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| Ind. County Officials Given Six Weeks to Solve Jail Crowding |
| By Indianapolis Star |
| Published: 05/02/2003 |
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U.S. District Judge Sarah Evans Barker has given officials six weeks to find ways to stop chronic overcrowding at the Marion County Jail. In a private meeting held April 23, Barker also set a hearing for June 4 to determine whether Sheriff Frank Anderson can be held in contempt of a 1975 court order mandating safe and humane jail conditions. That order was the result of a 1972 inmate lawsuit. The three-hour meeting, in Barker's jury room at the Federal Courthouse, brought together for the first time the sheriff, prosecutor, public defender, representatives of the City-County Council and mayor's office, county judges, the Marion County Justice Agency and the Indiana Civil Liberties Union to discuss overcrowding. In the past, various stakeholders met independently of the judge. For many in the group, it was the first meeting with the judge. Rather than issuing orders, Barker focused discussion on finding solutions to the jail's overcrowding, said some officials who attended. 'Judge Barker's role is limited,' said Marion County Superior Court Judge William Young. 'She comes in (only) when the Constitution is violated, and right now, overcrowding conditions are in violation.' On April 13, the jail set a record, with 500 inmates above the 1,130 prisoners it was built to hold. Barker did not order the immediate release of inmates, as some feared, but for the first time she proposed setting a permanent population cap of 1,100 to 1,300 inmates. She did not say when that would begin. 'I commend Judge Barker for getting us all together,' said Anderson. 'I'm extremely adamant about getting this lawsuit terminated. There is no excuse for this going on for 30 years. We're all in support of resolving the problem now.' Resolution will have to come by June 4, ICLU legal director Ken Falk said. The ICLU and Legal Services Organization filed the original lawsuit. 'We (the group) have the potential for being very productive,' he said. 'At the same time, I'm happy we have a court date.' 'This time we realize it's a systemwide problem, not just the sheriff's,' said County Justice Agency Director Melinda Haag. 'We all need to work together to develop solutions ahead of the June 4 hearing, and we're (going to be) meeting weekly to do that.' |
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