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| St. Johnsbury rallies to save prison |
| By Dave Gram |
| Published: 04/21/2009 |
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Many towns shy away when asked to host a prison. But the Northeast Regional Correctional Facility, part of Vermont's state prison system, has become a linchpin of St. Johnsbury's struggling economy since opening in 1982. Now the town is trying to save it. "The economy in the Northeast Kingdom" - the popular name for Vermont's three most northeasterly counties - "is very devastated as it is," said Cara Berryman said over lunch at Anthony's Diner. "This is not the place to hit." Berryman is an educator at the corrections work camp next to the prison south of town, and the facility where she works is not slated for closure. She said the prison's nationally recognized education program - in which inmates work toward their high school diplomas - would be lost if the plan to send the offenders to out-of-state prisons goes through. The St. Johnsbury facility was built for 93 inmates, has 122 beds and on Wednesday had a population of 153, with some prisoners using mattresses on the floor, said prison Superintendent Celeste Girrell. Read more. If link has expired, check the website of the article's original news source. |
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