Former inmate buys old state prison in Wayne County to create reentry campus

WAYNE COUNTY, N.C. (WITN) - A former prison in Wayne County is now owned by a person who was once incarcerated himself.

The state sold the facility that was once Wayne Correctional to Kerwin Pittman, the founder and executive director of Recidivism Reduction Education Program Services, Inc. (RREPS).

According to a release, Pittman is now the first formerly incarcerated person in U.S. history to buy a prison.

The non-profit is looking to turn the site into a comprehensive reentry and workforce development campus for those who have served time.

That would make the non-profit the first formerly incarcerated-led non-profit in the country to buy and repurpose a decommissioned correctional facility.

RREPS plans to transform the facility on Stevens Mill Road into a Recidivism Reduction Campus, a place that will offer transitional housing for those coming home from jail or prison.

The campus will offer a range of programming aimed at easing the transition out of prison, including workforce development and placement, peer support, mental health support and educational opportunities.

The state listed an asking price of $475,000 for the facility.

The site is about 19 acres and sits across the street from Neuse Correctional Institution.