Issues-Overview of Jail Issues:

We must address our current Jail issues and work to resolve the issues of overcrowding and inadequate housing. Although the county commissioners are charged with providing adequate jail facilities, the Sheriff is the person who knows better than anyone the status of the facility and should be the leader in obtaining an adequate facility. Over the last few years, we have had a number of proposals to address our outdated and overcrowded jail.

I would like to involve the community and the experts in an effort to identify how best to proceed with a new jail. I believe we should also think outside the box on the issue and consider a number of possibilities to address this ever present problem which has lingered for way to long. We are going to have to identify funding sources for the construction of a facility using the most economical means which can only be accomplished by sincere corroboration with the community and our leaders.

Canadian County Jail Situation Overview

In regards to our current jail, there is no doubt a new one is necessary. The current Canadian County Jail was built in 1984 with a capacity of 72 beds (originally 38 cells and 76 beds) and is only the fourth county jail since the opening of Indian Territory prior to statehood.

On August 18^th, 1983, $889,600 was awarded for construction of the current facility. The El Reno Tribune reported the jail was funded by $600,000 from federal revenue sharing funds, $200,000 from a state DECA grant, and $89,600 from the county building fund. This was preceded by a vote on November 3^rd, 1982 which voters rejected a two million dollar bond issue to build the jail by approximately 5 ½ % of the vote. It appears there were three other votes for a new county jail which were defeated by voters in the early 1970’s, the late 1970’s, and the early 1980’s. At the time of construction, twenty-four cells were to hold medium-security inmates, seven maximum-security cells, three women’s cells and two cells each for juvenile male and females.

The first jail in Canadian County was inside the Canadian County Courthouse from 1890 to August 27^th, 1893 (in 1890 the county had a population of 7,158 people). A second jail was located on property now occupied by the Carnegie Library in El Reno which had four large metal cells.

The third jail, located south of our current facility was completed April 3^rd, 1907 at a cost of $18,000.00 (construction began in October of 1906) and was remodeled a number of times over the years. Near the time of the closure, one source cited it could hold forty-eight (48) men and three (3) women while another showed the capacity as 49 inmates. However, in November of 1982 the second floor of the jail was shut down by state officials after months of legal battles with some inmates moved to the El Reno Police Department for housing. The population of the county when the third jail was completed in 1907 was just over 20,000 people, in 1980 the census showed the county’s population to be 56,452.  In 1990 the census showed our population to be 74,409 people and in 2000 the population of the county was 87,697 people.   

The national average is 4 jail beds per 1,000 people, our 2010 census showed our population to be 115,541 and growing rapidly. Considering the national average, at the time of the census we should have 462 jail beds which is not even close to our current jail capacity of 72. If the reader looks at the Oklahoma Department of Corrections map (http://www.doc.state.ok.us/maps/CO_JAIL_CAPACITIES_REQ_COLORS.pdf) (as well as reviewing the top ten most populous Oklahoma counties data at the end of this article) showing statewide jail population capacities, compare similar counties and again we find that our jail is significantly smaller than most other counties. You may also consider from the 1980 census, prior to completion of our jail until our last census the county’s population has more than doubled. Finally, as the fifth most populous county in the State and the fastest growing, it is imperative we take action to address our problems today.

Sheriff Lewis Hawkins began talking about the need for a new jail in the Spring of 2008 (See blog post regarding various jail proposals that we have identified to date). Through strong controls he attempted to keep our jail capacity at the state mandated level. Although, we had to be very selective in our incarcerations, he was able to hold costs to a minimum, work within the system to keep the jail population manageable and not send inmates out of the county.

When Sheriff Randy Edwards came into office, he instituted a number of changes and began seeing the rising number of inmates. Edwards even had “experts” from the National Institute of Justice come in and study our jail situation and provide recommendations. In February of 2010 (one year into office), we began sending inmates to be housed in Dewey and Grant counties. In late April of 2011, we also began sending inmates to be housed in Pottawatomie County.

