CoreCivic
Profile
CoreCivic was originally named Corrections Corporation of America (CCA) when it was founded in 1983. (It was renamed in 2016). As the second largest private prisons provider in the United States, it runs several dozen detention facilities with a capacity of some 75,000 inmates. It also provides electronic monitoring as well as prison transport.
Detention centers and prisons run by the company have been accused of inhumane living conditions, medical negligence, physical and sexual abuse, overcrowding and understaffing. CoreCivic guards have been accused of excessive use of force and the prolonged use of solitary confinement. Migrants have sued the company in the U.S. on multiple occasions for forcing detainees to work for minimal wages as low as $1 a day.
Security services, security technology, risk management, assessment and consulting, custody, detention, rehabilitation and care services.
Violations
| TOP 5 OFFENSE GROUPS (GROUPS DEFINED) | PENALTY TOTAL | NUMBER OF RECORDS |
|---|---|---|
| employment-related offenses | $23,118,885 | 22 |
| safety-related offenses | $67,426 | 6 |
(January 30, 2023)
Stories
- Inside Private Prisons by Lauren-Brooke Eisen (2019)
- American Prison by Shane Bauer (2018)
Activism
Help stop forced labor of detainees
Freedom United
Join our larger campaign to end slavery in the U.S. prison and detention industry as we push for all sectors to divest and cut contracts with for-profit immigration detention centers, as well as public action to advance state and federal bills to ban their operation.
Texas advocates hope Biden closes immigration center marred by sex abuse allegations
Austin American-Statesman | Claire Osborn | March 26, 2021
An immigrant advocacy group, Grassroots Leadership, has been trying for at least 10 years to get the federal government to close the T. Don Hutto Residential Center in Taylor, where immigrant women seeking asylum are detained.
The Dirty Thirty: Nothing to Celebrate About 30 Years of Corrections Corporation of America
Grassroots Leadership | June 2013
Corrections Corporation of America (CCA), the nation’s oldest and largest for-profit private prison corporation, is commemorating its 30th anniversary throughout 2013 with a series of birthday celebrations at its facilities around the country.
- Grassroots Leadership
- Sourcewatch
- Sentencing Project
- Marshall Project
- ACLU New Mexico
- Southern Poverty Law Center
- The Center for Popular Democracy
- Public Citizen
- Detention Watch Network
& Lawsuits
Arizona prison privatization project tens of millions of dollars over budget
AZ Central | Jimmy Jenkins | December 2022
A prison privatization project touted as a money-saver by Gov. Doug Ducey’s administration cost Arizona tens of millions of dollars more than projected and will continue to run over budget, according to the Arizona Department of Corrections.
Private prison to face three class actions
Courthousenews | December 20, 2022
The Ninth Circuit upheld the certification of three classes that are suing CoreCivic, the owner and operator of private immigration detention facilities, under the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of 2000. The prisoners, who were never charged or convicted with any crime, adequately alleged they suffered under “a classwide policy of forced labor” at the facilities.
The Genesis of Corecivic’s Privatized Prison Labor
Confluence | Kristian Burt | September 23, 2022
Many believe CoreCivic deliberately holds as many immigrants in custody as possible in order to gain the most revenue and profits, since the federal government provides a stipend for each CoreCivic inmate, yet the corporation is not required to use the entire stipend.
Private prison contractor CoreCivic hit with two new lawsuits over inmate deaths
Tennessee Lookout | Jamie Satterfield | September 21, 2022
The parents of three inmates who died behind bars in a span of just four months in 2021 are accusing private prison operator CoreCivic of Tennessee of repeatedly placing profits over safety and failing to police its own guards.
Stabbings Soar at Southeast Oklahoma Private Prison
Oklahoma Watch | Ashlynd Huffman | September 16, 2022
At least 18 people have been stabbed — three fatally — in one private prison in southeast Oklahoma this year, emergency records show.
