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LAWTON, Okla. (KSWO) - The Oklahoma Department of Corrections (ODOC) has entered an agreement with the GEOGroup (GEO), a private corporation that has been operating the Lawton Correctional Facility (LCF), to purchase the prison.

The department will fully takeover operations on July 25, thus eliminating all privately operated prisons in the State of Oklahoma.

While some might have concerns over this purchase, Executive Director of ODOC Steven Harpe said they’ve gone through this process before and are confident in the move.

“We have already proven this at Allen Gamble. We just did this 18 months ago. That has become one of our shining stars- at least currently,” Harpe explained. “It’s reproducing what we’ve done at Allen Gamble and producing it in Lawton.”

‘We Change Lives’ is the vision statement for ODOC. Despite this, LCF has been repeatedly referred to as Oklahoma’s most violent prison.

“GEO was not doing that,” Harpe stated. “The violence- that had to stop. The level of violence there and the level of mistreatment of inmates had to stop.”

While this move was forced by the private company’s departure from the state, Harpe said it was the best option for the facility and those inside.

The purchase is for $312 million. Harpe stated they paid GEO $47 million a year to run the facility, and going forward he expects ODOC to operate several million dollars cheaper.

However, the biggest asset to Harpe is the workforce, offering every current LCF employee a job following a background check.

“We have great people in Lawton. 90,000 people live there,” Harpe said. “We believe that the employee base can go a great job for us. I think our beliefs and our process procedures can make a difference down there, not just for the employees, but for the inmates as well.”

While the decision isn’t entirely up to Harpe, in his opinion, the State of Oklahoma is done with privately operated prisons.

“Every year or every two years they’ll try to create a problem or scare the legislature into giving them more money,” Harpe said. “Then, that’s on the taxpayers’ back. Going forward, we won’t have that problem.”