Posted on 09/30/2009 2:16:58 PM PDT by kara2008
Tons of readers are asking about the American Police Force jail contract in Hardin, Montana.
Neil Katz at CBS News reported:
This is the strange story of how American Police Force, a little known company which claims to specialize in training military and security forces overseas, has seemingly taken control of a $27 million, never-used jail, and a rural Montana town’s nonexistent police force.
After arriving in this tiny city with three Mercedes SUVs marked with the logo of a police department that has never existed, representatives of the obscure California security company said preparations were under way to take over Hardin’s jail, which has no prisoners.
Significant obstacles remain – including a lack of any contracts to acquire prisoners from other jails or other states.
And on Friday came the revelation the company’s operating agreement for the facility has yet to be validated – two weeks after city leaders first unveiled what they said was a signed agreement.
Still, some Hardin leaders said the deal to turn over the 464-bed jail remained on track.
The agreement with American Police Force has been heavily promoted by members of the city’s economic development branch, the Two Rivers Authority. Authority Vice President Albert Peterson on Friday repeated his claim to be 100 percent confident in the company.
The lead public figure for American Police Force, Michael Hilton, said more than 200 employees would be sought for the jail and a proposed military and law enforcement training center.
The secrecy has led to speculation that the deal is tied to President Obama’s search for Gitmo detainee housing alternatives in the U.S. Hardin jail officials expressed interest in accepting released Gitmo enemy combatants last spring.
There’s not enough info to determine what exactly is going on — so Montana legislators are doing their jobs and trying to get to the bottom of it:
Montana Rep. Bob Ebinger said more rumors were likely until Hardin and the company provide more details.
“Always when things are secretive, you end up getting everybodyon both the right and the leftmaking suppositions about what’s going on,” said Ebinger, a Democrat from Livingston.
Ebinger and other members of the Legislature’s Law and Justice Committee said they would ask Hardin officials to provide more information about the company.
In addition to taking over the 464-bed, $27 million jail, the company has said it will sink $17 million into a military training center and is seeking 5,000 acres or more for a live-fire training ground.
Company spokeswoman Becky Shay said there were no plans to reveal the project’s financial backers.
They are not going to be able to sustain that position for long.
Snopes is a hoax itself!
Montanans have been voting for Democrats and lefties, If the Gitmo scum have to be in the US, Montana is well deserving.
Used to be, but they have 2 Dem Senators, Dem Governor and at least one of the houses of the State legislature is Dem....Montana is heading Left in a very big hurry, maybe seeing Obama will knock some sense into them.
Thanks for the ping, Lucy.
Very strange.
Here’s an article from April 23rd, Billings Gazette:
That’s somewhat depressing
I don’t think the Hardin politicians did a very good job of vetting their new business.
Their name “American Police Force” should have been suspicious to them. Are people really that desperate that they would fall for this?
Just checking in briefly: Michael Hilton has a criminal past:
APF Head Hilton has criminal past
Look at this guys rap sheet! what makes him think he can enforce laws? or even be eligible to get a US contract after his prior convictions?
http://www.thenorthwatch.com/us/apf-head-hilton-has-criminal-past/
I can see one very legitimate reason for doing this: in case another prison, a different prison, needs to be evacuated.
I believed that a lot of prisoners were let go during Katrina, but for the most part they were minor prisoners let go from jail. Yet there are a lot of maximum security prisons, filled to the brim with very dangerous criminals, and with the exception of this empty prison, no place to put them in a disaster. A lot of them are far too dangerous to put in a temporary field prison.
American Police Force is a Blackwater Front Company
here is the APF website screenshot http://www.prisonplanet.com/images/october2009/011009shot1.jpg
here is the domain registry for XE (Blackwater)
http://blogslut.com/ustrainingxe.jpg
California entrepreneur promising to revitalize rural Montana town has checkered past ( Hardin )
He seems to have money ...but it appears he is a brazen Hustler from my locale...So California,....
Unfortunately, that's incorrect. MT's electoral votes went to ZERO. Maybe that's the impetus for this project. You know, the old spoils system. MT voted for O, so now you are being "rewarded" with an "economic development project."
No, Dick Chaney, as was pointed out, never lived in Montana. But I heard that Ted Turner has a ranch there now. Kind of symbolic of the political shift there in recent years, one would think.
I wasn’t sure about the political leanings anymore. Just in 10 short years.....it seems it’s become a political nest of maggots.
Yes...I was incorrect about Cheney and your point regarding Turner, well made and spot on.
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