By Sascha Cordner
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wfsu/local-wfsu-991884.mp3
Tallahassee, FL – Early Monday, Governor Rick Scott announced that he was not filing an appeal on a ruling that blocks plans to privatize about 30 South Florida prisons. But, as Sascha Cordner reports, Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi filed a last minute appeal just before the deadline expired.
In September, a Leon Circuit Judge sided with the Florida Police Benevolent Association in its lawsuit against the state to block a prison privatization plan that was passed as part of the state budget. Now, the union's Executive Director Matt Puckett says the union is prepared to fight Bondi's appeal:
"We always anticipated that there would be an appeal to this lawsuit, and we were prepared from the beginning to fight it all the way to the Supreme Court. So, this is not in any way a shock to us that it would be appealed. It's a little strange that it happened on the same day that the Governor made the decision to not do it. It seems like it's a food fight between the Legislature and the Governor's office."
Puckett says the appeal was most likely at the request of the Legislature, and more specifically Senate President Mike Haridopolos. A Spokesman for the Governor says Scott believes if the state can privatize prisons in a way that saves taxpayers money, then the Governor and the Legislature should look into it.