BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) – A task force created to examine the state of local correctional facilities got a real eye-opener when they toured the East Baton Rouge Parish Prison.
”It’s about citizens having to come into a facility that is dilapidated,” explained District 5 Councilman Darryl Hurst. Dilapidated may be an understatement.
There is mold everywhere, mice in the kitchen coming through holes in the walls, rust, missing paint, and that is just the start of it.
A majority of the prison dates back to the 1960s and while it has seen some updates over the years, local leaders say it may be time to remove the band aids and start from the ground up.
“You don’t put old wine in new wine skins. We need to get together as a community and build a new facility,” Hurst continued.
A new facility that, Hurst says, will hopefully keep the inmates from returning.
“If a facility is chaotic, you will get chaos. For that reason, if you change the place, you can change what happens in the place,” said Hurst.
He says this is not just about the living conditions for inmates but also the working conditions for staffing.”Everything is retrofitted. The ceilings are low. No cameras can be hung which creates an unsafe environment,” added Hurst.
While there is no time in place as to when EBR will see a new facility, local leaders are taking this opportunity to tour other facilities to get better ideas.
”Facilities that are maintained, facilities that have state-of-the-art equipment but also have proper programs in place,” Hurst explained.
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