State Prisons To Close

The Jindal Administration says they will be forced to close five state prisons as a result of the cutting of their budget by the House Appropriations Committee. Department of Corrections Secretary Jimmy Leblanc says these "non personnel" cuts will destabilize prisons.  Actions by the house appropriations committee took $27.5 million out of the state corrections budget. Leblanc says unless the money is put back in, prisons will have to be closed and about 4600 offenders would have to be moved to parish jails or be released early.