BEDLAM

Abuse at NJ Halfway House

With ties to Gov. Chris Christie.

Life at a New Jersey halfway house was hellish by many accounts. A 10-month investigation by The New York Times of the Albert M. “Bo” Robinson Assessment and Treatment Center revealed a pattern of abuse. Workers at the 900-bed correctional facility said inmates regularly ask to be transferred to prison, where they say they would be better taken care of. Records revealed that during some tests for drugs at the halfway house, more than 70 percent of inmates tested positive. In interviews, a senior vice president at the private company that runs Bo Robinson said the complaints were isolated. New Jersey has used privatized halfway houses as a way to reduce the costs associated with keeping inmates in prisons.