbitrator, the county told the union it would go ahead with the CiviGenics deal. It sent an official letter to that effect June 22, the same day the arbitration award was announced. The union ratified the arbitrator's proposal, which offered about $400,000 in savings. The union -- Local 1168 of the Service Employees International Union -- contends that the arbitration award is legal and binding. "They can't just ignore it," business agent Dave Ramsey said. The county contends that while arbitration can determine what a contract will include, it can't stop the county from simply walking away and going in a different direction. "If an arbiter has that kind of power" -- to force a county into a union contract if it has other options -- "then the contract will run forever, and just keep getting renewed," Mr. Donatella said. In fact, Mr. Donatella said, the dispute could end up touching on some important uncharted territory. Depending what happens, the courts could end up determining whether counties have an automatic right to subcontract work, or if they only have that right when it is specifically allowed in their union contracts. "Many, many, many counties are watching this case," he said. If counties have a general right to employ subcontractors, it would make privatization a lot easier. Beaver County's old union contract said nothing about subcontracting work to a private business. The county contends that since it is not specifically forbidden, it is an option the county has. "That's a management decision," Mr. Donatella said. "I can't believe we don't have the right to manage." The union contends that since the arbitration award does include language on subcontracting -- the award says the county cannot subcontract work during the length of the new, arbitrated union contract -- then the county's hands are tied. "My understanding of the law is that if it isn't in the contract then you have to bargain for it," Mr. Ramsey said, "and that's what we did." He said top SEIU officials, like county officials, are watching the case closely. "They have to decide how they want to use their resources," he said. "I don't know if we're going to have purple shirts" -- the union's trademark color -- "marching in Beaver or not." Meanwhile, CiviGenics has until early September to take over jail operations, barring an injunction, and already is interviewing potential jail guards, including some union members. "Nobody really wants to work for this company," Mr. Trkulja said, "but some of the guys, because of the way their lives are, are going to have to." He said generally people are keeping quiet on the issue. There have been some hard feelings and a little name-calling, but nothing more serious than that, and union leaders are not asking members whether they are doing interviews. "There are mixed emotions down there," he said. "A lot of people are at somewhat of a low point."

July 18, 2006 Beaver Times
The union representing the Beaver County Jail guards filed for an injunction on Monday to stop the county from contracting with CiviGenics to manage the Hopewell Township jail. Service Employees International Union Local 668's motion for an injunction filed in Beaver County Court said allowing the county to contract with the Massachusetts-based CiviGenics would "cause immediate and irreparable harm to the employees," who would "suffer a loss of employment, medical coverage and other benefits ....." SEIU asked the court to grant an injunction "until (the union) has fully exhausted the administrative and judicial remedies." One of those remedies, presumably, is the union's request - filed July 10 - to have the county court force the county commissioners to honor an arbitration decision released by a panel last month. A neutral arbitrator and a union representative on the panel approved the decision, while county Solicitor Myron Sainovich, the panel's third member, rejected it. The union insists the arbitration decision is binding, but the county disagrees. Under the three-year decision, wages would be frozen and the number of full-time jail guards would be reduced, but the county would also be prohibited from privatizing the operation of the facility. The county's attorneys have said the arbitration decision would save the county $450,000 annually for three years, compared to the more than $4 million that would be saved by contracting with CiviGenics through 2008. Asked if the request for an injunction would affect the ongoing privatization process, Sainovich replied, "Not at this point in time." Claudia Lukert, SEIU's Harrisburg attorney, didn't return a message left at her office. County financial administrator Rob Cyphert said the county's contract with CiviGenics calls for the company to be reimbursed up to $125,000 for recruiting expenses "if they don't ultimately end up running the operation at the jail." A temporary halt to the process would not trigger that clause, Cyphert said. CiviGenics asked current guards to submit applications by July 14, and it was scheduled to hold a job fair at Penn State-Beaver today.

June 29, 2006 Beaver Times
How frayed has the relationship between Beaver County and the union representing its jail guards become amid contract arbitration and a move to privatize the jail? So tattered that when Service Employees International Union Local 668 business agent Dave Ramsey was told Wednesday that the county commissioners were disappointed in an arbitration decision that saved the county "only" $450,000 annually, this was his reaction: "Tell them to go (expletive) themselves, and you can tell them I said that." Well, then. The relationship won't improve now that an arbitration panel has issued a decision that would prohibit privatization from happening through 2008 and reduce the number of full-time guards, but would also freeze wages for three years and implement a 1 percent employee contribution toward health insurance. That's because county commissioners probably won't accept the deal, which they say falls far short of the estimated $1.9 million the county would save if the jail was outsourced to the Massachusetts company CiviGenics. "It is unlikely that this board is going to accept that," Commissioners Chairman Dan Donatella said of the decision by arbitrator Marc Winters that was agreed to by SEIU representative Rick Adams. The decision was issued Thursday, only hours after commissioners declared negotiations at an impasse and voted to authorize CiviGenics to start the takeover process. "We dislike just about everything (in the decision), but we're pleased they're not going to have any (privatization) for the life of the contract," Ramsey said. County Solicitor Myron Sainovich - who along with Winters and Adams made up the arbitration panel - rejected the decision. The arbitration decision would not keep the county from privatization, he said.

June 23, 2006 Beaver Times
A Massachusetts company could take over operation of the Beaver County Jail by October after county commissioners on Thursday declared negotiations with the guards at an impasse and unanimously approved privatizing the facility. "This," said Commissioner Joe Spanik, "is the next step forward." County Solicitor Myron Sainovich said officials hope to have CiviGenics in place no later than Oct. 15. Sainovich, who represented the county on the three-member arbitration panel in April, said Butler County arbitrator Marc Winters, the agreed-to neutral party, gave his proposal in May, but the county rejected it. Sainovich said the union rejected the proposal as well, although no union representative would confirm that on Thursday. Rick Adams, a representative for Service Employees International Union Local 668, argued for the jail guards in arbitration; he could not be reached at his Erie office. Sainovich would not release Winters' proposal because it was not a final decision. Winters did not return a telephone message left on Thursday. But Sainovich said late Thursday afternoon that Winters was preparing a revised proposal that would be given to both sides for consideration. Tom Trkulja, the guards' chief union steward, said he was unaware of the commissioners' vote.

June 23, 2006 Tribune-Review
A private company will take over management and operations of the Beaver County Jail by Oct. 15, county commissioners said Thursday. Putting CiviGenics Inc. in charge of the 360-bed jail in Hopewell will save the county $1.9 million in the first year of the deal, commissioners said in a news release. The county will pay CiviGenics $14.6 million over three years to run the jail. The union representing 72 county jail guards fought the move, fearing pay cuts and the loss of benefits, and they questioned private prisons' safety record and officials' rosy savings projections. "You shouldn't be imprisoning people for profit," Service Employees International Union Local 668 business agent Dave Ramsey said.

April 20, 2006 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The fate of Beaver County's push to privatize the county jail now rests in the hands of Marc Winters, an arbiter from Butler County. Beaver County officials and jail guards testified before a three-member arbitration panel April 12 and last Thursday, making their cases for alternative versions of how the Beaver County Jail should be run. With one of the three panel members selected by the county and one by the guards, however, it is essentially up to the one neutral arbiter, Mr. Winters, to say what should happen. The county has signed a contract with a Massachusetts firm, CiviGenics Inc., to take over management of the jail. The county says it can save up to $1.6 million a year by moving the jail into the private sector. The corrections officers union, working without a contract since Jan. 1, made a counterproposal, but it could not match the savings promised by CiviGenics. The union filed for arbitration after the county signed the CiviGenics contract. Neither guard nor county representatives would talk in detail about the proceedings, which were closed to the public. County financial administrator Rob Cyphert and jail Warden Bill Schouppe were the county's primary witnesses; three corrections officers testified for the union.

