We don't know if the two of you made any kind of wager but if so, you could owe your daughter-in-law a beer because yes, until the end of 2009 the town was home to the Baker Community Correctional Facility, a privately run medium-security prison located at 10 Lakeview Drive. In late October of that year, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation gave 60 days notice of closure to this and two other such CCFs, citing a significant decrease and anticipated ongoing decline in the level of low-security inmates in the state, with an estimated attendant $15 million annual saving.
Although the population of Baker prison was in general deemed low-to-medium in terms of security, back in 2003 the facility was the scene of riot that saw at least 17 inmates injured, mainly from stab wounds, eight of whom were airlifted to area hospitals. One of the prison buildings was also set on fire. More than 100 prisoners were involved in the racially polarized incident, reportedly triggered by the arrival of a "snitch," and prison officials were required to enlist the help of the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department, California Highway Patrol, and Chino Hills Police Department, since staff at private lockups are not permitted to carry weapons or use force to quell violent uprisings, while the inmates had armed themselves with sharpened pieces of metal and plastic and broom handles. The situation inside was deemed so dangerous that firefighters were forced to tackle the blaze from outside the compound's walls.
When Baker Community Correctional Facility closed, there was talk of re-purposing the joint as a women's prison, but that idea was apparently dropped. We read that once all the inmates had been placed in other state facilities, the last remaining staff simply walked out, locking the gates behind them. To the best of our knowledge, the building (which you can view by clicking the link above), remains empty and unused.
