New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on Wednesday addressed the announcement this week that Bare Hill Correctional Facility, a medium security prison in Franklin County, will close in March and Collins Correctional in Erie County will be consolidated.
The closure came as staffing across the state was decimated by the three-week illegal correction officer strike over the winter after which the Hochul administration fired about 2,000 correction officers who did not return to work amid a deal to end the strike, making an already challenging situation worse.
Hochul stressed the efforts the state is making to staff the state’s prisons, citing a $3,000 signing bonus and the lowering of the age to be a correction officer from 21 to 18 in some cases. She said recruitment efforts also include outreach to groups who are underrepresented in the prison workforce, but critics for months have blasted the administration for not simply bringing back all fired officers who want to return if facilities are understaffed…