Washington Corrections Center for Women (WCCW, originally the Purdy Treatment Center for Women) is a
Washington State Department of Corrections women's prison located in
Gig Harbor, Washington.[1] With an operating capacity of 740, it is the largest women's prison in the state [2] and is surrounded by
Washington State Route 16, and McCormick forest park. It opened 53 years ago in 1971, 82 years after statehood.[1]
Washington Corrections Center is located at 9601 Bujacich Rd NW
Facilities and programs
Washington Corrections Center for Women facilitates Educational and Offender Change programs, & Work and Vocational programs.
Educational and Offender Change programs include:
GED programs,
Information Technology programs, and a prison library. However, inmates must have enough time left on their sentence in order to enroll in education. Inmates sentenced to 18 months or less can not access education and are not eligible for most self improvement class.[3] their intent is to teach incarcerated new skills, and help them to transition into the outside world.
Work and Vocational programs include:
CAD programming, Textile Production, and
Braille printing.[4] these are how prisoners earn prison salaries ($1.00/hr). This money is used for store purchases (snacks, hygiene, office supplies), recreation, and medication. A doctor visit cost $4/visit. A weight card for the gym is $7/quarter. There are quarterly packages, monthly fundraisers, monthly events, and craft supplies available as well.
Organization
Washington Corrections Center for women is located on a 32-acre campus in
Gig Harbor, Washington.[5] On campus, there are 10 housing units by the names of:
The Purdy Treatment Center for Women opened in 1971 with
dormitory quarters for 162 women.[7] The first inmates were 92 transferees from the
Washington State Penitentiary. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the facility heightened its security level, building a 272-bed
minimum-security prison facility in 1992, a 102-bed
close-custody unit in 1994, and a 256-bed medium-security unit in 1996.[7] In 2021, the facility added a second perimeter fence made of
concertina wire. In 2022, the average daily population of 867 exceeded the facility's official capacity of 738.[7][1]
In April, 2016
John Legend performed at Washington Corrections Center for Women to raise awareness for his "Free America" campaign to reduce mass incarceration in the United States.[8]
Notable inmates
Mary Kay Letourneau, Level 2 sex offender and former schoolteacher who pleaded guilty in 1997 to two counts of felony second-degree rape of a child, her 12-year-old student.[9]
Barbara Opel, paid 5 teenagers to rob and murder a person.
This list template only include facilities for post-trial long-term confinement of adult females and juvenile females sentenced as adults, of one or two years or more (referred to as "prisons" in the United States, while the word "jail" normally refers to short-term confinement facilities)