March 27, 2006 Beaver Times
The bitter contract negotiations between Beaver County Jail guards and the county will go before an arbitration panel next month at the county courthouse. County solicitor Myron Sainovich said last week that the county and the jail guards' union will square off April 12 and 13 in closed sessions. A three-member panel will hear arguments, but the decision essentially boils down to which side can win over the one neutral arbitrator. Sainovich will sit on the panel as the county's representative, and Rick Adams, a Service Employees International Union Local 668 business agent, will represent the guards. Butler County lawyer Marc Winters was picked as the neutral member by the county and the union. Sainovich said the two-day hearing will resemble a trial, with county officials involved in negotiations being called to testify. Although the county is poised to privatize the jail and allow CiviGenics to take over operations, county commissioners have said they would keep the jail under county control if they could get the financial concessions they're looking for. County officials have said the Massachusetts-based CiviGenics could save Beaver County $5 million over the next three years, but jail guards have questioned the validity of those estimates. The county has said the guards have not offered savings anywhere close to what CiviGenics is promising. As the arbitration process winds to a conclusion, the county continues to operate the jail, and guards continue to work under the terms of the contract that expired at the end of 2005.

February 16, 2006 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Beaver County commissioners yesterday unanimously passed a 2006 budget with no tax increase. The county's millage rate will hold at 17.7 mills, the same as it was in 2005. The projected total budget is roughly $257.5 million for the county's 29 separate funds and includes no major cuts or additions in funding or programs. The budget likely will be amended in the near future depending on the outcome of an arbitrator's decision on a contract between the county and the Local 668 of the Service Employees International Union, which represents the county jail's roughly 80 guards. The guards' contract expired on Dec. 31, and the two sides are at an impasse after the county decided to contract with a private firm, Civigenics, to run the jail. The county hopes to save upward of $1.5 million a year by switching to a private firm; guards are concerned that they might have to face sizable pay and benefit cuts to retain their jobs with a private company.

January 24, 2006 Beaver Times
Beaver County will pay CiviGenics $14.6 million over the next three years to manage the county jail, and it retains the right to cancel the contract at any time without giving a reason. Peter Argeropulos, CiviGenics' chief operating officer, said the deal is pretty typical of the company's other contracts. Current jail guards have said that private guards make considerably less than the $17.33 per hour the county now pays. Argeropulos said the wage scale would range from $10 per hour for entry-level guards to $14 per hour for guards with seniority. The benefits package would be a dramatic change for guards, who now pay nothing for health insurance. Argeropulos said company employees generally pay about 30 percent of health-insurance costs.

January 19, 2006 Beaver Times
Before the Beaver County Prison Board approved privatizing the Beaver County Jail, guards offered a plan that would have saved the county $1.6 million this year, the same as a private company has promised, a union official said Wednesday. "We tried to save (the county) as much money as we could," said Tom Trkulja, the chief union steward for the jail guards. Commissioners Chairman Dan Donatella said the contract with Massachusetts-based CiviGenics was executed Wednesday. "It's signed, sealed and delivered," he said. Trkulja charged that the county is demanding outrageous concessions from the guards that no other county unions have been offered. He said the guards have been asked to accept a 25 percent cut in hourly wages and pay a 25 percent health insurance premium while other county employees pay 1 percent. The county also wants to slash the number of full-time guards from 55 to 49 and part-time guards from 22 to 15, Trkulja said. Although it doesn't want to hurt other county workers, the union is exploring what bumping rights guards might have so they could move into other county jobs if they get displaced by CiviGenics, Trkulja said.

January 18, 2006 Beaver Times
Nearly two years after the Beaver County Commissioners first talked about privatizing the Beaver County Jail, the county prison board on Tuesday authorized them to contract with a Massachusetts company to run the Hopewell Township facility. "It's a contract that is good for the county," said Rick Towcimak, prison board member and county controller. Under the proposed contract with CiviGenics, the county would save a projected $5 million over the next three years. Most of the savings would come from the county no longer employing jail guards and having to pay their salaries and benefits. Tom Trkulja, the chief union steward for the county's jail guards, said the vote was a surprise to him and he again insisted that privatization would only create problems for the county and its residents. "Taxpayers are going to lose on this," Trkulja said. "We're all going to lose." Towcimak said he was initially skeptical about the savings expected from CiviGenics, but he is now convinced the figures are realistic. Also, he said the public would not be endangered by having a private company operate the jail, something the current jail guards have repeatedly warned about. "We've seen things happen down at the jail now, and it's not private," said Towcimak. Last month, a jail sergeant was fired for mistakenly releasing an accused child molester, the third time the sergeant had wrongly released an inmate in 2005. Towcimak said he had also received assurances from CiviGenics that the "vast majority" of jail guards would be offered jobs at comparable wages. Trkulja bristled at those comments, saying the union has been told that each full-time guard would have to accept an $18,000 pay cut.

January 1, 2006 AP
Beaver County says it is prepared to hire a private management firm to run the county jail, which officials say would save the county $5 million over three years. But the union representing the guards, whose contract expired Saturday, says it hopes a new proposal will save the county enough money to fend off privatization and ultimately save most of their jobs. "We're making every attempt we can to come up with ways to save them money, said Tom Trkulja, the union steward for the jail's 70 full-time and part-time guards. CiviGenics of Massachusetts has said it could save the county about $1.6 million a year over what it pays its guards currently - a projection disputed by the union. If CiviGenics is hired, the company would have the option of keeping the existing staff, but Trkulja said about 80 percent of the guards would probably not take the jobs because of the lower pay. Although negotiators for two sides are scheduled to meet Jan. 9, the county approved a budget last week that includes the $1.6 million annual savings expected if CiviGenics is hired.

December 27, 2005 Beaver Times
Under Beaver County's preliminary 2006 budget that commissioners should approve on Thursday, there won't be a county property tax increase for a second consecutive year. Commissioners are prepared to outsource the management of the jail to the Massachusetts company CiviGenics for a projected savings of nearly $5 million over the next three years, including at least $1.6 million in 2006. Savings achieved through no longer having to pay benefits could push those figures higher. Health coverage accounts for nearly $760,000, according to the county's 2005 budget, with dental and vision costing an additional $55,000. Taking all costs into account, the total savings from outsourcing could easily exceed $2 million annually. Service Employees International Union Local 668, the union representing county jail guards, has disputed the numbers contained in CiviGenics' proposal. And union officials have also been reviewing the contract proposal in an effort to submit their own proposal. The union's contract expires Dec. 31, and both sides have been negotiating. Donatella said commissioners expect significant savings from the jail whether they're provided by the union or CiviGenics. "We'll be more than happy to keep (the jail) in-house as long as the savings are there," Donatella said.

December 15, 2005 Pittsburgh Post Gazette
It is, essentially, a tale of 2 mills. If the Beaver County commissioners get a Massachusetts firm to run the county jail, or if they strike an equivalent deal with the union representing jail workers, they expect to pass a budget with no tax increase. If they keep running the jail under the terms of the existing union contract, they expect to pass a budget with a tax increase of about 2 mills. They plan to approve a preliminary budget Dec. 29, including the projected savings under the contract with CiviGenics, Inc., and then hunker down to see what happens next. If the union makes an offer with equivalent savings, they'll pass the preliminary budget essentially unchanged. If the commissioners sign with CiviGenics, they expect the union to go to court, seeking an injunction delaying the contract. If the court grants an injunction, the commissioners would be forced to continue operating the jail under the terms of the existing union contract, and would then pass a budget with a tax increase to pay for it. Dave Ramsey, business agent for Local 668 SEIU of the Pennsylvania Social Services Union, said the union would be coming up with a counter-offer, but that it would not match the one from CiviGenics. "We are going to make a proposal to them that includes enough people to actually man all the duty stations," he said, labeling the private proposal a "ghost offer" based on hiring and staffing assumptions that fly in the face of reality. Mr. Ramsey said the county was having trouble hiring corrections officers now, leading him to doubt whether CiviGenics can do so at lower wages. "The prospects of this proposal from CiviGenics being viable are not very high," he said.

