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Dead Constitution See other Dead Constitution Articles Title: A Faith-Based Prison Is Pushed With Christian Administrators, Employees, Counselors And Programs 11/2/2009 3:43:55 AM WAKITA — This tiny town near the Oklahoma-Kansas state line north of Enid may soon own the country's only all-Christian prison, with Christian administrators, employees, counselors and programs. The idea is backed by Wakita's leaders, has some support from state officials, and, its founders believe, is able to pass constitutional muster. "If Chicken Little doesn't come to town, we'll be open in 16 months," said Bill Robinson, the founder of Corrections Concepts Inc., a Dallas nonprofit prison ministry that is spearheading the project. Mayor Kelly George said officials of this town of 380 were fully behind the project and have done everything they need to make it happen. A 150-acre site on the edge Wakita has been selected, and an agreement has been reached with Corrections Concepts Inc. to manage the 600-bed prison if and when it is built. Does George believe the prison will be built? "We're dealing with politicians here; you tell me," he said. Robinson said the $42 million project would be financed with bonds. A bond underwriting company said that if a government jurisdiction will commit to sending 310 inmates at a cost of $42.80 a day, bond sales can begin, and the project can proceed. Robinson said that in a recent meeting, Justin Jones, the head of the Oklahoma Department of Corrections, listed "hoops we have to jump through, and we know we can meet all those requirements." He said he found that encouraging, but he realizes that it carried no guarantees. Renee Watkins, the administrator of private prisons and jails for the Department of Corrections, said Corrections Concepts Inc. had presented the project to the agency. "It's a good concept," she said. "But as far as us using it, we can't make a commitment at all. We're in a bad position because of budget shortfalls. We're not in the market for private prison beds." Robinson said that if the Corrections Department does not commit to using the prison, the ministry will seek inmates from other states. Dwight Bushman, an economic development consultant for Wakita, said he initially favored the project because it would benefit the city. "Now I see it as a benefit to our state as a whole, because we can reduce recidivism," he said. Brad Mohler, the founder of Reconnect Staffing, an Oklahoma City employment service that assists ex-convicts, is working to build support for the Wakita prison. He called it a hybrid between state-owned prisons, which are underfunded, and private prisons, whose goal is to produce revenue for stockholders. "This is a good idea, a concept that hasn't been done yet," Mohler said. Robinson, himself an ex-con and prison minister, said he had been working for years on the idea of an all-Christian prison, and he had invested $1.3 million so far on construction plans and other expenses. He said a lot of prisons have faith-based or Christian units, but he knows of none with an all-Christian staff. "The staff, being all born-again believers, will see this as a mission," he said. "I want people to understand what it's about. It's about changing criminals into citizens." The prison would accept only men near the end of their sentences who volunteer to come into the prison and sign an agreement to participate. They would work full time at private industries that operate inside the prison, get job training, and earn money. The money would go to support their families, pay restitution to their victims, contribute to their own room and board, and produce a nest egg they can take when they leave prison. Classes in literacy, General Educational Development requirements and life skills would be offered, and Wayland University, a Christian college in Plainview, Texas, has agreed to put a satellite campus in the prison. "They don't have to go to church, or Bible study, but they have to participate in the curriculum, which is Christ-centered," Robinson said. He possesses legal opinions that say that as a religious organization, the prison will be able to hire only people of like faith, he said. If constitutional challenges arise, he said, the American Center for Law and Justice, a major Christian law firm, has agreed to represent the ministry for free. "True public safety is to change prisoners into citizens," Robinson said. "Ninety-eight percent of offenders are going to get out of prison. What kind of offender do you want living next door?"
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#1. To: bs, Kommie Siren, All (#0)
Sorry bs, no butt-fucking allowed in this prison...
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