Inmates, Lima region aided by trustee programs
— “Good days and double LIMA trays.” That’s why most inmates sign up for inmate worker programs, and these programs have come a long way from chain gangs.
Sgt. Todd W. Gresham, the assistant jail administrator at the Allen County Jail, said both the community and inmates have the opportunity to benefit from these programs. He considers the programs now a “more refined version of community service.”
Today’s programs in the area are all sanctioned by the Ohio Revised Code, save community dollars and can even lead to an early release in some locations.
About the programs
Allen, Auglaize, Mercer and Putnam counties all have some variety of an inmate work program, all of which are voluntary. Inmates, usually referred to as trustees, must meet a long list of conditions to apply for either indoor or outdoor work.
Those qualifications boil the list down to those who are nonviolent, are not deemed to be a threat to public safety and have not fled from a secure detention facility in the last 10 years.
“If you see a person out in the community or in any inmate program, they are a nonviolent offender,” Gresham explained. “(Those interested in the program) must submit an application and have to meet the criteria set by the Ohio Revised Code and the courts of Allen County.”
For working inside the jail grounds, the qualifications are slightly less strict. Those who have committed violent crimes can apply as long as they are not deemed a threat to public safety.
“A lot of us aren’t career criminals,” said Nick, an Allen County trustee. “Most of us have jobs on the outside; we were just denied work release. Nine times out of 10, it’s just people in here on child support (violations), drinking and driving or probation violations — small petty crimes.”
The Allen County Jail allowed The Lima News to interview trustees on the condition inmate’s last names weren’t used.
Those crews that do work out in the community are often supervised by the partner utilizing the inmates.
“Whoever takes them has to have training if they are around inmate workers,” Auglaize County Sheriff Allen Solomon said. “They have yearly trainings and refreshers to take out the inmates.”
Solomon said the Auglaize County program is used mostly with county maintenance, non-profit groups and the fairgrounds. Putnam County and many others also have contracts with the Ohio Department of Transportation and local townships to clean up roads.
Gresham said fall and spring are the busiest seasons with leaf collection and clearing garbage once the snow melts.
Gresham has worked with the inmate program for 13 years and has only had one inmate get loose. The jail program dates back to the late ’90s. He attributes that to the supervisor training and also the fact that he will not place any inmate in the program who he doesn’t know. Allen County also typically will start someone as an indoor worker before advancing them to outdoors.
“All the people are volunteers, and most of the time, they’ve been an inmate worker before,” he said. “We’ve taken an inmate who has proven himself before, and we like to hire them back.”
Nick has worked in the program before with Ohio SPCA and dog pound. He is currently working with the sanitary engineering department, doing mostly landscaping at different locations.
Benefits to community
In Allen and Auglaize counties, the programs partnered with local venues and organizations for community-related labor.
The Allen County Jail partners primarily with the engineer’s office, the Veterans Memorial Civic Center and the county fairgrounds for inmate assignments out in the community.
In 2018, inmates worked 27,840 hours outside in Allen County, saving an estimated $231,072 in labor through the program.
“The Allen County Fair and the Civic Center, they derive a great deal of benefit because if they had to pay employees, they’d have to pay each minimum wage, which last year was $8.30 per hour,” Gresham said. “We take it for granted - we just show up for the event, but they’re the manpower that sets up all of those tables and chairs. It frees the other Civic Center employees, for example, to do their duties.”
Allen County Fairgrounds General Manager Bob Fricke said they typically have two inmates on grounds regularly for day-to-day work, but that is bound to ramp up with the approach of the fair and Max’s Trader Days.
“With the number of events and 135 acres of property, we definitely know the program is very beneficial to us,” Fricke said. “The honest point to all of this is just the labor.”
Fairgrounds staff is responsible for transporting the workers and supervising them while on-site. This year, the workers had assignment details in grounds maintenance, painting and event preparation and tear down.
