Costs rise for off-site housing of prisoners
By SARA SEMELKA
Columbia Daily Tribune
COLUMBIA, Mo. — After a wave of violent crime hit Columbia at theof last year, law enforcement officials are dealing with a corresponding spike in the county’s jail population.
“People have been brought into custody, and because of the high bond amounts, they are remaining in custody,” Jail Administrator Warren Brewer said. “That’s partially it.”
The increased number of inmates is boosting the number of individuals housed outside the jail, and law enforcement task force members at a monthly meeting this week pondered whether the phenomenon is a spike in response to recent violent crime arrests, a peak or the signal of new trend.
“As far as the magic answer, it’s difficult to say,” Brewer said yesterday.
Since the creation of alternative sentencing programs aimed at reducing the jail population, out-of-facility housing costs for the county have greatly decreased in the past 10 years. County Auditor June Pitchford said in 2007, the county paid about $15,300 to house inmates outside the jail. In 1998, for example, the county paid more than $650,000 for out-of-facility housing, according to previous Tribune reports.
Last year was an anomaly, Brewer said, with uncharacteristically low numbers of what officials call “out-of-county housing” for prisoners, although often these individuals are housed in Boone County at Reality House alternative sentencing facility.
In 2007, Brewer said, few prisoners were housed in other jails, “except for minor peaks.”
“Pretty much, that was an anomaly,” he said. “It was a combination of several factors. There was not a lot of serious crime in the first half of 2007. The courts have well-established home detention. We enjoyed somewhat of a respite and cost savings.”
Brewer said out-of-facility housing records are recorded as the average daily total of inmates housed outside the jail. In September the county housed an average of six individuals outside the jail each day, three in October, and none in November and December.
Last month, Brewer said, an average of 22 people were housed outside the jail. Although the average for February has not been compiled, it’s been hovering around 21 and 23 this week, reaching into the upper 30s at times, Brewer said. “It’s higher than it was one year ago, but ... it’s too soon to be able to tell if this peak is something we need to track,” Brewer said. “We’ll need to look at individual charges as to why they’re here.”
Circuit Judge Gene Hamilton said he is not too concerned about the jump in out-of-facility housing, saying it might be just a passing situation. “We had a rash of crime, and just a bunch of people need to be in jail,” he said.
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