California City Correctional Facility

California City Correctional Facility
California City Correctional Facility, May 2014
Map
Location22844 Virginia Blvd
California City, California
Statusopen
Security classLevel II (low-medium)
Capacity2,304
Population2,081 (90.3% capacity) (as of April 30, 2020[1])
Opened2006
Managed byCalifornia Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation

California City Correctional Facility (CAC) is a secure facility owned by CoreCivic. It was formerly staffed and operated by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation as a men's level II (low-medium) security prison.

The facility was built on speculation, without any customer contract to fill it. Construction was completed in 1998.[2] Beginning in 2006, it housed federal inmates for the U.S. Marshals Service and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The federal contract included daily transportation to the San Diego County Courthouse and Southern Nevada Correctional Center, and as-needed to JPATS-Victorville ("Con Air"). The per-diem rate in 2010 was $77.50 per prisoner, decreasing to $58.00 as the count increased. The federal use of the facility ended in 2013.[3][4][5]

In response to a federal order to reduce overcrowding at the state's prison facilities, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation started leasing the facility in 2013 for $28.5 million yearly.[3][6] Former guards, previously privately contracted, transferred to become state correctional officers after eight weeks of training.[3] CAC was the only CDCR state prison under this arrangement; all other state prisons are both owned and operated by CDCR. All inmates were moved out by November 2023.[7] The state terminated its lease so the prison will be effectively closed by March 2024.[8]

  1. ^ "California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation: Monthly Report of Population As of Midnight April 30, 2020" (PDF). California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Division of Internal Oversight and Research. April 30, 2020. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 3, 2020. Retrieved May 2, 2020.
  2. ^ "Private Prisons, Public Doubts", The Christian Science Monitor, Daniel B. Wood, July 21, 1998. Retrieved September 25, 2019.
  3. ^ a b c Bedell, Christine (October 25, 2013). "Cal City prison to house state inmates". Bakersfield.com. Retrieved August 21, 2016.
  4. ^ "doj_mod_2" (PDF). cdn.muckrock.com. 2011. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  5. ^ "Detention Services - Operational Contract - California City" (PDF). cdn.muckrock.com. 2010. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  6. ^ "California City Correctional Facility (CAC)". California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Retrieved May 2, 2020.
  7. ^ Elliott, Claudia (November 19, 2023). "State removes all inmates from Cal City prison, remaining staff working to close facility". The Bakersfield Californian. Retrieved November 21, 2023.
  8. ^ Schlepp, Travis (December 8, 2022). "California to close Riverside County prison, deactivate other facilities". KTLA. Retrieved December 8, 2022.