Warden Laura Williams was emotional the day Delaware County officially took over operations of the George W. Hill Correctional Facility, the last privately-run correctional facility of its type in Pennsylvania writes Jim Melwert for KYW Newsradio.

The first roll call of the new county prison employees took place 12:01 a.m. March 6.

 “Delaware County made an active choice to bring the employees on board as county employees so that they could invest in them,” said Williams.

She gave an emotional thank you to her staff later at a Delaware County Council meeting.

“Correctional facilities are not always on the minds of many,” Williams said. “Historically, these institutions have served as the place where society sends those that are deemed unfit or poor, pose a greater risk to the community. Incarcerated persons and those that maintain their custody and care are typically forgotten.”

For councilmember Kevin Madden, the changeover fulfills a campaign promise he made in 2017.

“No longer will we have a multinational corporation with a profit motive to keep our jail as full as possible, managing our jail,” said Madden.

Council members said the plan going forward is to keep people out of jail while improving efficiency and cutting costs.

Read more at KWY Newsradio about the prison transition.