November 6, 2005 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 
Beaver County is an unlikely place for a conservative revolution. Democrats hold a two-to-one registration advantage, have dominated county government for decades, own the state legislative seats. The steel mills are gone, but a blue collar is still a badge of honor and unions remain a political force. Inside the offices of the county commissioners, though, the flag of private enterprise is flying high -- high enough to draw repeated protests from local union officials. Over the last year, the commissioners have brought in new management for the county nursing home, outsourced services like printing, nursing home laundry and lawn care, and named a private restaurant to run the courthouse lunchroom as a for-profit entity, not to mention two rounds of layoffs, the first two in county history. And they're in the process of making two larger moves toward privatization: They solicited private companies to build and manage a regional juvenile detention center in the county and they have negotiated a tentative agreement for a private company to take over the county jail. The moves have local unions howling. "Our number one concern is for safety," said Ed Rowan, a correctional officer at the county jail and safety officer for Local 668 of the Service Employees International Union. "That's a big issue when it comes to private prisons. They have less training and lower wages." There is an even larger issue, though, that has the union's state headquarters on high alert as well. To put it simply, if this can happen here, it can happen anywhere. Beaver's move toward private management at the jail would be even more revolutionary, though it's not a done deal -- the union's contract runs through Dec. 31, and the county cannot make a change until then. The county does, however, have a basic agreement in place with CiviGenics Inc., of Marlborough, Mass. The bottom line is $1.8 million in promised savings annually, with perhaps another $600,000 in annual pension and benefit savings on top of it. If that happens, Beaver will be only the second county in Pennsylvania with a privately run jail -- the other is Delaware County, just south of Philadelphia. The protests of unions has been backed by a vociferous anti-private-jail lobby, which has Web sites and publications offering thousands of pages of horror stories and studies disputing the industry's claims of safety and savings. And in fact, Delaware has run into some recent problems, with five deaths in five months, sparking an internal investigation and one by the county district attorney's office. The county and jail operator The Geo Group Inc. are named in a $500,000 lawsuit by the family of a man who died in the jail of a drug overdose in April.

October 14, 2005 Beaver County Times
Beaver County Jail guards picketed the courthouse again on Thursday to protest the privatization of the jail, and a union official gave the county commissioners a petition bearing more than 1,400 names opposing the move. County residents are "beginning to become aware of what's happening, and they don't like it," said Dave Ramsey, the business agent for Service Employees International Union Local 668. Ramsey told the commissioners at their regular meeting that he noticed several resolutions on last month's agenda that addressed increases in contracts. He warned the commissioners that they'd be doing the same with CiviGenics if they outsource the jail to the Massachusetts company. Commissioners Chairman Dan Donatella didn't appeared swayed by the petition or the 1,472 signatures.

September 29, 2005 Beaver County Times
Beaver County Commissioner Joe Spanik is between the proverbial rock and a hard place as county officials inch closer and closer to privatizing the Beaver County Jail. "Absolutely, there's pressure," said Spanik, a longtime labor official who was elected in 2003 with the support of unions. As the move to privatize the jail in Hopewell Township picks up steam, Spanik has become the sounding board for not only jail guards, but local and state union officials who oppose outsourcing the jail's management to Massachusetts-based CiviGenics. Spanik found himself in an awkward position recently when the Beaver County Central Labor Council, on which Spanik sits, approved a resolution opposing privatization. Spanik abstained from the vote approving the resolution.

September 23, 2005 Beaver County Times
The debate over privatizing the Beaver County Jail intensified Thursday with jail guards picketing at the county courthouse and commissioners saying they might hire a public relations firm to counter union criticism. Prior to the commissioners' meeting at 10 a.m., about 30 people - mostly guards, their families and other union colleagues - carried signs and passed out fliers protesting the possible hiring of CiviGenics, based in Marlborough, Mass., to manage and staff the jail. Standing with other protesters along Market Street, Tom Trkulja, the guards' union steward, reiterated his stance that a purported $5 million in savings over three years is being exaggerated. Not only would hidden costs ultimately cost taxpayers more in the long run, but private jail guards are not as dedicated as public ones, he argues, which would compromise the safety of guards, inmates and residents. During the commissioners' meeting, Ramsey presented Commissioners Chairman Dan Donatella with a resolution from the Beaver County Labor Council opposing privatization and asking that the county disclose CiviGenics' record, including its operation of the Penn Pavilion minimum-security jail in New Brighton. Donatella said the board is considering hiring a public relations firm that would direct the county's response to the union's attacks on privatization. "We need to show the taxpayer where we're coming from," he said. Donatella said a public-relations campaign might include pamphlets, radio spots and newspaper ads. "We're going to present the facts," he said, "and we'll let the public decide."

September 22, 2005 Pittsburgh Post Gazette
For nearly a year, the Beaver County commissioners have been talking about hiring a private firm to run the county jail. In that same time, the union representing corrections officers at the jail has been making dire predictions about the impact of such a move. And last night, the Beaver County Central Labor Council told the commissioners at their meeting that they too object to the county prison board negotiating a contract with CiviGenics Inc., the Marlborough, Mass. company that submitted the sole proposal to manage the jail. All three commissioners serve on the prison board. The labor council said it opposes "any scheme that risks the health and safety of all [county] residents by contraction with out-of-state contractors who don't care about Beaver County and whose sole concern is taking precious taxpayer dollars out of the community." The council claims CiviGenics' projected savings of $1.8 million per year in operating costs is vastly overstated, partly because it's based on a jail budget larded with overtime. The council also said CiviGenics' numbers do not account for increased costs from a higher number of escapes and assaults they expect from a lower-paid corrections staff. But the "No. 1 concern is safety," said Ed Rowan, a corrections officer and safety officer for Local 668 of the Service Employees International Union. "That's the big issue when it comes to a private prison," he said. "You have people with less training making lower wages.

Bi-State Jail/Bowie County Detention Center, Bowie County, Texas
May 14, 2008 Texarkana Gazette
A man who smuggled marijuana into the Bowie County Correctional Center while working as a guard there pleaded guilty Monday and received a 10-year term of probation. Marquise Dushun Hunt, 21, had been working as a correctional officer for CiviGenics for about two months when he was caught bringing three sandwich bags full of marijuana into the jail. CiviGenics is a private company that contracts with Bowie County to run the jail. A confidential informant alerted jail officials to the marijuana in Hunt’s possession on March 1, 2007. He was indicted by a grand jury Jan. 3.

March 1, 2007 KPXJ 21
He worked in the jail and now a Bowie County Correctional Center officer has found himself behind bars. Bowie County sheriff's investigators say 20-year old Marquise Hunt of Texarkana, Texas is charged with introducing a prohibited substance into a correctional facility. Officers found three bags of marijuana in Hunt's possession. For two months, Hunt worked for Civigenics, which operates the jail. His bond has been set at $100,000.

January 24, 2007 Texarkana Gazette
A correctional officer at the Bowie County Correctional Center annex has been arrested for allegedly trying to smuggle marijuana, tobacco and cigars into the jail. Bowie County Sheriff’s Office investigators said James Porter, 18, was booked on charges of bringing prohibited substances into a correctional facility. Porter has also been fired. Porter’s supervisor saw him acting nervously as he entered the jail Sunday afternoon, said Capt. Larry Parker. The supervisor searched Porter and found the marijuana, tobacco and cigars wrapped in three bundles. He was arrested on charges of bringing prohibited substances into a jail and booked into the Bi-State Justice Building Jail on a $40,000 bail. The charge is a third-degree felony. Parker said besides drugs and weapons, it is illegal to take into a jail money, alcohol, cell phones and tobacco. He said Porter had worked for Civigenics, the company that operates the jail, for about four months

August 19, 2006 Texarkana Gazette
A professional tax preparer has been sentenced to three years probation for her conviction of conspiracy to file false tax claims against the U.S. government. Colleen D. Jordan, 44, of Texarkana, Texas, had originally pleaded innocent to the charges in federal court in Texarkana, Texas. She later changed her plea and was recently sentenced by U.S. District Judge David Folsom. In addition to a three year sentence, Jordan must also pay a $1,000 fine. Jordan was charged on Jan. 10 by a federal grand jury in Tyler with one count of conspiracy to file false IRS claims, 12 counts of filing false IRS claims, and 12 counts of possession of authentication features with intent to defraud the United States. The other charges were dropped after her sentencing. She had been employed by the Arkansas Department of Correction since 1999 but was fired by ADC in 2003. Civigenics, a private contractor that now runs the jail, hired her in December 2003.

