Franklin County's new jail has former Sheriff 'Big Jim' Karnes as inspiration
Clarification: A previous version of this story was unclear as to how many beds are included in the $360 million total cost of the project. In addition to the current 864 beds, a second phase of the project will add another 426 beds next year.
"Honest, hardworking, hard-charging and not one to suffer fools easily.
"Tough, contentious, funny, loving, faithful, compassionate."
Those were the words Brooke Karnes Carnevale said have been used to describe her father, former Franklin County Sheriff Jim Karnes. At 6 feet, 4 inches, "Big Jim" led the office from 1992 until his death in June 2011 at the age of 71, making him the longest-serving sheriff in the county's history.
Carnevale represented one of three generations of the Karnes family and dozens of community members who attended the formal dedication Wednesday of Franklin County's new James A. Karnes Corrections Center, 2551 Fisher Road, on Columbus' West Side.
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The new $360 million facility is 430,000 square feet and has 864 beds, with a second phase of the project set to add another 426 beds next year, according to the county. It is scheduled to open in the fall and will replace the county's Downtown jail, which was built in the 1960s, around the time Karnes started as a deputy in the county's corrections division.
"We were honored to be given a tour of this facility prior to today's dedication, and as we received the tour, we were struck by how many aspects of this facility represented core values consistent with who Dad was as a person," Carnevale said.
Among the features of the new facility are its use of strategic inmate management and direct supervision, a system under which deputies supervise inmates within the pods where the inmates may freely move around and interact with each other.
"This facility is amazing, but its benefit to our community doesn't just come from the bricks and the mortar," Franklin County Board of Commissioners President Erica Crawley said. The benefit, she said, will come "from the programming, the services, the education and the crisis intervention and diversion that we're going to be able to provide here."
The county partnered with the National Institute of Corrections to develop a state-of-the-art facility that combines physical design elements with programs and systems that reduce tension, violence and vandalism and increase safety and job satisfaction for corrections officers, Crawley said.
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In addition to an addiction and mental health crisis intervention center, pods include spaces for recreation, medical services and video visits. A rapid resource center also will connect inmates and their families with transportation, job search and other services.
"It's a total change in the management style of this facility," Franklin County Sheriff Dallas Baldwin said in an interview with The Dispatch.
Having a new, large, clean facility alone will positively affect the experience of both the inmates and deputies, but the change in operations will allow deputies to keep a constant eye on what's happening throughout the facility, Baldwin said.
Whether an inmate starts a fight, experiences a medical problem or returns from a bad day in court, deputies will be able to immediately identify mental health and other issues that will lead to a safer environment for everyone, he said.
"This isn't just a jail; it's the beginning of changing lives," Baldwin said.
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Contact Nathaniel Shuda at (614) 245-0319 or nshuda@dispatch.com. Follow him on Twitter at @NathanielShuda or Facebook at facebook.com/NathanielShuda.
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Franklin County dedicates new jail in memory of ex-Sheriff Jim Karnes
