Jail proves to be in poor shape

The results of a Jail and Justice System Assessment of the Southeast Kansas Regional Correctional Center, conducted by Jim Rowenhorst of the National Institute of Corrections, confirmed what some people in Bourbon County have been saying for quite some time.

The purpose of the assessment, Rowenhorst said, is to assist counties in addressing jail issues and provide an assessment of the jail facility and operations. In addition, it assesses the criminal justice system analyzing glitches that slow the process of criminal cases.

To sum up the condition of the SEKRCC facility, Rowenhorst said, "It's in tough, tough, tough shape. I was shocked to see what I saw in terms of condition."

In two separate meetings, Rowenhorst explained to those assembled that more than 30 years ago when the Bourbon County Facility was first constructed, it was a state of the art facility. However, since the facility's creation in 1977, many advancements in the construction of jails and the supervision of inmates have caused the local correctional center to become outdated. In addition, the condition of the building needs a lot of attention.

"The jail is in tough shape and the design is out dated, making it ineffective to operate," Rowenhorst said. "The jail is in incredibly poor repair. Jails are used 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and they are used hard.

Although Rowenhorst said the county would likely need to begin planning for a new facility, some repairs will need to be made to the existing building as well.

"Even if you choose to replace this jail, which will take at least three to five years to do, there's a number of maintenance projects that needs to be done," Rowenhorst said. "Because of the size and outdated design, I don't see the existing jail being a long-term solution for Bourbon County."

In addition to the maintenance issues with the building, the correctional center is struggling with a constant over population, according to Rowenhorst. Originally the building was constructed to accommodate 25 inmates. Now it is typical to have at least 50 inmates crammed into tight spaces, and another 25 inmates housed in another county's facility.

The judicial process is one of the reasons the jail is constantly beyond capacity, according to Rowenhorst.

Agreeing with Rowenhorst's finding about the judicial system, Bourbon County Commissioner Bill Brittain said, "We are aware that we have some glitches in the judicial system that clog the jail. We need a plan of attack."

There are many steps the judicial system can take to help with the over-crowding, Rowenhorst said.

Several approaches that might help bring the jail population down include the use of electronic monitoring systems, the use of citations in lieu of arrests when possible, and supervised pre-trial release. There are several programs the county could choose to implement which may help keep offenders out of the jail such as drug court, mental health court, day reporting, expedited jail case processing, and court delay reduction.

Rownehorst recommended the county create a committee that will work together and continue to explore opportunities for the jail situation. The five main phases the committee will need to work through include pre-architectural, site selection and planning, architectural design, construction, and occupancy.

"I have found people ( in Bourbon County) who are willing to sit down and work on this ... They need to decide what is acceptable to Bourbon County," Rowenhorst said.