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SUNNY Temp: 88 °F Wind: CLM at 0 mph Saturday, September 27, 2003 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine Joy Magazine Tempo A & E RogueValleyAutoFinder RogueValleyHomeFinder Real Estate Showcase Wellness Connection Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Employment Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend April 27, 2003 Talent jail closure to increase crowding If the jail cap is eliminated, more prisoners could stay in Medford after Talent’s correctional facility is shut down By SARAH LEMON Mail Tribune The expected July closure of Jackson County’s Talent jail has prompted officials to come up with new ways to house prisoners. Statewide budget cuts are forcing the county to shut down its correctional facility in Talent, which historically has lodged about 45 percent of the county’s prisoners. The operating budget for the 85-bed jail is approximately $400,000, said sheriff’s Lt. Shirley Tolbert. The county’s budget for corrections has lost about a third of its state funding, she said. "There aren’t 85 beds in the system, so we’re going to have to do a lot of little things" to compensate for that loss of space, said Bob Grindstaff, director of Jackson County Community Justice. Putting more prisoners in the county’s main jail in Medford is one solution. If the county’s court-imposed jail cap was eliminated, 30 beds would be added to the main jail, meaning double bunks in some cells, Tolbert said. With commissioners’ approval, county attorneys are drafting a motion to overturn the cap, which was imposed through a federal court order in 1987. Advertisement "It’s up to the court," said Mike Jewett, county counsel. "We’re just trying to reopen the issue." The cap came as part of a settlement with two inmates who sued the county on allegations that the jail was crowded. But federal legislation passed in 1998 limited conditions under which inmates could sue their jailers, opening the door to strike down previous court decrees. The cap requires the jail to release extra inmates by noon every weekday to reach a population of 190 — the number of beds available. The jail released 94 prisoners on Monday this week to meet the cap, Tolbert said. That’s about four times the number of inmates routinely released when the cap was first imposed, she said. "Anytime the population grows, so does the criminal population grow," she said. If the federal cap is overturned, jail staff most likely will set their own cap of approximately 250 inmates, Tolbert said. However, some inmates will sleep on mats on the floor, she said. The jail now puts inmates on the floor throughout the weekend when staff are not coordinating releases, she said. More inmates also are staying at the Community Justice work center in Talent, separate from the Talent jail facility. A new forest maintenance project in Ruch, funded with a $400,000 federal grant, will add 20 beds to the system, Grindstaff said. Instead of jailing probation violators, Community Justice is ordering them to perform community service, Grindstaff said. The number of offenders on home detention also has grown from about 15 to 30 within the past month, he added. Community Justice officers are starting to look at alternatives to jail on a case-by-case basis, Grindstaff said. Although the Talent correctional facility will no longer function as a jail, officials said they hope to use it as a treatment center for sex offenders and others who will be taken there for a 12-hour period and then returned to the main jail. Reach reporter Sarah Lemon at 776-4487, or e-mail [email protected] . Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2003 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Rogue Valley Auto Finder Rogue Valley Job Finder --> Rogue Valley Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Real Estate Showcase Food for Thought Hike of the Week Wellness Connection Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Openings Prime Times