January 23, 2006 Texarkana Gazette
A former Bi-State Justice Building jailer and a tax preparer have been indicted on 25 federal counts that they used inmates’ Social Security numbers to get more than $50,000 in tax refunds for themselves. Janice F. Koontz, 30, of Texarkana, Ark., and Colleen D. Jordan, 44, of Texarkana, Texas, have both pleaded not guilty to the charges in federal court in Texarkana, Texas. They were each charged by a federal grand jury in Tyler on Jan. 10 with one count of conspiracy to file false IRS claims, 12 counts of filing false IRS claims, and 12 counts of possession of authentication features with intent to defraud the United States. Jordan, according to the indictment, was a professional tax preparer. Koontz was a jailer at the BJB jail and a security officer at Smith-Keys Village Apartments. She was employed by the Arkansas Department of Correction since 1999 but was fired by ADC in 2003. Civigenics, a private contractor that now runs the jail, hired her in December 2003. Assistant U.S. Attorney Barry Bryant alleges that Koontz obtained names, Social Security numbers and other means to identify inmates incarcerated in the BJB. She worked for Smith-Keys from 2000 to 2002. Bryant alleges that Koontz also gained access to the security office of the apartments and obtained names and means of identifying the tenants without the knowledge of the housing authority or the residents. Jordan allegedly worked with Koontz to create W-2 forms using the names and Social Security numbers of the inmates and residents. Forms were allegedly electronically filed with the IRS in 2003 using information gathered since 2000. The women allegedly divided up more than $50,000 in fraudulent tax refunds.

December 30, 2005 Baxter Bulletin
An inmate at the Bi-State Jail died early Wednesday after having a fight with another inmate at the jail, authorities say. Texarkana Police Department spokesman Chris Rankin said Damien Wheeler, 23, of Texarkana, Ark., was involved in a fight with another inmate, Nathaniel Cleveland, 19, of Texarkana, Texas, between 11 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. Tuesday. Rankin said police don't know why the inmates were fighting. "The details are still pretty sketchy as far as what was going on in the jail," Rankin said Thursday. "All we know is they were involved in a fight, they were separated, and at some point this guy went downhill extremely fast and died." Wheeler, who was checked by a jail nurse after the fight, was found unresponsive several hours later, Rankin said. Wheeler was taken to Wadley Regional Medical Center at 5 a.m. Wednesday and was pronounced dead, he said.

June 23, 2005
Even though Bowie County recently made what appears to be a lucrative deal to hold some 325 state inmates, the county will actually collect less than a quarter of the income.  Last week, the county's Commissioners Court approved a contract with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, in which the county agrees to lease 325 of its Correctional Center spaces to hold the state inmates.  The contract calls for the state to pay the county $39 per inmate, per day, which in a year's time would amount to about $4,626,000.  However, since the county no longer employs jailers, more than 75 percent (roughly $3,479,000) of that income will have to go to Civigenics, a private security firm, which the county hired in November 2001 to operate and maintain the jail annex near Union Station in downtown Texarkana. Although the county would get the remaining 25 percent of the annual income, amounting to about $1,163,000, Bowie County Auditor William Tye said much of that money will be easily swallowed up by residual state inmate medical and meal expenses.

April 24, 2005 TylerPaper.com
Smith County inmates have been moved from the Bowie County Detention Center to other facilities operated by the CiviGenics firm, because the Bowie County facility failed its most recent inspection, county officials announced. On Monday, Smith County commissioners are scheduled to consider interlocal agreements with Falls and Limestone counties to house male and female prisoners. "Those agreements are really just routine in nature," County Judge Becky Dempsey said. "We had to enter into an agreement with Bowie County when we began shipping our prisoners there, even though the jail there is operated by the private company." The changes will come at no charge to Smith County, she adds. "The terms are exactly the same, according to information the sheriff gave us," she said. "And Bowie County took care of the expenses involved in moving our prisoners to the other counties."

March 21, 2005 Texarkana Gazette
A Bowie County Detention Center inmate from Grayson County, Texas, had about five minutes of freedom Sunday morning before he was recaptured. Warden Larry Johns said the inmate was being escorted by an officer in the sally port area about 10 a.m. The garage type door was being opened to allow officers to bring food into the detention center from the Bi-State Justice Center, located about a block away in downtown Texarkana, Texas. Johns said the inmate, who is serving time for public intoxication from Grayson County, broke away from the officer and slid under the garage door. Two other officers and the supervisor started chasing the inmate at 10:02 a.m. At 10:07 a.m. the inmate was recaptured. Johns declined to release the name of the inmate since it was misdemeanor.

February 26, 2005 Texarkana Gazette
A former CiviGenics jailer has been arrested for allegedly having sex with a female inmate inside an office at the Bi-State jail, an official said. Steven Bradley Grisham, 35, of DeKalb, Texas, was arrested Friday on charges of violating the civil rights of a person in custody and sexual activity with a person in custody, said Bowie County Sheriff's Department Chief Deputy James Manning.

October 15, 2004 Texarkana Gazette
Several employees have lost their jobs as Bi-State jail and Bowie County Correctional Center strengthen security after the recent escape of a capital murder suspect. CiviGenics Inc., a Massachussetts-based company, has operated both jails since January. "We have made some leadership changes ... it's an opportunity to fine-tune," said Jim Shaw, regional director for Civigenics Inc. The escape of Henry, 28, and two other inmates has also prompted CiviGenics to evaluate security and make some other changes. There have been two other escapes from Bi-State jail since CiviGenics took over operations.

October 14, 2004 KTBS
An internal investigation at the Bi-State Jail in Texarkana has led to both physical changes in the jail facility and changes in the security system. The investigation was prompted by last month's escape of three inmates. Officials with Civigenics, which operates the jail, won't comment specifically on the physical changes for security reasons, but tell us they did find vulnerabilities in the jail system and that their investigation isn't over.

September 29, 2004 Texarkana Gazette
A capital murder suspect, who escaped Tuesday morning from the Bi-State Justice Building jail with two other inmates, remained at large late Tuesday despite an intense manhunt by local law enforcement. The search for Torrence Henry, 28, of Hope, Ark., was expected to continue overnight. Henry escaped with two other Bi-State inmates sometime before 4 a.m. Tuesday, said Bi-State Jail Warden Bob Page. Henry is considered extremely dangerous. Medical staff noticed one of the pod's inmates was missing about 4 a.m., Page said. The staff then searched the pod's shower area and found that the escapees had apparently torn a hole in the shower's plaster ceiling and escaped through the ventilation system. They made their way to an electric control room and eventually down the stairwell of one of the building's interior fire escapes. On Tuesday afternoon, the mother of one of the suspects who was apprehended spoke out about her frustration with the Bi-State jail. She said her son had escaped before, and that apparently no changes have been made to improve security. "I was very relieved he didn't get very far. Even though he was wrong to do that (escape), I feel like they are giving him rope to hang himself with by not keeping him in a secure environment," she said. "I know he would be safer in jail than out running around."

September 28, 2004 Texarkana Gazette
Bowie County will have to absorb about $390,000 in Bi-State Justice Building expenses but property taxes will not have to be increased as a result. The county is paying the extra amount for having to extend its contract with Civigenics Inc. Specifically, the county incurred the added expense when the Arkansas Department of Correction decided at the end of last year to withdraw its jailers from having to guard Bi-State inmates.

Camp Sierra Blanca, Ruidoso, New Mexico
February 15, 2006 Albuquerque Journal
Five teenage boys who walked away from a juvenile jail Monday were taken into custody Tuesday morning, but questions remain about why the facility near Ruidoso has had two breakouts in two months. The teens, ranging in age from 17 to 19, were at Camp Sierra Blanca as part of their paroles and probations. They were picked up by State Police and Lincoln County Sheriff's officers about nine miles from the camp on Highway 380, near Capitan. "We're very concerned," said Deborah Martinez, spokeswoman for the Children, Youth and Families Department, which oversees the camp. "We want to understand what is going on that's causing these boys to walk away, and prevent it from happening again," she said. A spokesman for CiviGenics, the Boston company that has run the fenceless, rural facility since June, said jail security depends on the staff's vigilance and their ability to maintain relationships with the inmates. "The opportunity to run is so great," said George Vose, vice president of CiviGenics.

August 11, 2005 KVIA
The state Children, Youth and Families Department has paid 212-thousand-500 dollars to settle a dispute with a company that had run Camp Sierra Blanca. The Albuquerque Journal reports today that the money has been paid to Florida-based Associated Marine Institutes. In exchange for the payment, A-M-I has agreed to withdraw a protest it filed after it lost the contract to operate Camp Sierra Blanca. The Children, Youth and Families Department initially had refused to reveal the amount of the payment. The state earlier this summer transferred the operation of Camp Sierra Blanca to a for-profit Boston company, CiviGenics. A-M-I lost the contract to run the juvenile detention facility because of a technical error on its bid.

