Maine Prisoners Moved Pre-Dawn Staff Placed On Leave After Gov Page Says Close

The Maine State Police conducted a pre-dawn relocation of all inmates from Washington County prison, Downeast Friday morning.

The entire staff of the correctional facility located in Machiasport were reportedly placed on administrative leave.

“Gov. Paul LePage placed all staff members at the Downeast Correctional Facility in Machiasport,” said Jim Mackie, a representative for the union representing correctional officers.

The move to relocate the inmates comes as some legislators try to stop LePage’s plans to close the minimum security prison, which costs the state about $5 million a year to operate. Republican Rep. Will Truell proposed a bill that would provide $5.5 million to find the facility for the fiscal year beginning in July and order a comprehensive study to determine the impact of closing the jail. Last May, state correctional authorities announced the closure of the 150-bed prison and notified 55 employees that they would lose their jobs within weeks. While the facility did stay open, the state has not sent any new prisoners there since October. There were about 60 inmates at the jail in January. source

The director of the Downeast Correctional Facility in January sent a memo to his workers reminding them that LePage “will be watching closely” when they testified before a legislative panel about Truell’s to keep the minimum security prison open for another year. The memo obtained by the Portland Press Herald also advised the 51 workers at the prison that they could not testify before the Legislature’s Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee while they were on the clock or in uniform.

The inmates were taken to Mountain View Correctional Facility in Charleston. The staff members received layoff noticed effective March 1, Mackie said.