Maryland's Prisons - Ever wonder why they ain't where the problem starts?

The State of Maryland was crowing about their new luxurious maximum security prison in ... where was that?  Oh Cresaptown.

Where is blazes, no how in blazes did a maximum security prison get built there?   Let's see if we can figure this out.

Cresaptown is in Allegany County, so the cost of building a prison there has got to be less expensive right?  Probably not, since Maryland, cow-toeing to union pressure, loves to mandate a wage that is supposed to reflect an area.  Since Cumberland was primarily union, guess where the wage scales were set.  Pretty near union wage and a heck of a lot more than the average Alleganian made, that's for sure!

Well if it wasn't cheaper maybe, Maryland was hoping to help with the unemployment rate in Allegany County?  If they want to make a living wage, most people up that way commute to Hagerstown or farther east.  Many are content to work in the area in farming or construction, knowing that their annual revenues are substantially less.

Here's the best (and most likely) one.  The metropolitan area wanted to share it's riffraff with the rural counties. Seems having the baddest of the bad all confined where they were from was unsettling and heck, why shouldn't rural Maryland enjoy the benefits of hardened criminals?  Guess the bureaucrats figures if they spun the reasons, the locals would buy into the plan.  Once built, what is Washington and Allegany Counties gonna do anyway?  The eastern shore wasn't excluded either since Maryland tricked that area into having a prison too. 

Is anyone surprised that most of Maryland's prisoners come from Baltimore City and Prince George's County? Maryland has a population of 5,915,000 people.  Washington County is home to 143,000 and has 6,850 inmates. Allegany County is home to 72,000 and has 2,400 inmates. Little Somerset County is home to 29,000 and yet has 3,296 inmates.  Maryland's total prison population is @ 25,000, half of which are housed in 3 rural counties.  Go figure!

Do these numbers reveal what Annapolis thinks of Washington, Allegany and Somerset counties?  You be the judge.

Finally, there's the expense of hauling the inmates back & forth. Gosh gas is only 3 bucks a gallon, but then again Maryland gets a healthy discount for buying such a large quantity every year!

Maybe the rural counties should look hard at the actual cost of having these fine citizens in our rural communities and simply tell Annapolis thanks, but no thanks.

The Patriot Sharpshooter