The new 1.3-million sq ft (120-thousand m2), $1 billion facility is located at 1480 North 8000 West[3] on 170 acres (69 ha) north of Interstate 80, but is barely visible from the freeway.[4]
The large prison complex houses both male and female prisoners in separate facilities. These facilities range from minimum security to supermax. Upon opening, 2,464 inmates were transferred from the former Utah State Prison.[4] The Bear Facility houses men's general population, the Antelope Facility houses restricted men's population, the Currant Facility houses men's geriatric and mental health population, and the Dell Facility houses female inmates.[5]
The Utah State Correctional Facility is the only prison in Utah authorized to carry out capital punishment, with executions conducted by lethal injection. The first inmate to be executed in the facility was Taberon Honie on August 8, 2024; this was also the first execution in Utah since 2010.[6]
History
The former Utah State Prison was built in Draper in 1951. Since the former prison's erection, business parks and residential neighborhoods have developed the once rural area into a suburban one. Seeking the ability to offer better treatment options, the state legislature initiated a process to build a new prison, deciding it was best to relocate elsewhere. A study was completed in 2005 by Wikstrom Economic & Planning Consultants to determine if moving the prison would be feasible. The test of feasibility was whether or not the value of the real estate of the current location could support the cost of relocation. It was determined that the cost of relocating the prison far exceeded the value that could be realized from the sale of the Draper prison site.[7] However, on August 19, 2015, a special session of the state legislature voted to move the prison to the northwest side of Salt Lake City.[8]
The new facility was completed and the inmates from the former prison were transferred July 11–15, 2022.[4] The former prison officially closed on July 15, 2022.
Notable Inmates
Jodi Hildebrandt - Sentenced to four consecutive prison terms, which could range from 1 to 15 years each for child abuse.[9][10]
Ruby Franke - Sentenced to four consecutive prison terms, which could range from 1 to 15 years each for child abuse.[11][12]
^Wikstrom Economic & Planning Consultants (2005). Evaluation of the Feasibility of Relocating the Utah State Prison. Wikstrom Economic & Planning Consultants.
This list template only include facilities for post-trial long-term confinement of adult females and juvenile females sentenced as adults, of one or two years or more (referred to as "prisons" in the United States, while the word "jail" normally refers to short-term confinement facilities)