Fifth Migrant Woman Alleges Sexual Assault against Nurse at ICE Jail
The Intercept | Jose Olivares | July 19, 2022
Three women made complaints through official channels about sexual assault allegations against a nurse at a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement jail in Georgia, according to government documents and a spokesperson for CoreCivic, the private prison company that operates the Stewart Detention Center.
Federal watchdog blasts New Mexico ICE facility for unsanitary conditions and understaffing
Las Cruces Sun News | Algernon D'Ammassa | March 19, 2022
A privately managed migrant detention facility in Estancia, N.M. was drubbed for unsanitary living conditions and poor staffing in a newly released report by the Department of Homeland Security's inspector general.
$56 Million Settlement in CoreCivic Securities Violation Lawsuit
Prison Legal News | David Reutter | October 2021
Private prison operator CoreCivic, formerly known as Corrections Corporation of America (CCA), paid $56 million to settle a class action lawsuit alleging it violated securities laws that resulted in a loss to stock holders.
Today It Locks Up Immigrants. But CoreCivic’s Roots Lie in the Brutal Past of America’s Prisons.
Mother Jones | Shane Bauer | September/October 2018
In 2015, I spent four months working undercover as a guard at a medium-security Louisiana prison run by the Corrections Corporation of America (CCA) with the aim of reporting on the conditions inside a private prison for Mother Jones.
The Feds Just Slammed One of the Country’s Biggest Private Prison Companies—Once Again
Mother Jones | Samantha Michaels | April 26, 2017
On Tuesday, the Justice Department slammed the private prison company CoreCivic and the US Marshals Service for poor oversight and severe understaffing at a Kansas maximum-security facility that holds federal detainees awaiting trial.
My Four Months as a Private Prison Guard
Mother Jones | Shane Bauer | July/August 2016
Have you ever had a riot?” I ask a recruiter from a prison run by the Corrections Corporation of America (CCA). “The last riot we had was two years ago,” he says over the phone. “Yeah, but that was with the Puerto Ricans!” says a woman’s voice, cutting in. “We got rid of them.” “When can you start?” the man asks. I tell him I need to think it over
& Relations
'They Treat Us Like We're Animals:' Inside Torrance County's Troubled Detention Center
ACLU New Mexico | Leonardo Castaneda | August 8, 2022
People detained at the Torrance County Detention Facility describe unsanitary and decrepit conditions that they say make it the worst facility in the state.
The For-Profit Companies Charging Prisoners to Read their Own Mail
The Real News Network | Mansa Musa | March 28, 2022
More and more services in prisons are being taken over by private, profit-seeking companies squeezing inmates and their families for every penny they have.
Federal Correctional Officer Charged and Former Prison Nurse Pleads Guilty in Bribery and Contraband Smuggling Schemes
The Justice Department | March 14, 2022
A former nurse at Leavenworth Detention Center has pleaded guilty to conspiring to smuggle contraband into the prison, and a federal grand jury in the District of Kansas has returned an indictment charging a former correctional officer with a similar scheme.
These private prisons have over 100% staff turnover. Will more state money help?
Colorado Newsline | Faith Miller | January 26, 2022
Two private prisons in rural southeast Colorado — both operated by the company CoreCivic — are grappling with high turnover rates among their staff.
For-profit Kansas prison an understaffed ‘hell hole’ of violence, death and drugs
Kansas Reflector | Allison Kite | October 7, 2021
Attorneys and former guards describe CoreCivic’s pre-trial detention facility in Leavenworth as out of control.
Almost half of staffers at ICE detention center diagnosed with COVID-19
The Hill | Edward Moreno | August 7, 2020
Almost half of the staff at the Eloy Detention Center in Arizona have tested positive for COVID-19, two employees and 14 migrants at the center told NBC News.
