Mexicali Jail received the lowest grades in the state on a report released by the National Human Rights Commission, or CNDH in Spanish.
The jail, officially known as Social Reinsertion Center, obtained 6.78 points in the National Diagnose of Penitentiary Supervision 2015 published by the national ombudsman.
In comparison, Tijuana got 7.01 points, El Hongo 7.53 and El Hongo II 8.35.
According to the report, the state’s capital city jail had a population of 3,419 prisoners but a capacity for only 1,690.
The CNDH underlined issues regarding medical, room, cooking, and dining facilities, as well as with the reporting of human rights violations, programs to train prisoners and others.
Over the course of the last five years, Baja California jails have improved after scoring 6.56 points in 2011.
The state Secretary of Public Safety, which is the agency in charge of prisons, said the report moved Baja California to third place nationwide, a huge step up after placing 19 in 2009.
However, according to the data, the state’s improvement at the national level is more due to the diminishing scores from other state prisons like Querétaro, Tlaxcala, Veracruz, Puebla, and Jalisco.
Lawmaker votes against bill
A lawmaker who belongs to a leftist party voted against a bill to provide extraordinary funds to the State Electoral Institute in order cover costs to hold the upcoming midterm elections.
Assemblyman Roberto Dávalos, a Tijuana member of the Democratic Revolution Party, criticized the institute’s General Council Chairman Javier Garay, whom he accused of abuse of power.
Council members have been finger-pointed for a recent increase in their salaries days after taking the oath of office.
Lawmakers approved 21-1 the Assembly Bill 307 that was previously voted in favor by the Legislative Commission on Revenue and Budget.
The bill provides the institute 113 million pesos or US $6.8 million in additional funds to pay for the hiring of a private company that runs the Preliminary Election Results Program.
The funds will also pay for an information center, election drills, training and voting educational material.
Governor Francisco Vega said the additional funds will impact the state budget.
