STATE IN NEED OF NEW WOMEN'S PRISON

East Tennessee Being Eyed As Most Suitable Location For New Facility

CHATTANOOGA (AP) - With the number of women in Tennessee prisons and jails
having almost tripled over the past 12 years, state officials are looking
at East Tennessee as the site for a third women's correctional facility.

Currently, the state runs prisons for women in Nashville and Memphis. Both
were operating below their designated capacity in December, according to
Correction Department records, but officials are aware of the increasing
number of women being incarcerated.

In July 1990, 609 women were housed in Tennessee prisons or jails on felony
charges. By October 2002, that number had jumped to 1,746, according to
state records.

According to the state's "Future Felon Population" report issued earlier
this year, the number of female inmates is expected to grow by 47.1 percent
over 10 years. By comparison, the male prison population is only projected
to increase by 28.5 percent.

"As the female (inmate) population continues to increase, the next emphasis
should be in East Tennessee," said Linda Dodson, deputy commissioner for
the Tennessee Department of Correction.

Rep. Chris Clem, R-Lookout Mountain, noted that there isn't enough money in
the state's depleted coffers to fund a new prison right now.

"Hopefully, in two years there will be," Clem said. "I would be more than
happy to consider funding a women's prison in East Tennessee."

Joann Morton, president of the Association of Programs for Female Offenders
and an author on the subject, said the rising number of female offenders
has been a national trend for the past 15 years.

"The change in the incarceration of females hasn't been related to changes
in women's behavior, but has been related to changes in crime-control
policy, particularly the war on drugs," Morton said.

Along with prisons, jails are also feeling the effects of the increase in
the number of females behind bars. Correction Department spokesman Steve
Hayes said about 25 percent of female felons are serving their sentences in
local jails, and another 11 percent are in local jails awaiting transfer to
state facilities.

In Chattanooga, the Silverdale Workhouse is certified to hold a maximum of
128 women, but in mid-December it had a population of 174 inmates, said
Barbara Payne, director of corrections for Hamilton County.

"Our increase has been tremendous," she said. "It's a daily process as to
where are we going to go next because (overcrowding) is a big problem in
Hamilton County."