Editorial overstates crisis involving changes at jail

In response to your editorial Saturday, Oct. 19, and an earlier article: You talk about the sheriff turning people away like it’s a permanent refusal and that is not exactly the situation. The sheriff is not turning people away forever. He is limiting the number of people in the booking area at one time, mainly for safety reasons, and very understandable. The people will still be booked, they’ll just be waiting elsewhere, which will be a huge burden on the various law enforcement agencies during the times when this occurs, which according to the article in the paper earlier this week, and the sheriff, doesn’t happen that often.

I think to be fair you should also point out that there are five booking stations in the jail, but currently only three are manned. Staff the two additional booking stations and that would cut down on the booking backups and help with congestion in that area.

You mention that the jail holds inmates from the county but also those brought by smaller cities and Fayetteville and Springdale. Again, to be fair, you should also mention that the jail houses around 70 or more federal prisoners at any time and 20 or 25 Madison County prisoners. Those inmates are not our responsibility and we should take care of Washington County first. The federal government has much more money than we do here in Washington County.

In an article earlier this week it was stated that the closing of the Springdale jail would bring about some 7,500 additional people to the jail. That is not what has been stated in public by Springdale officials. The mayor and police department anticipate an extra 1,500 people will be booked in the county jail after their jail closes.

Additionally the State Crime Lab in Lowell only opened on Oct. 1. Let’s give that time to get going. Faster turnarounds at the lab will result in cases moving through the criminal justice system at an increased rate, thus freeing jail space.

You state that the alternatives being implemented to relieve the overcrowding show little evidence of success with the overcrowding. Again, I think you should also mention that the ombudsman and The Bail Project in particular have only been in existence for just over two months. They have in fact contributed to a decrease in the jail population. The Bail Project has bonded out over 50 people. That does make a difference. Let’s give them a chance to succeed. The problems at the jail didn’t occur overnight and they cannot be fixed overnight.

When you write editorials like Saturday’s and take only one side, and when you state the Quorum Court and county judge have decided the jail overcrowding is acceptable, which they certainly have not, you not only influence your readers who are not all that informed about the jail, you also are openly bullying the Quorum Court members by applying misguided public pressure.

BETH COGER Fayetteville