The CNMI Department of Corrections building in Susupe, Saipan.
DEPARTMENT of Corrections Commissioner Anthony Torres is forming a working group of CNMI officials as part of a preliminary plan to transfer Guam inmates to the Saipan prison facility.
In an interview on Tuesday, he reiterated that discussions between Guam and the CNMI are still in their preliminary phase.
There are no finalized plans yet, he added.
Last week, Guam officials, including Corrections Director Fred Bordallo, visited Saipan to tour the island’s prison facility.
Torres said he won’t go through with a transfer program that doesn’t benefit the CNMI.
“When we get to the table and we go back and forth with rates and negotiate, and it’s not beneficial for [the CNMI], we don’t need to move forward with it,” he added.
Torres said Guam has an overpopulation issue at its correctional facility that can be addressed by the extra space at the Saipan prison facility.
“We have what they need,” Torres said. “We have that supply, they have a demand. We can help them and it can help us.”
Torres last week said the proposed transfer of inmates, which will be funded by Guam, could bring millions of dollars in revenue to the CNMI Department of Corrections.
Torres said his department pays $50,000 for catering services to feed inmates on Saipan, and a monthly utilities bill of around $137,000.
He said the revenue generated by the proposed transfer could help fund the improvement of the correctional facility kitchen so that it can be used for culinary programs.
The funds could also pay for farming, trades education, and GED programs for inmates, he added.
Torres said he would select the Guam inmates who could be transferred to Saipan.
“There’s going to be stipulations that I’m going to oversee. There’s going to be a contract,” he added.
Torres said the “ideal candidate” for transfer would be “fairly healthy” and someone not convicted of violent offenses.
He said the inmates who fit this description may include those serving drug-use sentences.
As for the working group that will help him come up with a transfer plan, Torres said it will include officials from the executive branch, the Senate, the House of Representatives, the courts, the Department of Public Safety, the Division of Youth Services, and the Saipan Mayor’s Office, among other agencies.
Torres said he will also seek “input” from lawmakers regarding the issue.
Torres said he also welcomes vocal opposition to the proposal, adding that he respects his critics, and is willing to hear their arguments.
“There’s a lot of concern and that’s expected,” he said.
But he also hopes that the critics approach his proposal with an open mind.
“I’ll…find ways to address those concerns and create better outcomes,” Torres said. “I encourage those people in return to embrace change and challenge themselves to get comfortable being uncomfortable, because when you do, amazing things start to happen.”
