As the Department of Justice starts a civil rights investigation into a privately-run state prison in Tennessee, Gov. Bill Lee contends steps have been taken to improve operations at the facility operated by what he calls an “important partner.”
Lee said the state reduced the number of inmates at Trousdale Turner Correctional Center and increased pay for the state’s correctional officers.
The inmate population was cut to 2,068 over the last year from 2,480 in October 2023, according to the Department of Correction.
It is unclear whether state pay increases translated into higher salaries for CoreCivic’s prison guards. CoreCivic declined to answer questions from the Lookout about officer pay.
