Downstate Correctional Facility

Last updated
Downstate Correctional Facility
Downstate Correctional Facility
Location121 Red Schoolhouse Road
Fishkill, New York
Statusclosed 2022
Security classMaximum
Opened1979
Closed2022
Managed by New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision

Downstate Correctional Facility was a maximum-security prison in the Town of Fishkill in the Hudson Valley region of New York. [1] It was located along the north side (i.e. westbound) of Interstate 84, opening in 1979 and closing in 2022.

Contents

Downstate served primarily as a classification center, as it was, along with Elmira Correctional Facility and Bedford Hills Correctional Facility (women), a reception facility for new inmates entering the New York State prison system. New inmates typically waited at Downstate for a few weeks before they were assigned to a permanent facility. The "permanent" prisoners—those who worked in the kitchens, laundry, etc., which those in transit could not do—were referred to as the "cadre" and were all maximum-security prisoners, with sentences of at minimum seven years. As the vast majority of inmates in New York State come from New York City, the Town of Fishkill, located in southern Dutchess County, was chosen as prison site due to its proximity to the greater New York metropolitan area.

Cells in Downstate were organized into four wings around a large and exactly square room called The Square, which was the junction point for the four wings and contained a staffed waiting room. Services such as reception, clothes, pharmacy, medical, commissary, chapel, mail, packages, visiting, and cafeteria were all centrally located, but there were small libraries in each of the wings. For many years, there was a softball field outside the prison building, used mainly by the cadre. Recreation could consist of an hour in a room with twenty other inmates and a television. Like all New York State prisons, there was a professional librarian, who supervised cadre workers at two locations, and a part-time rabbi. As with all maximum security prisons in New York State, inmate movement was scheduled and tightly controlled. An inmate who required medical attention had to be escorted to the infirmary by an officer. Shower opportunities were also scheduled. Library visits were short, scheduled, and in groups. There were dropboxes in the wings where prisoners being moved out of the facility, as most soon were after arrival, could deposit any library books that they had checked out.

Downstate was right across Interstate 84 from New York state's former psychiatric hospital, which since 1976 has been known as Fishkill Correctional Facility, a medium security prison. It was also adjacent to Dutchess Stadium, home field of the Hudson Valley Renegades.

History

In 2016 Preet Bharara, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, criminally charged three correctional officers at Downstate with beating an inmate, and two other officers with filing false reports. [2]

On March 10, 2022, Downstate Correctional Facility was permanently closed, due to a declining prison population in New York state. The staff and inmates were transferred to other facilities within the system. The state estimated that the closure would result in a savings of $142 million. [3] [4] In December 2022, the New York State Prison Redevelopment Commission discussed plans to market and redevelop the site, along with other New York prisons closed in recent years. [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fishkill (town), New York</span> Town in New York, United States

Fishkill is a town in the southwestern part of Dutchess County, New York, United States. It lies approximately 60 miles (97 km) north of New York City. The population was 24,226 at the 2010 census. Fishkill surrounds the city of Beacon, and contains a village, which is also named Fishkill.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Attica Correctional Facility</span> Maximum-security state prison in New York

Attica Correctional Facility is a maximum security campus New York State prison in the town of Attica, New York, operated by the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision. It was constructed in the 1930s in response to earlier riots within the New York state prisons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Colorado Department of Corrections</span> Sector of Colorado government concerned with the operation of state prisons

The Colorado Department of Corrections is the principal department of the Colorado state government that operates the state prisons. It has its headquarters in the Springs Office Park in unincorporated El Paso County, Colorado, near Colorado Springs. The Colorado Department of Corrections runs 20 state-run prisons and also has been affiliated with 7 for-profit prisons in Colorado, of which the state currently contracts with 3 for-profit prisons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beacon station</span> Metro-North Railroad station in New York

Beacon station is a commuter rail stop on the Metro-North Railroad's Hudson Line, serving Beacon, New York. The station has three tracks, with one island platform, and one side platform. The station is heavily used by residents of Orange and Dutchess Counties who drive to the station.

Fishkill or Fish Kill is derived from the Dutch term Vis Kill, meaning "creek full of fish".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sullivan Correctional Facility</span> Maximum-security state prison for male prisoners, located in New York, US

Sullivan Correctional Facility is a New York State maximum security prison correctional facility for male prisoners located in Fallsburg, New York. It is operated by the New York State Department of Correctional Services.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Supermax prison</span> Most secure levels of custody in the prison systems of certain countries

A super-maximum security (supermax) or administrative maximum (ADX) prison is a "control-unit" prison, or a unit within prisons, which represents the most secure level of custody in the prison systems of certain countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clinton Correctional Facility</span> Maximum-security state prison for men in New York, US

Clinton Correctional Facility is a New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision maximum security state prison for men located in the Village of Dannemora, New York. The prison is sometimes colloquially referred to as Dannemora, although its name is derived from its location in Clinton County, New York. The southern perimeter wall of the prison borders New York State Route 374. Church of St. Dismas, the Good Thief, a church built by inmates, is located within the walls. The prison is sometimes referred to as New York's Little Siberia, due to the cold winters in Dannemora and the isolation of the upstate area. It is the largest maximum-security prison and the third-oldest prison in New York. The staff includes about 1,000 officers and supervisors.

The Southport Correctional Facility was an ultra-maximum-security, or "supermax", prison, run by the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision. It was located in the town of Southport, in the Southern Tier of New York State, United States.