During this entire time, Edwards threw out a variety of proposals to address the jail ranging from dormitories, to a new jail, to alternatives to incarceration (see blog postings regarding positions on the dormitory/tent city issue as well as incarceration alternatives).  One estimate I have been provided is, approximately 80 (eighty) percent of the people in custody are pre-trial detainees. Therefore, releasing them could pose security and flight risks to the citizens of this county.

We now currently have seventy people housed in county jails outside of Canadian County at a cost of 1,400.00 a day or $511,000.00 a year. This cost does not include transportation (fuel and vehicles) to and from the jails (Dewey County is 178 miles round trip, Grant County is 191 miles, Pottawatomie County is 130 miles), medical and medication costs or the time of the personnel devoted to these movements. The money going to these counties does nothing to help our local economy in such minimal areas as direct employment, the purchasing of supplies and services, or fuel and other items purchased by visiting friends and family.

In addition, we must ensure the safety, dignity, and rights of the inmates that are being housed not only in our jail but the others. Prisoners have the right to attorney visits, access to the court and freedom from cruel and unusual punishment. If we do not ensure these rights, we can very well find ourselves in a civil lawsuit which could prove quite expensive. 

In addition to the $511,000 a year baseline, the El Reno Tribune reported on May 8^th, 2011 that we are allocating $200,000.00 to our current facility for maintenance. In addition to this spending, in early July 2011 Edwards spent approximately ninety thousand dollars ($90,000) for two buses to move these inmates housed out of county. As the numbers easily approach, a Million Dollars a year it is imperative that we begin immediately looking at our spending. As a County, we do not have unlimited funds and when considering the significant spending, what other services, programs or repairs can we make or save with this money which would benefit our citizens.   

Another item to consider regarding out of county housing is what happens when these facilities do not have the jail space for our county? We were able to house inmates in two of these facilities particularly due to budgetary problems with the Oklahoma Department of Corrections (DOC) and specifically the State of Oklahoma. As our economy gradually improves, DOC will eventually be in a position to return these inmates to the county jails that we are using. DOC does pay more than we are paying which is going to result in the inmates either being returned to our county or the cost of housing is going to significantly increase. This current arrangement is definitely a short term band-aid and should not be considered as a long term solution to our inadequate facility.

I am truly concerned and believe the Jail problem will continue to languish until I am successfully elected to take office. I am now preparing to consider a variety of plans and options and wish to reach out to people knowledgeable about the issue. I have been conducting my own research and will be coming to the table with one preconceived notion. The notion is that we must abandon the “band-aid” fixes and determine what will be adequate for our needs and how to best finance a new facility. This “band-aid” approach will do nothing but cost us additional money which is a limited commodity in today’s times. If not properly done, this “band-aid” approach could cost enough in a lawsuit that we could have effectively built a proper facility from the start.     

One idea that we have been exploring is a “pay as you go” facility. What is the possibility of acquiring land (much like the Juvenile Justice Center) and build as funding is available. The idea is to develop an initial facility to house inmates then slowly expand it. Once the facility becomes out dated or out of compliance (many years down the road), that portion can be demolished without affecting the entire facility. This seems to be a much more viable alternative than constructing a facility in a landlocked area that places us in the same situation we are in now, thirty to forty years down the road.   

Considering that from the 2000 census to the 2010 census, we experienced a 32% increase in population to be the fastest growing in the State. Also considering the continued significant growth we have seen since the last census, we must keep pace with our population with the supporting infrastructure with an adequate jail as one of the components which is unfortunate necessity. Having a facility that we can expand as our population grows seems to make good economic sense. 

Another idea that we have been presented and have considered is a regionalized jail facility.  What is the possibility of partnering with neighboring counties such as Blaine County and Kingfisher County to build a regional jail? The jail would be constructed in a centralized area and each county would utilize this facility. Depending on the location, we may have to maintain a small lock up facility but any long term incarceration would be handled by the regional jail.  There is not any such facility in Oklahoma although it has been discussed several times and could be a better economical plan. We would assume a Jail Trust would have to be formed for operations but again it is another viable alternative. 