“Last year we had certain days (during the fair) where we worked with them to get the trustees out here getting set up, and then there are some days during the fair where we utilize them heavily behind the scenes,” Fricke explained. “We finish the fair on Saturday, clean up Sunday, and basically that very next week we have the Trader Days and Water Dog Races, so it’s a huge flip. We definitely value having the trustees out there assisting and getting that ready to go so we can move on to the next event.”
Scott and Cortez are the two Allen County trustees on site regularly at the fairgrounds.
“What people don’t realize is the fair is a nonprofit organization, so without us, the fairgrounds probably wouldn’t be able to operate,” Scott said. “It would take the little bit of money that they do have to pay someone. I took four years of industrial maintenance and helped fix their lawnmowers when they break down and did wiring in the ticket booths. You’re talking $40 an hour for someone to come in and do that.”
In Putnam and Mercer counties, most inmates work in some capacity inside the jail, assisting in the kitchen, doing laundry or cleaning.
“The program saves us a lot of money and helps to keep the jail clean,” said Jodie Lange, chief corrections officer for Mercer County. “It gives inmates an incentive to be good. When they work in the kitchen, they get to eat extra food. It’s a benefit to them because it teaches them life skills.”
Benefits to inmates
The inmate worker programs not only provide structure to those who want it while in jail, but they also can teach new skills and even reduce sentence time.
“The inmate derives some bit of benefit from it,” Gresham explained. “It helps us to alleviate overcrowding, but it also helps the inmate get out of here early with good time.”
In Allen County, accumulated hours in the program can earn “good days,” which can be taken from their sentencing in some cases.
Good days are determined for each trustee based on the sentence. A formula is used for each trustee, but it boils down to about four good days earned per month for sentences longer than 90 days and five days per month for sentences more than six months.
Nick has earned 13 good days for 102 days worked with the sanitary engineer’s office. Scott has earned 20 and Cortez 16 good days for their work at the fairgrounds.
Anthony, the “pod father” of the group of 14 outdoor inmates, earned 26 good days on 158 days worked inside the sheriff ’s office. The assignments are usually determined by Gresham based on personnel, skill and capabilities.
“As soon as Gresham gives us our job, he tells us how many good days we get,” Anthony said. “When I talked to him, he told me what kind of job I had, and he gave me 26 good days.”
For those who have earned good days, that helps keep them focused, especially living in a space designed for 12 inmates stuffed with 24 at the moment, Scott said.
“We’ve got stuff to lose now,” he explained. “On a normal block, if someone says something, you can fight. On this block, I have 24 good days I could lose. You put a bunch of guys together, the testosterone is flowing, things are bound to happen. That’s the hardest part of the program.”
In other counties, such as Mercer County, corrections officers can write a letter of recommendation to reduce sentencing in the courts.
In addition, the inmates can see immediate benefits during their time in jail.
Mercer County carries a point system, where earned points can be traded for food or hygiene items and additional phone calls or visits.
“They (the public) just look at it as, if you break the law, you should go to jail and get bread and water. We can’t offer that, and the reason is because jail, unlike prison, these people are going to re-enter back into society,” Gresham said. “Their punishment is already being in jail.”
About 60% of the Allen County Jail is eligible for the inmate worker program, but only about 30% opt in. Most of those inmates choose to apply for the program to fight boredom or to make their sentencing move a little faster, Gresham said.
“(The program) gives them a sense of work ethic,” he said. “I’ve had guys that work for me in the kitchen, and they’ll come back and say it gave them confidence to go out and achieve employment. . They learn to work in a group, to follow directions. They learn to prioritize their time and tasks, everything you have to do in a work environment.”
For Nicholas, who works at the Civic Center about 6 to 7 hours a day, 7 days a week, it’s about doing the time and getting back to his world outside.
“A lot of us are productive members of society,” he said. “We just want to get home to our kids and start taking care of our family again.” Fellow trustee Nick agreed. “We all did our crime, and we realize we have to do our time, but it’s nice to be able to get out and about,” he said.