Facing a rising prison population, Kansas has transferred 120 inmates inmates to a private prison in southern Arizona.
The Kansas Department of Corrections said private prison operator Core Civic recently flew the medium- and maximum-custody inmates to its Saguaro facility in Eloy.
In a letter sent to inmate families, the Kansas DOC said it assigned offenders to be transferred who were more than 24 months away from release and medically viable.
A spokesman for the department said priority was also given to those with a need for programming and those who had a low frequency of visitation.
Saguaro is one of seven private correctional facilities run by Core Civic in Arizona.
A spokesman for Kansas said the transfers would not be permanent.