May 24, 2005 Albuquerque Journal
Officials from Associated Marine Institutes, the Florida organization that operates a juvenile detention camp near Ruidoso, say they'll fight the state's decision to turn the center over to a new contractor. Last Friday, an attorney for AMI presented the Children, Youth and Families Department with a notice of protest over the bidding process that began in April. AMI has run Camp Sierra Blanca since its inception in 1997. The rural, farm-like camp has been praised by politicians, judges and children's advocates for its success in rehabilitating teenage boys. Officials from the Children, Youth and Families Department say they have entered into budget negotiations with CiviGenics of Boston, the only other company that made a bid to run the camp. The protest alleges that AMI's contract proposal was disqualified because budget information was put in an appendix of the proposal instead of in the body of the document— something AMI officials say they were told was acceptable. The protest contends that CYFD restricted AMI's oral presentation during the final stage of the procurement process. CYFD also failed to select a proposal evaluation committee that met procurement standards, according to the document.

May 13, 2005 Albuquerque Journal
Supporters of Camp Sierra Blanca, a juvenile detention center near Ruidoso, are questioning the state's decision to disqualify a contract bid from its operator on what they consider to be a technicality. U.S. Rep. Steve Pearce, R-N.M.; state Sen. Mary Kay Papen, D-Las Cruces; and U.S. District Judge William "Chip" Johnson say the state's decision could be a result of the conflict that arose last summer when the Children, Youth and Families Department tried to close the facility.  Some Lincoln County residents have established an "advocacy support fund" to save Camp Sierra Blanca and its current contractors, American Marine Institute, said Harvey Twite of radio station KEDU. The station is spearheading the effort. Under AMI's management, Camp Sierra Blanca has reported a 90 percent success rate in rehabilitating delinquent boys. AMI, a nonprofit company based in Florida, has managed the camp since its opening in 1997. A letter sent from CYFD to AMI officials on May 6 said the disqualification was because of AMI's failure to provide required information. Camp officials claim data from two columns was put in an appendix, which they contend CYFD approved. CYFD is currently negotiating with CiviGenics to run the camp. CiviGenics, a for-profit correctional company from Boston, was the only other firm to submit a bid.

May 11, 2005 Albuquerque Journal
After a long fight to keep a juvenile detention facility near Ruidoso open, the organization that has run the center has been informed it is out of a job. Officials from Associated Marine Institutes, Inc., which has managed Camp Sierra Blanca since its inception in 1997, say state officials didn't play fair when they awarded a new contract to CiviGenics, a for-profit correctional company from Boston. AMI officials said they are considering challenging the decision. The state's current contract with AMI, a nonprofit company based in Florida, expires June 30. In a news release Monday, CYFD said it was entering into contract negotiations with CiviGenics, the only other organization to submit a proposal. CiviGenics operates adult prisons in 14 states and juvenile facilities in four. "The process has saddened me," said state District Judge Karen Parsons, a Camp Sierra Blanca board member. "If we were being dealt with in good faith, they should have told us there was a technical problem (with the proposal). But the outcome was predictable in light of the way (CYFD) Secretary (Mary-Dale) Bolson has treated AMI." Tensions began building last summer when CYFD announced the camp would close in an effort to incarcerate fewer juveniles and rehabilitate them in their communities. An outcry from the residents of Lincoln County and supporters of the juvenile justice system prompted Gov. Bill Richardson to halt the closure.  Supporters pointed to a 90 percent success rate and heavy community support as reasons to keep the low-security facility open.

CiviGenics, Marlboro, Massachusetts
May 21, 2007 New York Times
A company based in New Jersey that provides training and treatment programs to prison inmates is announcing today that it has bought a similar Massachusetts company, creating one of the largest correctional services companies in the country. The two companies — Community Education Centers of Roseland, N.J., and CiviGenics of Marlborough, Mass. — are trying to capitalize on the growing number of inmates and tight financing for new prisons that have led federal, state and local governments to contract out more of their operations to private businesses. States have also addressed the shortage of prison space by trying to reduce recidivism with more training and treatment programs for inmates. About 70 percent of those released from prison return within three years, according to some studies. “There’s a tremendous focus on the re-entry of inmates,” said John J. Clancy, chief executive of Community Education Centers. “If people are going to continue to get out of prison, the question is how they get out.” The two privately held companies, which together are expected to employ about 3,500 people in 22 states and have close to $240 million in revenue next year, did not disclose the financial terms of the agreement. However, people with knowledge of the transaction said Community Education Centers paid more than $100 million for CiviGenics.

January 13, 2007 The Telegram & Gazette
Spectrum Health Systems Inc., its former management company and a former executive have agreed to repay about $7.5 million to the state to settle charges that Spectrum misused state money. The office of Attorney General Thomas F. Reilly reported yesterday that Spectrum will pay the state $3.5 million and add four new independent trustees to its board. CiviGenics Inc. of Marlboro, which held a management contract with Spectrum from 1996 to 2002, will pay the state $3.4 million, Mr. Reilly’s office said, and CiviGenics President Roy Ross will pay the state $650,000. Under the agreement with the attorney general’s office, none of the parties admitted any wrongdoing. Spectrum President and Chief Executive Charles J. Faris said yesterday that at Spectrum, “there was no wrongdoing.” “Basically we’re just satisfied that we’re getting an issue that’s five years old finally resolved, and that we can get back to performing the services we’ve always been noted for,” Mr. Faris said. CiviGenics and Mr. Ross did not return phone calls yesterday seeking comment. Spectrum, with 700 employees, is a nonprofit human services organization that concentrates on treatment programs for substance abusers. It has operations in Massachusetts and five other states. In Massachusetts, Spectrum’s biggest state client is the Department of Youth Services. Spectrum also provides services for the state Department of Public Health and the Department of Correction. In 2004, state Auditor A. Joseph DeNucci released an audit claiming that Spectrum had misused $17.4 million in state money over 10 years, mostly through a no-bid contract that allegedly funneled $10.2 million in excessive payments to CiviGenics. The audit also alleged that Spectrum paid nearly $1 million in unallowed compensation to a former chairman for undocumented consulting services provided while he was living in Alaska and Florida. In addition, the auditors questioned a $3.3 million Spectrum purchase of Boston Road Clinic from CiviGenics. CiviGenics operates prisons and substance abuse programs in secure facilities. Mr. Ross, its president, formerly ran Spectrum. Mr. DeNucci’s office turned its audit results over to the attorney general’s office in 2004, and since then, state auditors have not re-examined Spectrum, said Glenn A. Briere, a spokesman for Mr. DeNucci. “Informally, we hear things, and we’ve been led to believe the management at Spectrum has made considerable improvements since our audit, as a result of our audit,” Mr. Briere said. “Certainly the auditor did not want to see them put out of business. They do good work.” Under its agreement with the state, Spectrum must add four new independent members to its board of trustees, and at least two of them must have nonprofit governance or financial expertise. The state said Spectrum must review its bylaws and procedures and create education programs for its trustees. The trustees, the state said, must beef up on law, accounting, finance, employee compensation and other topics related to their duties. Mr. Faris said Spectrum always looks for experts in those areas when it recruits trustees. He said the board has not yet added four new trustees, but expects to do so this year. The governance and board requirements represent a significant element of the settlement, Mr. Briere said. “The members of these boards are supposed to be watching what the state does,” Mr. Briere said. “They have a fiduciary responsibility to make sure these corporations, these agencies, are operating not only in the best interests of their businesses, but in the best interests of the communities paying them to do this work.”

