The Washington Post

Profiting from prisoners

Communities and companies made money off George Floyd’s imprisonment. Inside, Floyd withered.

Story by Cleve R. Wootson Jr. / Photos by Montinique Monroe

Paul Mathis worked intermittently as a guard at Bartlett State Jail, earning $9.48 an hour around the time Floyd was there. (Montinique Monroe for The Washington Post)
The outskirts of Bartlett, Texas in September. More than a century ago, it was a cotton shipping hub. (Montinique Monroe for The Washington Post)
Downtown Bartlett, Texas in September. Poverty has risen and streets have crumbled since the jail closed. (Montinique Monroe for The Washington Post)
Railroad tracks in Bartlett, Texas, recall its past as a cotton hub. (Montinique Monroe for The Washington Post)
The shuttered Bartlett State Jail on Sept. 17, 2020. It closed in 2017. (Montinique Monroe for The Washington Post)
James Grant was Bartlett's mayor when the prison was built and lobbied to prevent its closure in 2017. (Montinique Monroe for The Washington Post)