D ogs and cats wander past a fish tank that is bubbling quietly surrounded by a jungle of pot plants. “It’s like Dr Dolittle around here,” says Gina Clark, the superintendent of State Correctional Institution Chester. With its Zen garden, cappuccino machine, pastel sofas, breadmaker and therapy room, this bright and airy facility near Philadelphia could be a spa retreat or a luxury hotel.
In fact, it is an innovative wing at a medium security jail next to a giant casino at the epicentre of the opioid crisis in Pennsylvania. • Find out more about the Times Crime and Justice Commission The people who live here have all committed serious crimes — some of them horrendous offences — but they are treated with respect by the.
