Kingman prison is the new 'Orange is the New Black'
The saga unfolding at the private prison near Kingman is reading more like an "Orange is the New Black" episode. Only darker and definitely not as funny.
Is this life imitating art or the other way around? Consider:
(WARNING: This blog contains spoilers, if you haven't finished binge-watching Season 3 yet.)
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IN KINGMAN: Three prisoners cut through a fence in 2010 with the help of an outside accomplice, and two of the escapees ended up killing a couple for their truck. Burned-out lights, a faulty security system and poor guard training helped lead to the escape, according to an official report.
Department of Corrections officials sparred with Management & Training Corp., the private company that runs the prison, for months over security changes. Bills were introduced at the time to beef up private prison standards, though none passed.
IN ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK: Construction crews left a hole in the fence, through which a bunch of inmates escaped for a bit to play in a nearby lake. There weren't enough guards to stop their exodus.
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IN KINGMAN: Several days of rioting in July left many parts of the prison uninhabitable and required the help of outside law enforcement to keep the peace. Nearly a third of the prison's 3,500 inmates have been transferred to other facilities. Some prisoners allege that the riots were the result of months of poor treatment, including being served soggy bologna sandwiches.
IN OITNB: No full-scale riots. But a particularly vicious case of bedbugs plagued the facility. Inmates lost their mattresses, slept on toilet paper rolls and walked around in trash bags. The prison was scheduled to close and its inmates transferred to other facilities, but a private company bought the place instead. Fresh food was replaced with cheaper, ready-to-eat meals.
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IN KINGMAN: An inmate transferred to a Pinal County jail was found with a bunch of methamphetamine. He was supposedly searched during the transfer process, but guards found him trying to stash the drugs in his cell. Sheriff's officials say the meth most likely came from the Kingman prison and are warning other facilities that took inmates to watch out for similar stashes.
IN OITNB: The stash here was heroin. One of the inmates was transferred to a maximum-security facility after getting caught with it.
