Some prisoner\u2019s in Northern California are upgrading to better living spaces \u2013 but only if they\u2019ve got the cash to pay.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s because a jail in Fremont is offering prisoners the chance to pay-as-they-go for a cell in the prison . And the rent isn\u2019t cheap, running $155 a night, the same as a local three star hotel, according to local affiliate WTKR.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou do get cable TV, but you don\u2019t get a warm cookie on your bed,\u201d Lt. Mark Devine, of the Fremont Police Department told the station.<\/p>\n
The $10 million minimum security prison is far from luxurious with standard prison beds, shared bathroom and shower space. But it does come with various recreational options, including a HD widescreen TV.<\/p>\n
Built in 2000, the prison facility has 54 beds and can house up to 96 inmates at a time.<\/p>\n
And the space is only eligible to misdemeanor offenders who receive prior approval from a judge.<\/p>\n
While the program is unusual, the Fremont Police Department said that similar \u201cPay to Stay\u201d programs currently exist in Southern California cities such as Anaheim and Beverly Hills .<\/p>\n
So, why would a prisoner pay so much money to essentially live in the same conditions they\u2019d find in one of the other state prisons? It turns out, they\u2019re not paying for added value, but rather what\u2019s not there.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe only other thing you\u2019re really paying for is the smallness and the quietness of the facility,\u201d Devine told WTKR.<\/p>\n
California Governor Jerry Brown was recently tasked with finding ways to reduce the burden of the state\u2019s overcrowded prison system.<\/p>\n
And it could provide an economic boost for the local economy. Devine told the Sacramento Bee that if at least 16 inmates stay at the facility for two nights a week, the city would make an annual profit of about $244,000.<\/p>\n
Devine says the prison was originally intended to be used for misdemeanor offenders to perform work while they served out their time. But the prison had remained unused until it was opened for the pay-as-you-go system.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are the trustees of a large facility that was paid for with taxpayer money. Now we need to be good stewards of that investment and maximize its use and efficiency for the taxpayers,\u201d Devine said. \u201cThere is a cost to government. And that cost, where appropriate, should be borne by the people using the program or facility, or what not.\u201d<\/p>\n
However, the pay-as-you-go plan has drawn criticism from the American Civil Liberties Union, who said it creates a bad precedent by giving more preferential treatment to wealthier inmates.<\/p>\n
“There should not be one form of punishment for those who can afford to pay and a different form of punishment for those who can’t,” ACLU National Prison Project attorney Carl Takei told the Bee.<\/p>\n