February 27, 2004
A Worcester-based health-care company that provides substance-abuse and mental-health services to teens, prison inmates, and others improperly billed the state for more than $17 million in management fees over a 10-year period, according to a report issued yesterday by state Auditor Joseph DeNucci.  The company, Spectrum Health Systems Inc., is one of the largest private providers of health services to clients whose care is paid for by the state.  Spectrum operates a community resource center in Lowell that serves inmates making the transition from prison back to the community. The company also provides a range of services to inmates at the state prisons in Concord and Shirley.  DeNucci's office yesterday released a detailed audit of the company's operations from 1992 to 2002. Auditors found that the company paid excessive fees totaling $10.2 million to its for-profit management company, CiviGenics, for which it then received reimbursement from the state. CiviGenics was founded by Spectrum's former CEO.  The audit also found that the company paid a former chairman nearly $1 million for consulting fees when he lived in Alaska and Florida but found no documentation of his services; purchased a financially strapped clinic from CiviGenics for $3.3 million; and used taxpayers' money to offset losses for programs it operates in other states.  "Spectrum provides a variety of valuable public health services, but its past fiscal practices were filled with abuses of public funds," DeNucci said in a statement. "Some improvements have already taken place and I am hopeful that Spectrum will continue to be more fiscally responsible in the future."  In response to the audit, Spectrum management acknowledged that the company was "disserved" in its relationship with CiviGenics, which was responsible for Spectrum's day-to-day operations and with which it has now severed ties.  "It's important to keep in mind that this agreement (with CiviGenics) ended almost two years ago at this point. This is not the same company that it was two years ago," said Spectrum CEO Charles Faris.  Faris said the company's managers "recognized that we weren't getting value for this contract well before the state auditors came in."  "We were taking steps to terminate this agreement months before," Faris said. The agreement between the two companies was terminated in 2002.  DeNucci's office wants Spectrum to reimburse the state for the full amount it claims was improperly billed.  (Lowell Sun)

CiviGenics Alcohol and Drug Rehabilitative Center, Fort Stanton, New Mexico
August 26, 2004 Ruidoso News
Darcy Holmes said she didn’t mind being tested for drug use during a surprise facility-wide search at the CiviGenics Drug and Alcohol Rehabilitative Center at Fort Stanton Tuesday.  But she was infuriated that she and other staff were herded into a circle and kept at gunpoint for hours with offenders on probation and parole during the search.  “I feel they put our lives at risk,” said Holmes, a semi-retiree who worked the past five months for the Massachusetts-based company that is under contract with the state Corrections Department. “Someone could have taken a hostage or if a riot broke out, shooting could have started. I think they violated our safety. We were surrounded by officers from Carlsbad and Roswell with semi-automatic weapons and they held guns on us for three hours.”  Tia Bland, public information officer for the corrections department, said Wednesday that, “We believe the whole operation was handled professionally. Staff and offenders were rounded up, but weapons were not pointed at anyone. However, we needed to ensure they remained in one place while the whole facility was searched.”  The department received information about possible drug use by staff or offenders and decided a facility-wide search was needed, Bland said.  “We were pretty pleased not to find a whole lot,” she said. “They found a few minor drug paraphernalia and mushrooms that we are having tested.”  This isn’t the only incident that she says points to a disregard for staff safety, Homes said. “Our radios don’t work and when a duty officer is doing a head count, (he or she) has no way to communicate.”  Kevin Beckworth, the regional manager for CiviGenics based in Colorado, said the fort has three times the number of radios required and there is no reason they shouldn’t be an adequate number charged and ready to use at any time.  Holmes already had decided to quit her job and today is her last day at the fort.  David Lucero, another employee who has given notice, said he arrived about 4 p.m. and saw police cars and officers carrying M-16s.  He said the first man handcuffed is Cuban and doesn’t understand English well.  “I don’t think they made it clear they weren’t supposed to stand,” he said.  “They handcuffed him for at least two to three hours. If he had gotten mad and something started, we couldn’t contain them. We were in there and if rounds were fired, we were in the middle.”  But Lucero said his big gripe is that after the inmates were upset by the search, he and a female employee were left to watch them overnight. That’s about 41 offenders to one guard, he said.  The staff is “run ragged,” he said and more employees are needed.  “Over the last six months, I made more than $4,000 in overtime because they can’t get enough people to work or to hire, or they don’t last.  “We’re working 12 to 16 hour shifts and we’re tired. No one get raises because we’ve burned up all the overtime because the program director didn’t hire anybody for three or four months in a row.”  The ratio of employees to offenders also is too small on trips into town, he contended.  Beckworth said two-person staffing is normal for the night shift.  “The director at any time has the authority to bring on more people if the situation requires it,” he said, noting that several employees live on-grounds for any quick emergency response.  Lucero also criticized the prison-like atmosphere at the center.  “This is a rehab center, not a prison, but it’s run like a prison,” he said.   “We’re in it for the guys to get rehab.”  He said he doesn’t think that’s the same goal at the corporate level.  “When I have voiced my opinion in past, they won’t listen.” Lucero said he’s worried violence may erupt at the fort someday, damaging property and possibly resulting in injury to people.  According to company information, CiviGenics, the second largest privately-held corrections operator and the largest provider of correctional treatment programs in the United States, was incorporated in 1995 and operates in 14 states with a staff of more than 1,200.  The company took over from The Amity Foundation about a year ago. 

Columbiana County Jail, Leetonia, Ohio
May 31, 2008 Vindicator
A couple has been charged after a jail break and chase that ended when they crashed into a West Virginia nursing home forcing the evacuation of 24 people. In Columbiana County, Larry Williams, 35, of Lisbon, is charged with escape and vandalism. His girlfriend, Candy Kibler, 37, also of Lisbon, is charged with felony obstruction of justice. Both have criminal records. They are in Southwest Regional Jail in Bexley, W.Va. They were taken into custody about 12:15 a.m. Friday by West Virginia authorities. Allen Haueter, chief deputy for the Columbiana County sheriff’s office, said Friday that Williams escaped from the jail’s minimum-security section. He had been talking to Kibler on the phone, apparently about her former boyfriend who allegedly owed her money, and he became angry. That portion of the jail is a former nursing home and is run by a private company, CiviGenics Inc. of Milford, Mass. Peter Argeropulos, CiviGenics’ chief operating officer, said Williams took an air conditioning unit out of the wall, and used a piece of wood that supported it to smash the window and escape. Haueter said a deputy coming to the jail saw Williams running away. Authorities went to Kibler’s home but did not find Williams. Haueter said Williams apparently stole a car from a home near the jail, drove to Lisbon to pick up Kibler, and went to Kensington to see her ex-boyfriend to get money. Haueter said the couple drove to Wooster in Wayne County, where they allegedly stole another vehicle. Haueter said the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation is to process the vehicle Monday for any evidence. Chief Tim Stover of the Lewisburg Police Department in West Virginia said his officers saw the couple driving and tried to stop the vehicle that went across a field and a parking lot and crashed into the kitchen of the Brier Nursing Home. Stover said 24 residents were transferred to the Greenbrier Valley Medical Center as a precautionary measure. The crash ruptured a natural gas line. No one at the nursing home facility was hurt, he added. Williams and Kibler were both treated for minor injuries at the medical center. The crash caused an estimated $10,000 to $15,000 to the facility. The couple are in the West Virginia jail on fugitive warrants. Stover said he would wait to see how the extradition hearings progressed before deciding whether to pursue charges in Lewisburg.

May 1, 2008 Morning Journal News
A decision by Columbiana County commissioners to settle a dispute over retirement benefits for five former county jail employees could prove costly. Just how much so has yet to be determined, but it could be substantial. Commissioners voted at Wednesday’s meeting to enter into a consent agreement with the former jail employees to resolve a lawsuit filed earlier this year with the Ohio 7th District Court of Appeals. The lawsuit sought a court order requiring commissioners to comply with a decision by the Ohio Public Employees Retirement System (OPERS), which ruled last November five former employees were entitled to retirement benefits dating back to 1998, when a private company took over operating the jail. CiviGenics Inc., the company hired by commissioners to operate the jail, hired a number of the former county jail employees who lost their jobs due to privatization. In 2004, an attorney representing some of the jail employees initiated legal action saying commissioners were required to continue contributing into the OPERS on their behalf even though though the county no longer operated the jail. The attorney cited a state law that requires contributions continue to be made into a public employee pension plan of a public employee whose job was abolished due to privatization. This applies if the employee went to work for the private operator and continued to perform the same or similar job duties. Commissioners fought the ruling for the next several years until the OPERS board issued its ruling six months ago. When commissioners failed to act quickly enough to suit the attorney, the lawsuit was filed with the appeals court. Yesterday’s agreement to resolve the lawsuit requires commissioners to pay both the employee and employer share of OPERS (about 14 percent of their salary) dating back to when the five employees were hired by CiviGenics and to continue contributing into their public employee pension plan as long as they remain employed by CiviGenics. The figure is to include penalties and interest, with everything to be completed by June 30. No one seems to know for sure how much the settlement will cost. County Auditor Nancy Milliken said at one time she heard the figures $500,000-$600,000 thrown around, while Commissioner Chairman Dan Bing said it could exceed $1 million. Commissioner Jim Hoppel is the only current commissioner who was in office when the decision was made to hire CiviGenics as a way to save money, which he says it has done. “With privatizing the jail we’ve saved in 101/2 years in the vicinity of $10 million,” Hoppel said. Although Hoppel doesn’t know how much the settlement will cost the county, he is confident it will be significantly less than what the county has saved. Bing said he doesn’t know where the money will come from to pay the settlement. “It’s all because somebody didn’t do their job in the past,” he said. Milliken said her office must obtain the workers’ pay rates from CiviGenics during the period of their employment and begin making the calculations based on the OPERS rates. The information would then have to be submitted to the OPERS board for approval. This would be the second large settlement commissioners would have to pay out because of their decision to privatize the county jail. In 2002, commissioners agreed to pay $300,000 to former jail employees to resolve outstanding labor complaints arising over privatization.

