Rotary Club "tours" MCI Prison

Recently the Framingham Rotary Club toured the MCI prison, the oldest continuously used prison in the US.  The prison population, all women, includes convicts as well as individuals awaiting trail who did not make bail.  Superintendent Lynn Bissonnette, after describing the facility, outlined the issues facing them. They included maintaining an ageing facility that has sections that are over 100 years old, and overcrowding in the prison. It was noted that the cost to house an inmate was over $51,000 a year, a price comparable to going to elite colleges. Reducing recidivism in the prison is an important goal of the prison. The best way to do that is through education and giving the inmates the skills to find work and lead a better life once they leave.

The tour included the housing section, where the inmates live, and the part of the prison where they have programming, as well as maintaining the grounds. One of the programs involved training dogs to provide services for those in need. The club saw a dog demonstration led by an inmate where the canine was able to turn a light switch off and on, fetch a fallen cane, and answer the telephone. (Just kidding, but she did fetch it.)

Superintendent Bissonnette was informative and well-spoken and clearly club members left with a better understanding of our prison system.