Guards sue CoreCivic over allegedly dangerous workplace amid COVID-19
The San Diego Union - Tribune | Morgan Cook | April 30, 2020
Two detention officers at Otay Mesa Detention Center have filed separate lawsuits against the facility’s operator, CoreCivic, for allegedly failing to take reasonable steps to protect their health amid the COVID-19 pandemic. That, they said, created a workplace that was too dangerous for them to do their jobs.
Scathing state audit slams Tennessee prisons, CoreCivic for staffing, sexual assaults, and deaths in jails
NewsChannel 5 | January 10, 2020
A scathing state audit released on Friday found that CoreCivic prisons across the state of Tennessee are still running at minimal staffing levels, in many cases meaning inmates suffering mental health issues aren't getting the help they need and creating questions surrounding the nearly 200 inmates who have died in state custody since 2017.
Eloy Detention Center: Why so many suicides?
AZ Central | Megan Jula | July 29, 2015
Eloy has accounted for 9 percent of all deaths at the nation's nearly 250 detention centers.
Immigrant families in detention: A look inside one holding center
Los Angeles Times | Molly Hennessy-Fiske | June 25, 2015
At the 50-acre compound here holding hundreds of immigrant women and children, the lights stay on 24-7. At night they’re dimmed, but not entirely out. Security, officials say.
Financials
Note: Most recent list is not always the most complete list.
Michael Burry’s Hedge Fund Is Betting on Private Prisons
Bloomberg | Claire Ballentine | November 14, 2022
Michael Burry’s Scion Asset Management added new stocks in the third quarter and boosted its bet on private prisons.
US private prison groups challenge basis for KLP divestment
Responsible Investor | Gina Gambetta | September 28, 2022
Norwegian pension defends decision to exclude CoreCivic and GEO Group over alleged human rights violations
Wall Street pulled its financing. Stocks have plummeted. But private prisons still thrive.
The Washington Post | Renae Merle | October 3, 2019
Profits at GEO Group, CoreCivic have jumped despite public pressure that led major banks to pledge not to finance future deals in the industry.
Political Influence
Open Secrets - Tracks corporate lobbying of US politicians.
OpenSecrets.org Profile of CoreCivic
Tennessee private prison operator ramps up campaign spending
Daily Memphian | Ian Round | November 7, 2022
Inmates and workers at prisons run by CoreCivic — the publicly traded Tennessee-based company that operates four of the state’s 14 prisons — face “horrific” conditions, according to Pamela Wilson.
& Evasion
It’s a Great Time to Be a Prison Landlord, Thanks to the IRS
Bloomberg | Rob Urban | August 2, 2018
Private-prison companies keep winning, and they have U.S. taxpayers to thank.
California to close one state prison and end its lease of private facility in Kern County
Los Angeles Times | Matthew Ormseth | December 9, 2022
State authorities this week announced they will close Chuckawalla Valley State Prison in Riverside County and stop using a privately owned facility in Kern County.
Think Private Prison Companies Are Going Away Under Biden? They Have Other Plans
Marshall Project | Jamiles Lartey | November 17, 2022
To the casual observer, the prospect of President-elect Joe Biden—who promised to “stop corporations from profiteering from incarceration”—presented an existential threat to the multi-billion dollar industry.
Green-colored glasses
The Intercept | Lee Fang | June 27, 2022
CoreCivic, the first publicly traded prison company in America and the first to operate both private prisons and private immigration detention centers on a for-profit basis, had another first to announce. Damon T. Hininger, the chief executive, paused to share the news on a call with investors last month: CoreCivic Inc. was the first company after the George Floyd protests to proactively conduct a “racial equity audit,” the results of which it was now ready to release.
ACLU, Public Defenders Urge White House To Shut Down Violent Private Corrections Facility In Kansas
NPR in Kansas City | Allison Kite | September 3, 2021
The ACLU and public defenders in the region wrote to Leavenworth County officials and the White House urging them to shut down a privately-run pre-trial detention facility by the end of this year.
Procurement
Contracts with the U.S. Federal Government (via USA Spending)