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Tulsa Jail: Detention officer numbers rise, inmate count at lowest in years

Turnover rates are down, staffing levels are up and the inmate population is at its lowest total “in years”

By Dylan Goforth
Tulsa World

TULSA, Okla. — As Detention Officer Melissa James walks through a restrictive housing unit where some of the most violent offenders in the Tulsa Jail are housed, she makes sure each inmate there is accounted for.

While she makes the rounds, many of the inmates, who get out of their cells for only 30 minutes each day, respond to her presence with a simple, “Hello, Miss James.”

When James started working at the jail about 18 months ago, that type of interaction was rare, she said. There were upwards of 1,900 inmates, compared to a total of 250 to 280 jailers.

Full story: Tulsa Jail: Detention officer numbers rise, inmate count at lowest in years