Work release no longer an option in Franklin County jail

Defendants facing time in the Franklin County jail no longer have work release as a sentencing option.

Sheriff Jim Raymond sent a memo to county and court officials saying he has ended the program to free up space.

The county is trying to comply with the settlement agreement of a class-action lawsuit by inmates that alleged federal rights violations, and that involves making changes in the jail. In particular, more space was needed for the growing number of women inmates.

This also is being done in an effort to meet jail accreditation standards as set by the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs, said Raymond.

The work release program closed Monday.

Under the program, inmates were allowed to check out of the jail for their regular job, then returned when their shifts were done. The work release area was separated from the regular cells.

Of the four inmates still in the work release center, three will finish out their court-ordered terms by Oct. 31, according to Raymond. The sheriff’s office is trying to make arrangements for the fourth person whose sentence goes beyond that date.

“Ultimately someone had to be the bad guy with it, and I’m the one that made that decision with what I think is in the best interest of the taxpayers, the people who have to foot the bill,” Raymond told the Herald. “It doesn’t mean we can’t go back to doing it and it doesn’t mean we can’t find an alternative to doing it. It just means, for now, we’re not going to be in the work release business.”

The sheriff added that while inmate paids $10 a day to cover their room and board, it cost the county about $60 a day to house each person in the special area.

On top of that, a full-time corrections officer at a cost of $75,000 a year is needed around-the-clock in the program area to monitor men and women on work release, let them out for their job and check them back in, he said.

“That’s a lot of expense for a small number of people to occupy valuable real estate that we need to come into compliance,” Raymond said.

The decision caught some in the judicial system by surprise.

Larry Zeigler, Franklin County’s public defense manager, said no one seemed to know in advance about the shutdown and they don’t understand the basis for it.

Prosecutor Shawn Sant recognized that Raymond is tasked with the difficult challenge of managing a jail with limited resources.

“If a program is not being utilized and it incurs an undue expense upon the taxpayers due to lack of participation in a voluntary and optional program such as work release, it would appear the sheriff is being a good steward of the taxpayer’s money,” Sant said in an email to the Herald.

“Nothing prevents defendants from serving time in an approved work release program at another facility,” he added. “As with all optional programs, defendants will have to meet certain qualifications and conditions to be accepted into such a program.”

Work release has been one of the options available to prosecutors and defense attorneys during plea negotiations in criminal cases. A sentencing judge had to agree to the sentencing alternative. It encouraged defendants who already had a job to continue earning money to pay victims or court fees, while being locked up as punishment during their free time.

The program required pre-screening for eligibility and did not accept people convicted of certain violent crimes, like sex offenses.

The sheriff’s office does not have a work crew, which involves a corrections officer taking a group of inmates outside for a few hours each day to perform community service work, such as cleaning up graffiti.

Defendants who want that option in Franklin County must connect with a state Department of Corrections work crew.

The Benton County jail currently offers both options for defendants.

“No one is against the whole work release program,” Raymond said. “We are working at coming into compliance with the federal court order that we’re under, and we’re trying to run things more efficiently ... as we can.”

Though the jail was expanded and underwent major renovations as part of a $20 million project that wrapped up in fall 2014, those plans were underway more than two years before a federal judge approved the settlement.

The inmates, who were represented by Columbia Legal Services, said in the lawsuit they were routinely subjected to inhumane and barbaric practices at the jail, including being chained to a fence for days, forced into isolation and left in restraint chairs.

The mistreatment was alleged under Raymond’s predecessor, Richard Lathim.

Raymond became sheriff in 2015, and hired a new jail commander.

As part of the agreement, the sheriff’s office was not required to admit liability or that the allegations in the lawsuit were true. Instead, the county agreed to add new mental health services, make additional renovations inside the jail and revise outdated policies and procedures.

In efforts to update the jail, Raymond said they have implemented new policies and practices, realigned management, added manpower and trained every employee.

“We’re well on our way to meeting the settlement agreement, and now the next piece is the actual facility,” said Raymond. The deadline is the end of 2018.

On average, the Franklin County jail has 200 inmates, with 40 corrections officers, two lieutenants and a commander, in addition to four clerks.

The former work release space will be used to expand the female holding facilities in the intake area.

Currently, only two women can be housed in booking, where they may be held for a few days while being processed and awaiting charges. The expansion would make room for 12 women and give them access to the exercise yard and phones, while keeping them protected and out of view of male inmates.

Medical and mental health officials would also move closer to booking so they’re available to evaluate people as they come into the jail.

Raymond said they have plans to convert a current storeroom in the middle of the intake area into more space for holding men during the booking process.

Ideally, the work release program would be operated off-site, instead of within the hub of the jail, he said. However, creating a standalone facility would cost $1.1 million at a minimum before adding in staffing and other needs.

This story was originally published September 26, 2017 at 7:32 PM with the headline "Work release no longer an option in Franklin County jail."