Taconic Correctional Facility is a medium/minimum security women's prison in Bedford, New York operated by the New York State DOCCS. Although the prison has a maximum 387-person capacity, the incarcerated population was under 170 as of November, 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Federal Correctional Institution, Thomson</span> Maximum security federal prison in Illinois

The Federal Correctional Institution, Thomson, formerly United States Penitentiary, Thomson and Thomson Correctional Center, is a low-security federal prison located in Thomson, Illinois. It has an area of about 146 acres (59 ha) and comprises 15 buildings. The facility is enclosed by a 15-foot (4.6 m), 7000 volt electric fence surrounded by an additional 12-foot (3.7 m) exterior fence covered with razor wire. Thomson has eight cellhouses with a rated capacity of 2,100 beds—1,900 high-security SMU beds and 200 minimum-security beds at the onsite camp—and according to BOP officials, the potential to use some of its high-security rated capacity to house up to 400 ADX inmates. From its completion in 2001 to 2006, it remained empty. By 2009, only the minimum-security section housed prisoners.

Green Haven Correctional Facility is a maximum security prison in New York. The prison is located in the Town of Beekman in Dutchess County. The New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision lists the address as Route 216, Stormville, NY 12582. This prison housed New York's execution chamber during the time the state briefly had the death penalty in the post-Furman era. It was originally a federal prison and now houses maximum security inmates. Green Haven Correctional Facility also operated a Hot Kosher Foods Program; but no longer does as of 2020. However, because of this, the prison had a large Jewish population. Yale Law School operates the Green Haven Prison Project, a series of seminars among Yale law students and Green Haven inmates on law and policy issues concerning prisons and criminal law.

Fishkill Correctional Facility is a multi-security level prison in New York, United States. The prison is located in both the Town of Fishkill and the City of Beacon in Dutchess County. Fishkill was constructed in 1896. It began as the Matteawan State Hospital for the Criminally Insane.

Great Meadow Correctional Facility is a maximum security prison in New York State in the United States. The prison is in Comstock, a hamlet right outside of the village of Fort Ann in Washington County, New York. As of September 3, 2008 it was home to 1,663 inmates. When Great Meadow opened in 1911 it was the fourth prison for adult males constructed in the state of New York.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision</span> Department of the New York State government

The New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (NYSDOCCS) is the department of the New York State government that maintains the state prisons and parole system. The New York State prison system encompasses 44 prisons funded by the state government. This does not include other jails and prisons in New York State such as federal prisons, New York City jails, or county jails.

Upstate Correctional Facility is a maximum security state prison for men in Franklin County, New York, US. The prison, in the Town of Malone, was the first New York State prison built as a supermax.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michigan State Prison</span> United States historic place

Michigan State Prison or Jackson State Prison, which opened in 1839, was the first prison in Michigan. After 150 years, the prison was divided, starting in 1988, into four distinct prisons, still in Jackson: the Parnall Correctional Facility which is a minimum-security prison; the G. Robert Cotton Correctional Facility where prisoners can finish their general education; the Charles Egeler Reception and Guidance Center which is the common point of processing for all male state prisoners sentenced to any Michigan prison; and the Cooper Street Correctional Facility which is the common point for processing of all male state prisoners about to discharge, parole, or enter a community center or the camp program.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matteawan State Hospital for the Criminally Insane</span> Hospital in New York, United States

Matteawan State Hospital for the Criminally Insane, established in 1892 as the Matteawan State Hospital by an 1892 law, functioned as a hospital for insane criminals. It was located in the town of Fishkill just outside the city of Beacon, New York; today its buildings form part of Fishkill Correctional Facility.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tallahatchie County Correctional Facility</span> Prison

Tallahatchie County Correctional Facility (TCCF) is a private prison for men, authorized by the Tallahatchie County Correctional Authority and operated by CoreCivic, formerly the Corrections Corporation of America on behalf of the Mississippi Department of Corrections. The maximum-security facility is located in unincorporated Tallahatchie County, Mississippi, near Tutwiler in the Mississippi Delta. Since its opening with 352 prisoners, the prison has expanded capacity nearly ninefold, holding 2672 inmates by October 2008. It has housed inmates from Wisconsin, Colorado, Hawaii, Wyoming, Vermont, and California, in addition to prisoners from Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi. In 2010 the facility served as a county jail and also housed more than 1,000 prisoners from California. Since 2013, it has not held Mississippi state prisoners.

The Greene Correctional Facility is a state prison for men located in Coxsackie, Greene County, New York, owned and operated by the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision.

References

  1. ↑ "Map 1: Current Zoning" "Town of Fishkill Comprehensive Plan." (Archive) Town of Fishkill. Retrieved on January 19, 2013.
  2. ↑ Weill, Kathy (2016-09-21). "Feds: Prison Guards Beat Black Inmate, Took His Dreadlocks as a 'Trophy'". The Daily Beast . Retrieved 2016-09-22.
  3. ↑ Callahan, Cloey (March 10, 2022). "Fishkill prison closes permanently". www.timesunion.com. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  4. ↑ News 12 Staff (March 8, 2022). "Downstate Correctional Facility in Fishkill to close after nearly 50 years". brooklyn.news12.com. Retrieved April 7, 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  5. ↑ Gross, Hank (2022-12-22). "State issues report to redevelop Downstate Correctional Facility". Mid Hudson News. Retrieved 2022-12-25.

41°31′58″N73°56′42″W / 41.53278°N 73.94500°W / 41.53278; -73.94500

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.