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CLOUDY Temp: 61 °F Wind: WNW at 5 mph Monday, September 29, 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 September 18, 2003 Although inmates in the Jackson County Jail are wedged in a little tighter since the building�s inmate population cap was raised, other problems are forcing jail officials to release as many or more prisoners each week to meet the higher cap. Mail Tribune / Roy Musitelli Wedged into jail Release numbers stay about 100 By SARAH LEMON Mail Tribune The Jackson County Jail is not releasing fewer inmates under a new court-ordered cap that allows more prisoners to remain in custody. The jail added 26 beds in late August after a federal judge abolished the old cap of 190 inmates. Yet the number of prisoners released from custody increased from about 100 during the four previous weeks to 122 last week. During the week of Aug. 30 to Sept. 6 — the first under the new cap — releases still hovered around the average number of approximately 100. "It’s like the ‘Field of Dreams:’ ‘Build it, and they will come,’ " said Sgt. Dan Penland of the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department. The jail now resembles a revolving door as inmates are released around the clock according to the number of beds available, Penland said. Before the cap was increased, corrections deputies only released inmates in one group daily, with a Monday morning flood of freed prisoners, many of whom had slept on the floor over the weekend. Advertisement U.S. Magistrate James Redden established the new cap last month as part of a settlement between the county and the American Civil Liberties Union, which agreed to a higher inmate population if none had beds on the ground. Jail officials unknowingly had been violating federal law by forcing prisoners to sleep on the floor, said assistant county counsel Doug McGeary. All inmates now have beds raised off the floor, said Sheriff Mike Winters. However, the county still struggles with the absence of 85 jail beds lost when its correctional facility near Talent closed earlier this year, said officials with Jackson County Community Justice. Faced with the loss of state funds, the county no longer could afford to operate that jail, which cost about $400,000 yearly and housed 45 percent of the county’s prisoners, officials said. "We have 180,000 people in this county, and we have room for 200 people to go to jail," said Elaine Larson, adult program manager for Community Justice. "It just does not compute. There are a lot of people out there who should be in jail." Community Justice officials said they were not aware of any widely held standard on the ideal number of jail beds based on a community’s population. The circumstances vary widely among Oregon counties, they said. The jail will add 60 more beds next month, increasing the building’s capacity to 274 inmates. However, corrections deputies likely will supervise only 230 on a regular basis in the interest of officer safety, Winters said. While the added beds haven’t cut down on releases, they do give officers more discretion to examine release criteria other than the seriousness of an inmate’s crime, Winters said. The gradual release process also gives deputies more time to consider the prisoner’s likelihood to re-offend and overall risk to the community, he added. "I think we use jail a lot for people who won’t be responsible," said Bob Grindstaff, director of Community Justice. "They won’t show up for court, they won’t show up to see their probation officer." More inmates have stayed in jail long enough over the past month to face their charges before a judge. The number of prisoners released before appearing in court has decreased steadily from 54 during the week of Aug. 2 through Aug. 8 to 32 last week. It’s not uncommon for probation violators to serve just fractions of their jail sanctions, said Community Justice officials. But no prisoners have been granted early release from a court- ordered sentence, according to jail records. 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