Pretrial services plan date mulled

Washington County looks to reduce crowding in jail

FAYETTEVILLE — Washington County officials are eyeing late August to have a proposal for pretrial services they hope will reduce crowding at the jail and increase the efficiency of the courts.

Prosecuting Attorney Matt Durrett said Thursday the county Criminal Justice Coordinating Committee’s subcommittee on pretrial services should have a recommendation for the entire panel in August. The full committee meets Aug. 24.

Durrett said he wanted to have recommendations for staffing, the types of services to be provided, a list of community partners to work with and some funding parameters, including grant money that could cut the cost to the county.

“We really need to start moving on this,” he said. “We’ve been talking about this for a couple of years. It’s an important issue that’s kind of been hanging around. I’d like to get that kick-started.”

The committee was formed to examine ways to reduce overcrowding at the jail. The jail has a design capacity of just over 700 beds. The population has exceeded 800 several times, with detainees sleeping on mats on the floor. Sheriff Jay Cantrell said at Thursday’s meeting the jail population that morning was 780.

Washington County’s justices of the peace have approved spending $19.8 million for a covid-related expansion of the jail. That project is still in the design stage after early bids exceeded the estimated cost. Voters in November rejected a much larger expansion.

The group has been considering programs such as a mental health court, modeled after the state’s drug court program, and expanded pretrial services meant to keep people out of jail while awaiting trial.

Durrett asked Cantrell to provide the group with estimates of the savings that might be realized if the jail population can be reduced below capacity by 100 or 200 detainees and maintained there. Cantrell said the average cost to house a detainee is about $80 per day, but much of that cost is in staffing and operating costs such as heating and cooling that won’t necessarily be reduced by lowering the jail population.

The panel also agreed to study the increased use of ankle monitors as one way of reducing the number of pretrial detainees in the jail. Cantrell said the sheriff’s office has 40 of the monitors and could expand the program. He said the county’s circuit judges and Durrett have to approve the use of ankle monitors for any detainees facing felony charges.

Durrett also told the group Drew Smith, who had been the committee’s “director” to provide staff support and do research, was no longer employed by the county.

County Judge Patrick Deakins said after the meeting Smith was fired. He said he has no plans to hire someone else to fill the position.