Cianna Morales
The Virginian-Pilot
RICHMOND, Va. — Four prison facilities in the state are shutting down in 2024, according to an announcement made Friday by the Virginia Department of Corrections.
The department will close Augusta Correctional Center, Sussex II State Prison, Haynesville Correctional Unit #17 and Stafford Community Corrections Alternative Program by July 1.
The department will also assume control of Lawrenceville Correctional Center, the only privately operated prison in Virginia, when its contract ends Aug. 1.
Augusta Correctional Center, near Craigsville, housed 570 inmates in October, according to the most recent Department of Corrections population summary available. Sussex II State Prison, near Waverly, housed 503 inmates. Haynesville Correctional Unit 17, near the larger Haynesville Correctional Center, housed 9 inmates.
Lawrenceville Correctional Center housed 1,260 inmates in October.
The closures are intended to “enhance public safety” and “increase efficiency” inside prisons, Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security Terrance Cole said in a news release. The closures also address longstanding staffing issues and maintenance costs, according to the release.
Employees impacted by the closures “will be able to maintain continuous employment within VADOC,” department director Chad Dotson said in the release.
Employees at Lawrenceville Correctional Center, which is owned by the GEO Group, will be able to apply for state employment.
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