Southfield Considers Privatizing Jail

Chicagotribune.com

The city of Southfield is looking into whether a private company could run its prisoner lockup for less money than the Oakland County Sheriff's Department wants to charge.

The department has operated the Detroit suburb's lockup for nearly three decades, booking an average of 3,300 prisoners a year. It also manages five cell blocks that hold up to 68 prisoners serving sentences of up to one year.