Oklahoma County Jail Trust says yes to idea of new jail, citizens less sure

Recommendations to pursue building a new jail were unanimously approved by the seven members of the Oklahoma County Jail Trust present at Monday's special meeting.

The board voted to advance the recommendations and they will now head to the Oklahoma County Commissioners. Absent from the meeting were trustees Sue Ann Arnall and Joe Allbaugh.

The five recommendations came from the Oklahoma County Criminal Justice Advisory Council, a group established by the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber to address criminal justice reform.

The council recommended: a new, better facility that meets American Corrections Associations standards, no more than 950 housing units or 1,800 people, renewing expiring bonds to maintain current taxes for partial funding, continued reform work to maintain 15% vacancy, and oversight committees for site selection and construction.

"There is no way that this current jail can meet the constitutional requirements for individuals living there, even with supposed upgrades," said Joy Turner, director of investigation and monitoring for the Oklahoma Disability Law Center, which assisted the council in preparing the recommendations.

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

Grand jury: Grand jury seated to investigate jail, Pardon and Parole Board

The recommendation seeks to build the facility on a different site within 10 minutes of downtown Oklahoma City. According to John Semtner, principal architect for FSB, that would allow the jail to be built in a one- or two-floor model, an option not possible on the current site.

Several members of the public questioned the need for a new facility, instead advocating for investment in mental health and substance use treatment facilities. Some also opposed the proposal's use of American Rescue Plan Act funding to help build the jail.

Cherisee Baker said coronavirus relief funding should go back into communities to build them up after the pandemic. She said she believes the funds are meant to help those that have been disproportionately impacted, including minority communities, and using it to build a jail would do the opposite.

"It was administration that tore the jail down, not us," she said. "Why is it that we're supposed to give $155 million to build a county jail that continually terrorizes us?"

Semtner said the group's approach is to build a better detention center designed to focus on diversion at intake and space for education, programming and recreation, providing a correction to a problem noted in reports by multiple independent consultants. The version of the facility proposed by the council and architects also recommends clearly designed minimum, medium and maximum security areas, which found approval among some trustees.

"Besides those in DOC, they do have the presumption of innocence. I don't believe we need a maximum security facility for everybody there," said trustee Chad Alexander.

The current jail has been plagued with problems since its construction. The trust has made attempts at some repairs, including extensive work to plumbing and water systems over the past year. However, it continues to face intense scrutiny due to inmate deaths, overpopulation, escapes, staffing and policy concerns, and bad living conditions.

Some in the public, like community activist Jess Eddy, say a new jail is a necessary step to help solve some of these problems.

"We cannot hold the people in there hostage and the people who will be in there hostage for the ideology of not constructing new carceral facilities," Eddy said.

'Enough is enough': Activists seek grand jury investigation of DA David Prater

He also noted that many of the criticisms the trust faces are caused by other elected officials, pointing to the role of the district attorney's office and county judges in overpopulation and unreasonable bail.

"The success of the new jail is really dependent on sources that this board has no control over, " said trustee Loretta Radford. "But you as citizens, you have a responsibility to put pressure on other sources that are feeding the jails."

Eddy said the jail trust needs to focus on effecting "cultural change" in the staff and people who work at the jail. Jail administrator Greg Williams said he is doing that and working to continue making improvements.

“While we support the recommendation to push for a new facility, we are committed to finding solutions to make the current jail safer and more secure,” he said.

The recommendations will go before the county commissioners for them to determine next steps, which could include any conversations on using coronavirus relief funding or proposing bond elections.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: County Jail Trust unanimously approves new jail recommendation