Sussex County extends contract with Morris County to house inmates

Sussex County signed a new contract with Morris County to house its county jail inmates.

The new contract, signed by the County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday, reduces the minimum number of inmates to be housed from the original two-year contract signed two years ago and expired last month.

The initial contract included a clause to extend it through October 2023 with an opportunity to renegotiate rates.

The extension now calls for a minimum number of 45 beds, for both men and women, to be paid by Sussex County, however the rate per bed will increase to $109.24 per inmate.

The guaranteed minimum will be just under $1.75 million per year under the new contract.

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The Morris County facility on John Street in Morristown, also houses inmates from Warren County. The Morris County facility has been in operation since 1994 and can house up to 528 inmates.

The agreement allowed the Sussex facility to be closed to all but "overnight" prisoners. Those are people who have been arrested by local or state police in Sussex County and need to be held in a secure facility overnight for an initial court appearance.

The Sussex jail, located on High Street in Newton, is also used to house prisoners and defendants who are brought from Morris County to make an appearance in Superior Court.

As a result, the jail now only uses the lower floor of the five-story building and with a much-reduced staff.

This article originally appeared on New Jersey Herald: Sussex County NJ extends contract with Morris County to house inmates