January 20, 2008 Morning Journal News
Another corrections officer at the Columbiana County Jail, Nathaniel Barnes of Youngstown, has been charged for reportedly smuggling marijuana and cigarette tobacco to inmates. It is the second time in less than a year a correction officer in Lisbon traded in his uniform for an orange jumpsuit for allegedly smuggling items to inmates. Barnes, 28, was charged early Saturday with conveyance of a substance into a corrections facility, which is a felony charge. Dan Downard of the Columbiana County Drug Task Force said the charge was part of an ongoing investigation that came after agents were made aware that one or more corrections officers were smuggling marijuana or cigarette tobacco to the inmates. He credited the warden at the county jail, operated by CiviGenics Inc., with being very cooperative. “The warden’s been a wonderful asset,” Downard said. “He is adamant that he doesn’t want that kind of stuff going into the jail.” Another corrections officer, Gary J. Ludt, 37, Bergholtz pleaded in August 2007 to a similar charge of smuggling marijuana to inmates. He was sentenced to 18 months in prison.

January 11, 2008 Morning Journal News
A ruling requiring Columbiana County commissioners to pay into the retirement plans of five former county jail employees could provide expensive. An attorney representing four of the five people filed a lawsuit this week with the Ohio 7th District Court of Appeals seeking an order requiring commissioners immediately comply with a recent decision by the Ohio Public Employees Retirement System (OPERS). The OPERS board issued a final order on Nov. 14 saying the five workers were entitled to have the county continue paying into their OPERS while they were employed by CiviGenics Inc., the company now running the county jail. The roots of the dispute extend back to 1997, when commissioners abolished all of the county jail jobs and hired CiviGenics Inc. to take over operations, starting in 1998. The private company hired a number of former jail employees, some of whom are still working there. In 2004, an attorney representing former jail employees employed by CiviGenics initiated action seeking OPERS payments on their behalf. The attorney cited a state law requiring contributions continue into the pension plan of a public employee whose job was abolished due to privatization. This applies to those former public employees who were hired by the private company and continued to perform the same or similar duties under their new employer. The OPERS ruled in January 2005 the law applied to the five former jail employees hired by CiviGenics. Commissioners and the county sheriff spent the next two years appealing the decision through the OPERS system before the final ruling was issued two months ago. At one time, the attorney stated 19 former jail employees were affected, 11 of whom were no longer working for CiviGenics as of 2005. This was contested by commissioners. Following the Nov. 15 ruling by the OPERS board, the county auditor’s office was provided the necessary paperwork to fill out in order for the retroactive pension compensation payments to be made. This was followed up with a letter from the attorney, who threatened to take legal action unless the county replied by the end of the year. Officials don’t know how much the five employees are owed, but it could be in significant, depending how long they worked for CiviGenics. Commissioners are required to contribute into OPERS a dollar amount equal to about 14 percent of the employees’ salary, with the employee required to contribute the same percentage. Commission Chairman Jim Hoppel said they have yet to confer with their attorney about the lawsuit and declined comment until then. He did say the county has saved more than $7 million since hiring CiviGenics 10 years ago. It was commissioners who inadvertently contributed to the situation that currently exists by encouraging CiviGenics to hire as many ex-jail employees as possible. “You try to be fair, but that’s the way it goes,” Hoppel said. This would be the second large settlement commissioners would have to pay out because of their decision to privatize county jail operations. In 2002, commissioners agreed to pay $300,000 to former jail employees to resolve outstanding labor complaints arising out of the privatization.

October 20, 2007 Morning Journal News
A fired county jail guard was sentenced to prison for smuggling marijuana to inmates in exchange for money. Gary J. Ludt, 37, of Bergholz, was sentenced to 18 months in prison during a hearing Friday before Columbiana County Common Pleas Court Judge C. Ashley Pike. In August, Ludt pleaded guilty to smuggling and attempted smuggling of prohibited items into the jail. Assistant County Prosecutor Tammie Riley Jones recommended Ludt be sentenced to 18 months in prison because of the seriousness of the crime and the fact he should be held to a higher standard because of his position. “It goes without saying this kind of conduct maligns law enforcement everywhere,” she said, adding that while under indictment Ludt was also charged in Jefferson County with possessing weapons while under indictment. Defense attorney Sherrie Liebschner pointed out her client didn’t have any a prior criminal record and he had taken complete responsibility for his actions. She said the Jefferson County charge was there result of Ludt going hunting. She asked for leniency on behalf of Ludt. “My client is afraid for his life in this matter.” Ludt had no comment when it came time for him to address Judge Pike, who said his actions damaged the public’s perception of the entire criminal justice system. The crimes occurred in late September 2006. In both instances, Ludt was under surveillance by agents from the county drug task force. In the one instance, Ludt was caught in the jail parking with a package of marijuana that had been left for him on top of one of his vehicle tires. Ludt was arrested while walking to the jail after taking possession of the package. Investigators claimed Ludt had been smuggling small packages that included marijuana, tobacco, rolling papers, cigarettes and lighters, which he sold to inmates for $20 to $50. Ludt told investigators he needed the extra money. Ludt was employed by CiviGenics Inc., the private company hired by county commissioners to run the jail.

June 19, 2007 Salem News
A trial for a former corrections officer accused of smuggling marijuana into the Columbiana County Jail remains set for June 26. Gary Ludt, 36, whose last known address was 102 W. Main St., Salineville, appeared Monday for a status hearing in Common Pleas Court with his defense attorney Sherri Liebschner. Liebschner advised Judge C. Ashley Pike that she told her client the latest offer from the prosecutor’s office, but there was no resolution to the case. Ludt was indicted last fall for two counts of illegal conveyance of prohibited items onto the grounds of a detention facility, both third-degree felonies. Court documents said Ludt was working for CiviGenics as a corrections officer and allegedly smuggled marijuana and tobacco into the facility to sell to inmates last September.

March 9, 2007 Vindicator
An investigation into contraband being smuggled into the Columbiana County Jail has been turned over to the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation. Sgt. Brian McLaughlin, director of the Columbiana County Drug Task Force, said Thursday the move was made to avoid any appearance of impropriety. The task force is based at the building that includes the sheriff's and coroner's offices, as well as the jail that is run by CiviGenics Inc., a company in Milford, Mass. McLaughlin declined to comment on the investigation but said it is ongoing. The task force began investigating smuggling at the jail last year. Columbiana County Common Pleas Court records indicate that at least one inmate used a cell phone smuggled into the jail to try to get drugs brought into the facility. Jason L. Jackson, 28, of East Liverpool, was suspended without pay Monday from his part-time job as a St. Clair Township patrolman. He has not been charged.

