One of New York's oldest prisons and a jail in the Hudson Valley are being forced to close. A handful more closures are expected.

Plans were confirmed to close down two prisons located across New York State

Sullivan Correctional Facility In Fallsburg, New York

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The Sullivan Correctional Facility in Fallsburg is one of the two prisons that will closedown within 90 days.

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Hudson Valley Congressman Marc Molinaro says the move is "disgraceful" and "reckless."

Molinaro stated:

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It’s disgraceful that Governor Hochul, as part of her pro-crime platform, is now closing the Sullivan County Correctional Facility with limited notice. This reckless decision not only jeopardizes the livelihoods and safety of corrections officers and staff, but also threatens the economic stability of our community. Prison closures have severe repercussions. They uproot staff, strain remaining facilities, and increase safety risk to workers and inmates due to overcrowding. Not to mention it rarely results in savings. Our community deserves far better than this irresponsible and dangerous policy from Governor Hochul.

Great Meadow Correctional Facility in Comstock, New York Also Closing

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The Great Meadow Correctional Facility is another confirmed closure. The Comstock, New York jail is one of the oldest and most violent prisons in New York State. See the full lists at the end of this article.

Both prisons are expected to close by November.

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"We express frustration and continued disappointment that the State believes closing prisons will remedy significant staffing deficits and reduce historic levels of violence and that it waited a year to make their announcement further subjecting our members and their families with additional hardships," NYSCOPBA President Chris Summers stated.

Summers says there's been "record levels of violence" inside New York prisons as well as "staffing shortages that continue to plague state facilities."

"In the past year, staffing levels amongst officers and sergeants has decreased by over 1600, while the prison population has increased by over 2000 inmates. It is a formula that has led to increased attacks on staff and created unsafe working conditions," he added.

Inmates will be moved to other prisons when the prison closes in November.

More Closures Expected

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The 2024 New York State budget allows New York Gov. Kathy Hochul to close up to five prisons. That means three more prison closings may be announced by the end of the year.

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In Dutchess, Orange and Ulster Counties there are a number of state prisons. Including the Wallkill Correctional Facility, Otisville Correctional Facility, Eastern Correctional Facility, Greenhaven Correctional Facility and Fishkill Correctional Facility.

In 2022, Ogdensburg, Moriah Shock, Rochester, Southport, Willard and Downstate Correctional Facility in Fishkill, New York closed down.

 

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Reasons For Closures

According to the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS), the reason for the closures is that crime has dropped drastically in the past 25 years in New York State.

Since 1999 there's been a 54 percent decrease in people incarcerated in New York’s correctional facilities, as of July 18, News 10 reports.

“These closures are a necessary action in response to the needs of both incarcerated individuals and staff, as most DOCCS prisons are operating well below their respective capacities," Chair of the Senate Committee on Crime and Correction Sen. Julia Salazar said. “The decision to close Great Meadow CF and Sullivan CF is a responsible decision that I fully support.“

The 7 Oldest Continuously Operating Prisons in New York State

The 7 Oldest Continuously Operating Prisons in New York State

With as much history as New York state has, perhaps it's no surprise that within our borders lies some of the oldest prisons in the entire country.

Gallery Credit: Will Phillips

These 7 Prisons Are The Most Violent In New York State

New York released a report with the most recent number of violent assaults on inmates in state prisons. There were 134 inmate deaths noted in the report, although it doesn't break down the prisons where each death occurred or who caused them. Here's a look at some of the general violent incidents reported for 2020, which is the most recent data reported by the state. Compared to 10 years ago, inmate assaults have almost doubled. In 2011 there were 666 and in 2020 there were 1,205 reported. These numbers do not include inmate assaults on staff members. Overall, the number of unusual incidents includes things like assaults, deaths, accidents, sexual misconduct, and disruptive behavior.  According to the state,
"The number of unusual incidents has increased 132% from 5,980 in 2011 to 13,870 in 2020. These higher incident numbers were largely due to increases in assaults on incarcerated individuals (+81%), assaults on staff (+86%), contraband (+130%), disruptive behavior (+372%), and staff use of weapons (+1,035%)."
  In 2020, 1,836 weapons used to cut or stab, including ice picks, razor blades, can lids and shanks were discovered in state prisons around New York.

Gallery Credit: Yasmin Young

10 Prisons in New York With Most Attacks on Staff

10 Prisons in New York With Most Attacks on Staff

Working in a prison isn't easy. On top of everything corrections officers have to face daily, nearly 1,500 attacks on staff took place in one year. Here are the 10 New York Correctional Facilities with the most staff attacks.

Gallery Credit: Credit - Polly McAdams

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