Help stop the private prisons.

I heard a rumor today that the ADC has already made a decision on these contracts - it just hasn't hit the media yet. Let's stop them from making the award notifications until after this is heard in court Tuesday.

------from the American Friends Service Committee-Tucson-------

Action Alert!

DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS:
NO CONTRACTS BEFORE COURT HEARING!

Citing serious safety concerns with for-profit prisons in Arizona, AFSC filed an injunction last Monday to prevent the Department of Corrections from awarding any contracts for new private prisons until the state completes a statutorily-required review of the performance of for-profit prisons.

The Department of Corrections has said it might award the contracts as soon as Friday, September 16. The AFSC therefore asked the court to grant a temporary restraining order to halt the contract awards until the court can hold a hearing on the AFSC’s request for the injunction, but the judge denied our request.

The hearing on the injunction has been set for September 20th. But the Department of Corrections could award the contracts on Monday, pre-empting the court hearing for the injunction.

AFSC called on the Department of Corrections to voluntarily hold off on awarding contracts until the hearing can be held.

We need your help TODAY to ask the Department of Corrections not to award the contracts until we have our day in court! By Monday, it may be too late!

What YOU can do….

Contact Governor Brewer and ADC Director Ryan:

• Ask them to respect the court process and hold off just two days before awarding contracts until the court hearing on Tuesday September 20^th
• Tell them you want a judge to independently evaluate the facts of the case
• Remind them that it could be costly and embarrassing to the state to have to rescind the contracts later, if the Department is found to have violated state statute

Governor Jan Brewer

602.542.4331 or 800.253.0883 ph, 602.542.1381 fax.

Make a comment online at: http://azgovernor.gov/Contact.asp

Corrections Director Charles Ryan

602.542.5497 ph

cryan@azcorrections.gov

**If you can blind copy or cc us, we will have a better idea how effective this initiative is. If you receive responses, even boiler-plate ones, please forward those to us, if possible (cisaacs@afsc.org).

Caroline Isaacs,

Program Director,

American Friends Service Committee, Arizona

103 N. Park Ave., Ste 111

Tucson, AZ 85719

520.623.9141

520.623.5901 fax

Visit us on the web at: Tucson, AZ | American Friends Service Committee

Find us on facebook

Read our blog, Cell-Out Arizona