Residents' mixed reax to possible prison plans

(17 Nov 2009) 1. Wide of Thomson town with water tower in background 2. US flag flying outside a house 3. Barbed wire fence surrounding Thomson Correctional Centre prison 4. US flags flying along main street 5. Cars driving on highway in front of prison 6. SOUNDBITE: (English) Dick Whitmore, Thomson, Illinois Resident: "Both of us have been in the prison. We went through the prison, we've seen how it operated. There's nobody getting out of that place." 7. Dick Whitmore walking out of his local bait shop 8. Shots of fish inside Whitmore's bait shop 9. Close up of net pulling fish out 10. SOUNDBITE: (English) Dick Whitmore, Thomson resident: "Gitmo don't allow visitors. So now that we bring the Gitmo prisoners here, who are we going to have coming down the street?" 11. Various exterior shots of the Thomson Correctional Centre prison 12. Thomson water tower 13. Various of prison 14. Downtown 15. SOUNDBITE: (English) Shawn Hovious, Thomson resident: "We got a perfectly good prison sitting there, why not use it? It's got to get used for something." 16. Various shots of prison STORYLINE: A correctional centre in the small town of Thomson in the US state of Illinois might be used to house Guantanamo Bay detainees, giving some residents hope that the move might bring more jobs to the area. A White House official said over the weekend that the Obama administration may buy a near-empty prison in Thomson, a farming community about 150 miles (241 kilometres) west of Chicago, to house Guantanamo detainees along with other federal inmates. The maximum-security Thomson Correctional Centre was one of several evaluated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons, and emerged as a leading option to house the detainees, the official told The Associated Press. US President Barack Obama wants detainees from the controversial military-run detention centre in Cuba to be transferred to US soil so they can be prosecuted for their suspected crimes. The prison was built in 2001 with the promise of thousands of jobs. But because of state budget problems, it has been largely vacant since its completion. It has 1,600 cells, but only about 200 minimum-security inmates are held there. Dick Whitmore, a Thomson resident who lives near the prison, said he can see the prison's appeal to federal authorities. "We went through the prison, we've seen how it operated. There's nobody getting out of that place," he said. But appeal for its maximum security potential aside, many Thomson residents like Whitmore aren't sure what to make of the idea that some of the United States' most wanted criminals may soon be neighbours. Whitmore said ever since the possible plan was announced, it's been all the talk in his local bait shop. But supporters of the idea - including Illinois' Governor Pat Quinn - insist security around the Thomson facility would be among the tightest in the country. And they say selling a prison in the state's rural northwest is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to create jobs in the struggling area. Lawmakers said they were told in a briefing from the Pentagon and the federal Bureau of Prisons that between 450 and 500 new employees would be hired at 37,000 US dollars to 47,000 US dollars a year at Thomson if it received Guantanamo detainees. That's something many local residents support. "We've got a perfectly good prison sitting there. Why not use it? It's got to get used for something," said Thomson resident Shawn Hovious. It is unclear how many Guantanamo detainees might be transferred to Illinois or when. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...