Lakin Correctional Center (LCC) is a women's prison in the community of Lakin in

unincorporated Unincorporated may refer to: * Unincorporated area, land not governed by a local municipality * Unincorporated entity, a type of organization * Unincorporated territories of the United States, territories under U.S. jurisdiction, to which Congress ...

Mason County, West Virginia Mason County is a county in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 25,453. Its county seat and largest city is Point Pleasant. The county was founded in 1804 and named for George Mason, delegate to the U.S. ...

. It is on a portion of former Lakin State Hospital property, on

West Virginia Route 62 West Virginia Route 62 is a north–south state highway in western West Virginia. The southern terminus of the route is at West Virginia Route 25 in Dunbar. The northern terminus is at Interstate 77 and U.S. Route 33 in Ripley. History In t ...

, in proximity to West Columbia, north of Point Pleasant,Lakin Correctional Center and Jail
"

West Virginia Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation The West Virginia Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation is an agency of the U.S. state of West Virginia within the state Department of Homeland Security that operates the state's prisons, jails and juvenile detention facilities. The agency ha ...

. Retrieved on November 17, 2018. "11264 Ohio River Road, West Columbia, WV 25287 (Mason County)" and north of the

Army National Guard The Army National Guard (ARNG), in conjunction with the Air National Guard, is an organized Militia (United States), militia force and a Reserve components of the United States Armed Forces, federal military reserve force of the United States A ...

armory. A part of the

, it is the sole prison in that system that has only female prisoners. It has a capacity of 462 prisoners.

History

The prison's construction began in 1999, with some former Lakin Hospital buildings demolished to make way for the prison. Until the prison opened on January 29, 2003, there was no single women's prison in West Virginia and women were scattered across various facilities. A factory building and two minimum security housing facilities were built in 2005 and 2006. In a period prior to 2015 the WVDOC considered converting Lakin into a men's prison and moving women to another prison in Sugar Grove. These plans were canceled since residents of Mason County and elected officials of that county and at the state level opposed this plan. On September 4, 2015,

Governor of West Virginia A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political r ...

Earl Ray Tomblin Earl Ray Tomblin (born March 15, 1952) is an American politician who served as the 35th governor of West Virginia from 2011 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served in the West Virginia Senate from 1980 to 2011 and as pres ...

stated that a section of the property of the nearby armory could be used as a satellite for Lakin; area residents opposed this move.

Facilities

The facility can house 462 prisoners including two minimum security facilities with a combined capacity of 160 prisoners.

Programs

The

West Virginia Department of Education The West Virginia Department of Education is the state education agency of West Virginia. It is headquartered in Charleston. History The original West Virginia Constitution of 1863 established a system of free public schools. This was when t ...

operates vocational and educational programs.

Notable inmates

* Shelia Eddy and Rachel Shoaf, convicted murderers of

Skylar Neese Skylar Annette Neese (February 10, 1996July 6, 2012) was an American teenage girl who disappeared from her home in Star City, West Virginia, around midnight on July 6, 2012. Neese's body was found on January 16, 2013, in Wayne Township, Greene ...

Ramsey Carpenter-Bearse Ramsey BethAnn Carpenter-Bearse (born December 15, 1990) is a registered sex offender, American beauty pageant titleholder, and former teacher. She was named Miss Kentucky 2014 on July 12, 2014, and competed for the title of Miss America 2015, whe ...

, former Miss. Kentucky

References

External links

Lakin Correctional Center and Jail
-

Lakin Correctional Center Inmate Handbook
(2014) - posted at the

University of Michigan School of Law The University of Michigan Law School (Michigan Law) is the law school of the University of Michigan, a public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Founded in 1859, the school offers Master of Laws (LLM), Master of Comparative Law ...

Info page
Women's prisons in the United States Prisons in West Virginia Buildings and structures in Mason County, West Virginia 2003 establishments in West Virginia {{WestVirginia-stub