National News
Mar 7, 2021
FILE - In this Friday, Oct. 25, 2019, file photo guards observe inmates at the Nebraska State Penitentiary, in Lincoln, Neb. Nebraska officials are pushing for a new, $230 million prison to relieve inmate overcrowding, even as prison officials in other states close prisons. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik File)
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Across the nation officials are closing prisons as crime rates drop and views about drug use change, but not in Nebraska, where the governor is pushing for a new $230 million prison to relieve overcrowding and house a steadily rising inmate population.
It’s not certain that lawmakers will support Republican Gov. Pete Ricketts’ plan to build a 1,512-bed maximum security prison, but the fact that the state is considering what would amount to a 37% increase in bed space runs counter to most states.