What are they doing with the old Graterford Prison?

The prison, described by Joseph Stefano of the Philadelphia Inquirer as the primary state prison serving the Philadelphia metropolitan area, once housed a small number of male death row inmates. Graterford closed in 2018 and was replaced by SCI Phoenix.

Why did Graterford Prison close?

Wednesday morning, 89 years after it opened its doors, the State Correctional Institution Graterford was locked down. That’s in order to allow the safe movement of inmates to SCI Phoenix, Graterford’s $400 million replacement, on the same 1,700-acre site in Montgomery County.

How many prisoners are in Graterford?

SCI Graterford It has had many names since the facility opened in 1929 and is commonly referred to as Graterford Prison and Graterford Penitentiary. The prison houses over 3,420 inmates in twelve housing units.

Can you tour Graterford Prison?

How You Can Visit. If you want to visit the Graterford State Prison, you will need to know what times are acceptable. Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays from 8:30 am to 3 pm are visiting hours. While you can also stop in on Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays from 8:30 am to 3 pm and 6 pm to 9 pm.

Is SCI Graterford still open?

SCI Graterford was closed on July 15, 2018. SCI Phoenix is a 3,830-bed facility situated on the property of SCI Graterford. This state-of-the-art facility was designed to replace the aging SCI Graterford, which was built in 1929.

Are Pennsylvania prisons open for visitors?

Harrisburg, PA – Pennsylvania Department of Corrections (DOC) Secretary John Wetzel announced today that in-person inmate visitation will be phased in at select DOC facilities in the coming days, with remaining facilities to follow. On-site visits were suspended on March 13, 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

How to contact Graterford State Prison in PA?

If you have any questions about the prison or the inmates in the prison, you can call them at 610-489-4151. The Graterford State Prison believes that the success of an inmate starts while they are in prison. From day one, offenders are preparing for their release back into society.

Why did the Graterford Prison move to Phoenix?

All Graterford employees became Phoenix employees. Some inmates disliked the move as they feared they would be sharing cells with other inmates, while at Graterford they had single cells. The population of Graterford was reduced so the transfer of inmates to Phoenix would not involve as many people.

How many people are on death row in Graterford?

Graterford’s inmate population today is 2,648, 20 of which are capital case (death row) inmates. The first group of inmates were moved at approximately 12:20 p.m. Higher risk inmates, such as capital case inmates, parole violators, those housed in the infirmary and those under special observation were being moved first.

How long does it take to get out of Graterford Prison?

Approval may take 21 to 45 days as you will need to pass a background check. You will need to follow all visiting rules, or your visitation may be suspended. If you have any visitation questions or concerns, you can call the visitation office at 610-489-4151. When an inmate is close to being released, they will be given a release day.