What economic and financial incentives are available for the construction and operation of a jail?  What incentives are available to cities or land owners for the acquisition and development of a jail site such as tax credits, economic incentives, etc.? What portion of the construction could we handle through the County Government such as land leveling/development etc.? We know the need and have a number of wise people who can help us think outside the box in order to accomplish our task. As a county though, we must take that first step in order to address the problem.   

Much like a number of other ideas, we have had enough naysayers tell us why it should not be constructed and how it cannot be built for various reasons. The bottom line is the current jail is inadequate in size and an inadequate facility and needs immediate replacement. We must now become visionaries and know that the need is apparent and delay continues to inhibit our economic well being. Whether this well being is keeping our tax dollars in the county rather than spreading it throughout other counties for housing or to the safety of our citizens, we must develop partnerships and corroborate to make this need a reality. Both the direct and indirect spending on this project would also return money to the local economies, which would in turn assist us in our own economic well being. We should begin to determine our needs, develop a good logical plan, determine the funding, educate the voters, and have the voters provide their voice. We have had some great people involved in the planning so far but the buck must stop somewhere.

10 Largest Counties in Oklahoma, 2010
Rank| County | Population | % Change from 2000

1 Oklahoma County…………………………………………… 718,633 | 8.8
2 Tulsa County…………………………………………….. 603,403 | 7.1
3 Cleveland County…………………………………………… 255,755 | 22.9
4 Comanche County………………………………………….. 124,098 | 7.9
5 Canadian County…………………………………………….. 115,541 | 31.8
6 Rogers County……………………………………………… 86,905 | 23.0
7 Payne County………………………………………………….​. 77,350 | 13.4
8 Wagoner County……………………………………………… 73,085 | 27.1
9 Muskogee County………………………………………… 70,990 | 2.2
10 Creek County……………………………………………… 69,967 | 3.9

Other Jail Issues

Upon taking office, I am going to task my jail staff with the following:

1.      I will have them explore programs and ways to reduce the recidivism rates in our county jail, if we reduce the recidivism then fewer crimes are committed and more persons become productive citizens. Some of these programs may include:

A.    Improve employment opportunities through GED programs and GED self study programs.

B.     Substance Abuse cessation programs including self study programs and exploring other substance abuse counseling resources. Currently there is a limited program which I believe we could improve on.

C.     Providing books and other resources for self improvement and education (autobiographies of successful business and political persons). This may seem like an odd idea but the purpose is to encourage positive behavior and to instill motivation to change situations in life. If only one person takes this opportunity these books would more than pay for themselves in the form of continued incarceration, the victimization of other citizens, and ultimately stopping criminal activity.  

D.    Employment opportunities and training opportunities upon release from jail;

2.      Consider re-instituting the commissary program from within the Sheriff’s Office, why pay a private for profit vendor when we could do it ourselves and keep the income for purchases in the Jail;

3.      Investigate ways to reduce the inmate health care costs such as providing ability to local hospitals to place bids on the care provided.

4.      Find additional ways in which to increase the efficiency of the jail including staffing, housing, food and other expenses.

5.      Investigate ways to decrease the jail population in order to reduce expenditures for out of county inmate housing.

6.      Ensure proper reporting to the U.S. Social Security Administration as discussed in the Fiscal Responsibility section for proper compensation.

7.      Implement DNA sampling in order to comply with Oklahoma State Law and to potentially allow for additional income, as discussed in the Fiscal Responsibility section.

Questions, Comments, Suggestions

We would be glad to hear your feedback, thoughts, ideas, suggestions, and/or questions about these issues. Send us an e-mail (beaty4sheriff@gmail.com) and we will get back to you as soon as possible. 

Final Thoughts

It is not our intent to “air dirty laundry” or make disparaging remarks about the incumbent in the information provided in the issues section. I am attempting to educate the voters on the specific issues and explain how we plan to improve, correct, or cease the action in order to have a more effective, efficient and professional sheriff’s office that we should all expect. It is our sincere desire to have a professional respectful campaign discussing issues without personal attacks or unethical behavior. While we may disagree, I will strive to have humility, understanding, and respect for an opposing point of view. Thank you for your time and interest in being a better educated voter.