Published: June 23, 2009 11:39 pm      

An unwelcome record at Howard County jail

The number of inmates at the jail tops 370

It is a record that Howard County Sheriff Marty Talbert didn’t want to break – the number of inmates at the jail hit a new all-time high over the weekend.

Talbert said the number of inmates reached 379 over the weekend and was at 371 on Monday, including 63 women. That number matches the old record in a jail built in 1993 to house 324 inmates.

Last month Harold Vincent, commander of the Howard County jail, said the Sheriff Department was considering housing inmates in other counties to reduce the population.

“We’re not housing inmates in other counties,” Talbert said Tuesday. “My biggest concern is the cost.

“If I don’t have to do it, I don’t want to,” he said of moving inmates to other counties.

It would cost Howard County $35 per day for each inmate housed in another county, which doesn’t include the transportation costs.

Talbert said if just 10 inmates were housed in another county, the cost would be $350 per day and $10,500 per month. He said the yearly cost would be $126,000.

When U.S. Marshals were in Kokomo in May to serve warrants, Talbert said the department did some pre-planning to ease the overcrowding at the jail.

“We will soon be at that point, where we have to house inmates in another county,” he said. “With the hot summer months, the number of inmates will peak out. The problem will not go away.”

Talbert said a new 225-bed jail is scheduled to open in Miami County in November, and it’s possible some of the women prisoners could be transferred to that facility.

“That is a whole new operation for them,” Talbert said of the new Miami County facility. “It will be the first time for them that the jail is located outside of the downtown area. I’m sure they will want some time to get the operation running smoothly.”

Talbert said some Howard County officials believe the new Miami County facility will be a source of relief for the overcrowding problem, but he is not sure that will be the case.

Talbert said he has recommended building a circular pod with a capacity to house between 200 and 250 inmates. He said the pod would be built in two sections and one could remain closed until needed.

He would like the design to be similar to the one used in Miami County, where the pods could be separated into individual units for between 10 and 20 inmates, and correctional officers would be able to observe both sections from a raised central observation point.

“I’m sure it would cost several million dollars,” Talbert said. “We would have to see if the kitchen and laundry facilities needed to be expanded.”

Talbert said a work release center would not resolve the overcrowding problem. He said, as of Monday, there were 35 inmates serving Howard County sentences and perhaps 18 had a job.

“They would only be out of the jail during the day,” he said.

The Howard County Criminal Justice Coordinating Committee (HCCJCC) two years ago received a presentation from American Structurepoint that called for the expansion of the existing Howard County jail to 620 or 820 beds at a cost ranging from $13.4 to $35.5 million.

The HCCJCC met earlier this month to renew discussions concerning the jail overcrowding problem. It has not met since prior to the May 2008 primary election.

“We are going to continue to struggle with our numbers, partially due to the economy, along with the typical increase in jail population we experience during the hot summer months,” Talbert said

• Ken de la Bastide is the Kokomo Tribune enterprise editor. He can be reached at (765) 454-8580 or via e-mail at ken.delabastide@kokomotribune.com.