March 8, 2007 Morning Journal
A St. Clair Township police officer who was suspended this week is suspected of smuggling marijuana and cell phones to county jail inmates, according to court records. The officer, Jason L. Jackson, also was fired Monday from his job as a guard at the Columbiana County Jail, according to Jail Warden Hank Escola. A request for a search warrant received by the county Drug Task Force indicated the DTF was investigating Jackson because of allegations he was taking prohibited items into the county jail for inmates. The alleged items included cell phones, marijuana and tobacco. The search warrant stated the DTF received information in January that Jackson and another guard had been engaging in this behavior. The investigation culminated in the DTF obtaining a search warrant over the weekend for Jackson’s pickup truck, with the warrant being executed Sunday. The report on what the DTF may have found in Jackson’s truck has yet to be filed in county Common Pleas Court. St. Clair Township Police Chief Don Hyatt told the Morning Journal on Tuesday he suspended Jackson “while an investigation is conducted into his alleged participation in criminal activity” and that this criminal activity did not involve the township department. Warden Escola said he fired Jackson Monday after being briefed by DTF officials. He said the other implicated guard was fired last week for unrelated violations of policy and procedures and failing to follow warden directives. He emphasized the other guard’s dismissal had nothing to do with any of the alleged activities involving Jackson. “That had been rumored, but there was no supportive information presented to me” indicating the other guard was involved in any illegal activity, he said. Jackson, 28, was still a probationary employee at the jail, having worked there the past two months. The other guard had been employed for the past 18 months. Last fall, former guard Gary Ludt was arrested after allegedly being caught in the act of trying to smuggle the following items into the jail: marijuana, loose tobacco, rolling papers and cigarette lighters. The items were found hidden in Ludt’s belt when searched by DTF agents while he was walking from his vehicle in the jail parking lot to report for his work shift. Ludt, 36, reportedly was paid $20 to $50 for each package he was to deliver. He is scheduled to go on trial May 8. The county jail is run by CiviGenics Inc., a private company hired by county commissioners. Escola said this type of activity obviously will not be tolerated.

November 10, 2006 Youngstown Vindicator
Columbiana County Sheriff David Smith said he will try to stop a planned pizza party for jail inmates during the upcoming Ohio State-Michigan football game. "A jail is a jail," an angry Smith said. The sheriff initially said there was no pizza party planned when approached Thursday by The Vindicator. When shown a notice about the party given to inmates at the privately run jail, Smith said, "There will be no party." Still, Smith said he was not sure he can stop it. He said he is the only sheriff in Ohio who does not control his county jail — it is run by CiviGenics of Milford, Mass. The commissioners had received and filed an anonymous letter and a copy of a notice to inmates. The items were postmarked Monday. The Vindicator had also received information about the party. The notice to all inmates from Warden Hank Escola says, "As we all know, the Ohio State/Michigan game is filled with so much tradition that we must to do something to show our support for the Buckeyes." The notice said inmates will each get three slices of pizza in addition to their regular meals. Inmates who can't eat pizza are to notify authorities so "we can make other arrangements," according to the notice. In return, the notice says inmates must keep their cells and living areas clean, keep the noise down during the game, stop "horseplay and childish games" and "help us to help you to have an easy time while you're here." The anonymous letter to the commissioners asked, "Since when did we start to reward inmates for crimes they commit and make their stay in jail easy? What are we running, a jail or a resort?" The letter said that inmates had rioted in September over the food and caused $4,000 in damage to the jail. Smith said the damage was actually closer to $6,000. Five inmates have been charged in the riot. In a separate, ongoing investigation, a civilian jailer and another person have been charged with trying to smuggle drugs and contraband into the jail. The jailer has been fired by CiviGenics. The jail's food manager, who worked for a company under contract with CiviGenics, has been replaced.

September 14, 2006 Youngstown Vindicator
Columbiana County's financial situation is looking a little bit better as the year winds down. Auditor Nancy Milliken said there is a chance the county may end the year with $600,000 to $800,000 in cash and some unpaid bills. Commissioner Jim Hoppel and Commissioner Gary Williams estimated in July the county might have a year-end balance with up to $1.2 million to start 2007. That forecast was based on the county's not paying an estimated $1.1 million to $1.3 million in bills to CiviGenics Inc. this year. On Wednesday, commissioners told CiviGenics, the company that runs the county jail, they will continue to pay the company within 90 days of receiving each monthly bill. Hoppel said that delaying payments longer would cause financial problems for the Massachusetts-based company. The county has paid CiviGenics for June, is about to pay the July bill and hasn't received the bill for August.

August 12, 2006 Salem News
Columbiana County Jail operator CiviGenics recently asked for "written assurances" that the county will pay its bills for housing prisoners, regardless of what happens with the sales tax. The company also warned the termination provision for ending the contract could be reduced to 30 days and could be put into effect. "Any plan to artificially reduce the county jail population will invoke CiviGenics rights to exercise a 30-day termination provision," the letter from Chief Operating Officer Peter Argeropulos said. Commissioners received the letter last month, a promised response to an earlier visit from Argeropulos, who had asked the commissioners for an update on the county's money situation. When commissioners approved the general fund appropriations for this year, one area they shorted was the contract for CiviGenics, predicting the shortage could leave them with $1 million to $1.5 million in prisoner housing bills to pay with next year's funds, which they've said could be even shorter. At this point, the county has paid all the bills to CiviGenics on time.

July 27, 2006 Vindicator
Columbiana County commissioners say better finances have reduced the county's projected 2006 deficit. The commissioners said Wednesday that a variety of factors went into the new calculations. Voters in November and May rejected a 0.5-percent sales tax that brings in about $4 million a year. The issue will be on the November ballot. Commissioners Jim Hoppel and Gary Williams estimate that the county may have a year-end balance of $600,000 to $1.2 million with some unpaid bills. Commissioner Sean Logan's more conservative estimates indicate the county may have about a $500,000 carryover with unpaid bills. The county needs a balance to fund operations at the start of each year until taxes are collected. Both forecasts are based on the idea that the county will not pay $1.1 million to $1.3 million in bills for 2006. That includes about $800,000 the county expects to owe CiviGenics Inc., the company that runs the county jail, and about $172,000 to the Multi-County Juvenile Attention System.

December 22, 2005 Morning Journal-News
County Commissioners breathed a sigh of relief Wednesday after approving the requests by officeholders to appropriate the money they budgeted for each office into the individual accounts. The one area that has the commissioners concerned is the county jail. Last year, the county spent $491,273 during the first quarter. The commissioners budgeted $570,000 for the first quarter of 2006. However, commissioners are concerned that this might not be enough. Commissioners indicated that the county was charged $289,000 for the last bill they received from Civigenics, the company which operates the jail. This means that if that pattern continues, the money appropriated will be only approximately two-thirds of the money needed to pay for the jail.

September 22, 2005 The Review
With costs piling up for the hospitalization of murder defendant James Kovach Jr., Columbiana County Commissioners took emergency action Wednesday to reduce their financial liability. The commissioners approved a contract with Maxim Healthcare of Boardman for a licensed practical nurse to cover times when CiviGenics personnel aren't available at the county jail, so Kovach can be transferred back to the jail. By law, counties must carry the burden of medical costs for inmates in their care, which means the county will have to pay for the hospitalization costs. As of Tuesday, the total overtime accumulated by deputies manning the post exceeded $3,000. CiviGenics, the company running the county jail, has a nursing staff, but doesn't have 24-hour-a-day coverage. Smith said the county would have to cover the cost of a nurse to cover the empty shifts. Maxim Nursing will cover Tuesday through Saturday at a cost of $1,424 at a rate of $30 per hour on weekdays and $32 per hour for Friday and Saturday. The county will also foot the bill for two nurses employed by CiviGenics to work extra hours to cover Sundays and Mondays, at a cost of $360 at a rate of $20 per hour.

November 9, 2004 Morning Journal
A malfunctioning door alarm and a loose section of fence were responsible for the recent escape of an inmate from the Columbiana County Jail. Michael Mick, 27, Frischkorn Drive, Wellsville, escaped from the minimum-security wing of the jail complex on Oct. 30 by exiting through a door and then crawling under a section of fence. County Commission Chairman Jim Hoppel toured the jail this week and discussed the escape with officials from CiviGenics Inc., the private company that operates the jail. Hoppel learned that Mick exited the jail through a door which has a security alarm to notify corrections officers when it has been opened. He said the alarm for the door and another malfunctioned and did not alert the staff they had been opened. Although outside the building, Mick still had to get out of the jail compound, which is surrounded by security fence topped with razor wire. Hoppel said the bottom of the fence is a tension cable that is supposed to be secured to concrete pilings every eight feet, but Mick found a section of fence where this was not done.

November 8, 2004 The Review
Some changes are to be made at the Columbiana County Jail as a result of a recent escape. Commissioner Jim Hoppel met Monday afternoon with officials of CiviGenics to discuss some upcoming work. Hoppel said a person familiar with installing fences is to be asked to inspect the area and make recommendations on the fence. Hoppel also stated two doors on which the alarms are not working properly will be repaired.

October 31, 2004 Morning Journal
An inmate from the Columbiana County jail remains loose after escaping Friday night with a suspected truck stolen for the getaway found near the escapee's home. Acc