Oklahoma county commissioners approve measures for current, future jail improvements

Oklahoma County Commissioners on Tuesday approved requests for state funding for a proposed new jail and adopted a new system for some jail processing.

Two similar items, seeking to request American Rescue Plan Act funding from the state, were proposed by Commissioners Brian Maughan and Kevin Calvey. Maughan's request sought $110 million, while Calvey's asked for $175 million. Maughan said the county is working to create a "coalition of fundraising partners" that will include coronavirus relief funds from both the state and county.

"If we can take and combine those, I'm hoping that we holistically can maybe take care of this problem for once and for all," he said.

Current state statute allows state prisons to delay transfer of inmates from the county jail if it is under the state Health Department capacity of 2,890. With the jail population averaging between 1,600 and 1,800 inmates, there is no requirement for the transfer of those inmates sentenced to time in state correctional facilities.

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Maughan said the inmates waiting for transfer to state prisons affect the population of the county jail, a concern raised by the U.S. Justice Department since it began oversight of the facility more than a decade ago. Maughan said he did not have any concerns that asking for state funds to help with a jail would give the state further incentive to delay inmate transfers, but that it would be addressed in conversations.

"I'm in hopes that what will happen is the opposite, that we'll expedite," he said.

Calvey moved to strike his item seeking more money and pursue the $110 million in line with Maughan's request. Calvey said he thinks the proposal has a good shot at getting state approval. Many other proposals from other entities are asking the state to "provide many multiples of the amount" the entity will put forward, he said.

"We're not asking for that. We're asking for more of a kind of a 50/50 thing," he said. "So we hope that will be good for both the state and the county, certainly for the taxpayers generally."

More: A new Oklahoma County jail has been proposed, but how will the county pay for it?

Maughan said the move to send the request to the state was an attempt to start a conversation in line with the Legislature's impending deadlines.

"This may not be the final rendition, this may not be the final plan," he said. "Just because we ask, they don't necessarily have to reward us the full amount that we requested."

Additional funding for the jail could come from a bond issue if approved by voters. Commissioners will look to discuss putting that measure on the ballot in coming weeks, Maughan said.

Sheriff Tommie Johnson III requested use of a room in the county courthouse to begin doing some processing outside of the jail. The current system used by the court and jail requires all individuals to go to the jail, even if they are set to be released on bail immediately. Johnson said that contributes to some of the jail's issues with flow in its booking and reception areas.

"I think we all understand that people spend a lot of time when they just go to do a walk-through at the jail," he said. "I think this helps the overall process out to keep from introducing people to the jail."

More: Reports detail ongoing health and safety issues at Oklahoma County Jail

While citizens praised Johnson for his work to decrease traffic through the jail, they continued to call on the county commissioners to do more work toward improving access to mental health and substance abuse resources instead of building those aspects into a jail facility.

"Traumatizing mental health people by criminalizing their very real issues is not just immoral and unjust, but it is not right, it does not work and you know that," said Mark Faulk.

The jail has faced ongoing criticism due to concerns about overpopulation, living conditions and deaths at the facility. Two detainees, Austin Bishop and Winfred Lowe, have died in the facility this year after more than a dozen died there in 2021.

More: Oklahoma County detention officer fired after jail suicide

Additionally, three failed inspections by the Oklahoma State Department of Health led to a news release from jail administrators Friday that included a "corrective action plan."

That plan blamed flaws in recordkeeping due in part to ongoing staffing issues for the majority of the issues cited by the state and listed improvements and corrections already made by the jail. Corrective actions focused largely on discipline of staff for failure to follow procedures.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OK County Commissioners request state funds for new jail