For months the prison czar, Clark Kelso, has been threatening to open a 1500 bed prison hospital in Ventura County. This guy is such a wimp that he has refused to come into the county and meet with the citizens. Today he sent a letter to "concerned citizen's". Did you get your copy? I didn't, but a friend sent it to me.

Kelso wants you to know why he is doing this to us, but is afraid of coming to the county and answering questions. That is why he sent a letter to a few people--he is unwilling to face the people of Ventura County, he is unable to answer our questions, and when he places 1500 criminals in our county, and the gangs that will visit them, he will continue to live in his safe community, far from any prison.

On October 6 a court will determine if he can steal $8 billion to build his prisons. What he did not note in his court filings is that he refuses to have any legislative over site. Then when the prisons are finished he is refusing to be audited by the legislature or an independent public agency. This is how they do it in Chicago, not California.

Since you did not receive the letter, here is the press release about it. Then you can read the whole letter in the .pdf below.

Please note, the letter is on the letterhead of the "California Prison Healthcare Receivership Corp.". Yup, a PRIVATE corporation, not a government agency. Imagine allowing a private corporation to just take $8 billion from our treasury! Then would mean education, public safety and health care would have to be cut so Kelso's corporation can make Ventura County unsafe.

Will Kelso ever be man enough to come to the county and face the people? Doubt it, he would rather steal money and thumb his nose through an impersonal letter to a few people.

Here is the press release:

Federal Receiver Sends Open Letter to Ventura County and Camarillo Officials, Concerned Residents on Potential Correctional Health Care Facility Construction

SACRAMENTO - J. Clark Kelso, the federal receiver appointed to overhaul California's correctional health care system today sent a comprehensive letter to officials and concerned residents in Ventura County detailing why a correctional health care facility will be considered for the Ventura County Youth Correctional Facility property (PDF attached.)

"It's important for Ventura County residents to understand precisely why this correctional health care facility is needed and importantly, why we are considering building in their community," Mr. Kelso said. "The debate has been rife with misinformation. This letter will correct the record and we hope set the tone for a practical, reasonable discussion about the merits of this project."

Here are a few highlights of the letter:

"The site in Ventura County came to our attention last year when we learned that the CDCR had decided to close the Youth Correctional Facility because of its deteriorating condition."

"If the Receivership were engaged in "politics as usual," I might respond favorably to this type of "not in my backyard" argument, particularly if powerful, local political forces join in the opposition. But this is not politics as usual. I am accountable for implementing a federal court order and must do so in a measured, responsible way, largely free from the impetuosity and arbitrariness of political bargaining. We are focusing on the Ventura site for very good, substantive reasons."

"I believe that a 1,500 bed low-rise health care facility in Ventura County, given the County's current incarceration rate, is entirely appropriate. It will, in both the immediate future, and in the long run, provide jobs and benefits which far outweigh the concerns that have been expressed to me."

"... [T]he Youth Correctional Facility in Ventura County is in poor condition, requiring tens of millions of dollars in expenditures to bring the facility up to usable standards. Furthermore, the ward population has been steadily declining. According to the CDCR, there are less than 85 male wards at Ventura today, and only 20 (less the 25%) are under the age of 18. There are less than 90 female wards at Ventura today, and only 21 (less than 25%) are under the age of 18. Spending tens of millions of dollars at a time when CDCR is substantially reducing its juvenile population statewide (from 10,000 wards to 2,500 wards in ten years) makes no fiscal sense at all.

"As for the dedicated CDCR employees at the Ventura Youth Correctional Facility, the Receiver's personnel team has been hard at work on an employment displacement plan to ensure that they have access to employment in the adult health care facility we will be constructing."

"This new correctional medical facility will be safe and secure. The perimeter will be an impassable, lethal barrier known as an eFence. No California prisoner has ever escaped from a correctional facility secured with an eFence. These electrified barriers cannot be breached by an inmate and have an unobtrusive appearance."

"Because of the staffing needs of this medical facility, it would be unfair to your community for the Receivership not to plan carefully for training, recruitment and retention. Our facilities are not acute care hospitals - they are chronic care facilities, and we will be relying upon the local health care community for specialty and other care that we will not be providing directly. As a result, we share your interest in making sure that your local health care community is fully staffed for all local demands, including ours."

"I remain convinced that the Ventura site is suitable for our purposes, none of the concerns raised so far appear to me to be insurmountable, and I hope to be able to work with local community leaders and others to mitigate any adverse impacts."

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Receiver Letter to Ventura.pdf