TULSA, Okla. (AP) - A halfway house in Tulsa that was shut down by the state for safety violations has been reopened, the Oklahoma Department of Corrections said.
About 200 inmates were moved out of the Avalon Correctional Services halfway house in January after a corrections department investigation found “serious infractions” that affected inmate safety. The investigation into Avalon began after cellphone video emerged of inmates fighting within the facility.
Agency director Robert Patton told the Tulsa World (https://bit.ly/R0vhmL ) that inmates returned to the halfway house Monday after Avalon made significant changes to the facility and its operations, including the addition of security cameras and increased drug testing.
“They’ve done everything we asked them to,” Patton said. “I do applaud Avalon for stepping up to the plate and trying to make this right.”
The halfway house is a low-security facility where inmates live, typically toward the end of their sentences for nonviolent crimes. The Tulsa facility can hold more than 300 offenders, but Patton said the state will start with a maximum of 150 inmates there.
Brian Costello, Avalon’s president and chief operating officer, declined to comment on the reopening Monday and referred inquiries to state officials.
Other changes include metal detectors and searches to reduce contraband at the facility, along with unannounced inspections by Avalon’s compliance department.
Avalon has contracts with the Department of Corrections for other facilities in the state, including a 289-bed halfway house for women in Turley and its Carver facilities for men and women in Oklahoma City with more than 500 beds.
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Information from: Tulsa World, https://www.tulsaworld.com
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