Dr. Lane Murray Unit

Dr. Lane Murray Unit
Location	1916 North Hwy 36 Bypass; Gatesville, Texas 76596
Coordinates	31°28′35″N 97°43′35″W / 31.476389°N 97.726389°W
Status	Operational
Security class	G1-G4, Administrative Segregation
Capacity	1,341
Opened	November 1995
Managed by	TDCJ Correctional Institutions Division
Warden	Judy Scott
County	Coryell County
Country	USA
Website	www.tdcj.state.tx.us/unit_directory../lm.html

Aerial photograph of the prisons in Gatesville, January 13, 1996, United States Geological Survey

Topographical map of the Gatesville prison units, 1994, USGS - The area now contains the Murray Unit

Dr. Lane Murray Unit is a women's prison of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice located in Gatesville, Texas. The prison is located on Texas State Highway 36, between Farm to Market Road 215 and Farm to Market Road 929. The 1,317 acres (533 ha) unit, which opened in November 1995, is co-located with the Christina Crain Unit, the Hilltop Unit, the Mountain View Unit, and the Woodman Unit.^[1]

In 2010 the Murray Unit began to host a faith-based dormitory rehabilitation program.^[2]

Patriot PAWS Program and Notable Inmates in the Program

In 2008, Patriot PAWS expanded its service dog training program to include a partnership with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ^[3]. Two TDCJ facilities are participating in the program and include the Lane Murray Unit and the Crain Women’s Correctional Unit located in Gatesville, Texas. The partnership is intended to provide help not only for disabled veterans, but opportunities for inmates to have a job while serving their sentence, learning a career trade and giving back to the community. The goal of the program is to train prison inmates to train service dogs for disabled veterans. It takes 1½-2 years to train one service dog at a cost of about $27,000 per dog. The program’s development has exceeded all expectations, all of the organization’s goals are being met and the partnership with TDCJ is excellent. Patriot PAWS Prison Program

The Patriot PAWS training program for inmates is ongoing. Our certified service dog trainers work with the inmates and their dogs at the correctional institutions on a weekly basis. In addition, the Executive Director, Lori Stevens, and her trainer assistants hold training classes for the inmates at the correctional facilities once a week. The women live with their dogs in dormitory-like space in each unit, which includes outdoor areas for the dogs. There is also a shared training facility onsite. The inmates learn how to teach all of the required basic service dog behaviors. Inmates are tested quarterly using an evaluation form to determine their capability to train the dogs in the 55 behaviors required for certification. Inmates that are more advanced in their training become mentors for new inmates entering the program. Prison-trainers

The benefits for the inmates and society are extensive. In this program, inmates are taught a skill set (training service dogs) that can be used immediately upon their release back into the community/society as a means for employment. This will have a direct impact on reducing the Texas recidivism (re-offender) rate. Another accomplishment that exemplifies the Patriot PAWS program’s importance and worth is helping inmates re-enter society and become productive individuals. Patriot PAWS has hired two recently released inmate trainers to train service dogs at the Rockwall Training Center. It is important to point out that since the start of the program in 2008, the recidivism rate is less than 3%. This program has provided Patriot PAWS the ability to not only assist disabled American veterans but also to benefit inmates in overcoming challenges associated with life in prison while building a team focused on the mission to give back to the community. This is a “win-win” for everyone.

Notable Inmates in the Patriot Paws Program Include the following: