Monroe County jail committee struggles to make progress without quorum

A committee given the task of coordinating plans for a correctional facility to replace Monroe County's problem-plagued jail canceled meetings in June and July, further stalling progress toward resolving 20-year-old concerns.

A quorum of at least three must be present to hold a legal meeting, and there weren't enough for the 4:30 p.m. meeting June 22, and again on July 20.

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County council members Jennifer Crossley, Peter Iversen and Kate Wiltz, along with county commissioners Lee Jones and Julie Thomas, comprise the Criminal Justice Response Committee.

"With summer vacations and with COVID, it's been hard to get people together," said Margie Rice, a former county attorney hired to facilitate the meetings. "We know what the issues are and that we need to tackle them."

She said planning can't proceed without input from stakeholders in all aspects of the criminal justice system — from elected officials who approve funding to those working on the front lines inside the jail.

"We have to get the council and the commissioners and the judges and the prosecutor and the sheriff to all own the work that they need to do to make this happen," Rice said.

The committee's job is to review two reports, one from RJS Justice Services and another from Inclusivity Strategic Consulting, and recommend what should be done about the old jail.

One study outlines 53 problem areas inside the jail caused by physical defects, inadequate architectural design and deterioration. The reports say the county is "burdened with a correctional facility that should be considered high risk for liability due to the real and potential risk of harm to inmates, staff and the public."

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The response committee was created by ordinance after council members and commissioners convened a joint meeting on June 23, 2021, to hear results of studies. The reports were candid and critical in their assessment of current jail conditions, and called for a quick response.

The June 22 response committee meeting was canceled after two members, along with others attending in person and via Zoom, waited for other members to join. None did. The July 20 meeting was canceled that morning because Rice learned ahead of time there would be no quorum.

At a July 6 meeting, committee members briefly discussed whether to renovate the current jail for an estimated $56 million or build new, the cost of which is unknown.

A summary of the two reports submitted by county council member Geoff McKim included a recommendation to consider renovating the 36-year-old structure, even though a summary at the end of the 300-page RJS review said that option shouldn't be on the table.

“The jail facility is failing and cannot ensure consistent and sustainable provision of Constitutional rights of incarcerated persons," it states. "The jail must be replaced.”

During that July meeting, committee member and commissioners' president Thomas said there was no reason to consider fixing the jail. Rice agreed, and they moved on. "We already know remodeling's not feasible," Rice said.

The committee put forth a timeline: finding a site for a new jail this year, designing it and securing funding in 2023 and starting construction in 2024. The target completion date would be 2026.

"I'm confident there will be land purchased this year and that they are on that schedule," Rice said about the timeline.

The process will launch with a development plan to determine what a new jail complex should include and how much land is needed. "We need to clarify and re-envision the purpose of incarceration. Do we replace the jail with other options?" Rice asked during the July meeting.

There was talk during the meeting of hiring experts and jail consultants to guide the way, "to evaluate what we're doing," Iversen said.

But for now, she said, "we're stuck with the facility we have."

Thomas said hiring more experts is unnecessary, costly and would bring further delays. "Why do we need to re-create this?" she asked, referring to the criminal justice studies the committee are supposed to review and implement.

During that meeting, jail commander Sam Crowe suggested committee members tour the facility in order to make informed decisions. "People need to see what the jail is," he said.

Contact reporter Laura Lane at llane@heraldt.com or 812-318-5967.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Monroe County cancels 2 recent jail review meetings for lack of quorum