|
|
| Complaint rate disproportionately higher at some county jails |
| By tulsaworld.com - JARREL WADE |
| Published: 11/07/2011 |
|
Tulsa OK -- During a recent tour of the Tulsa Jail, Sheriff's Sgt. Bob Darby was approached three times by inmates with complaints. One couldn't get the phone to work properly, another wanted help with his transfer and another had a private issue. As he took notes on a worn pad in his shirt pocket, Darby said he'd get back in touch with them about fixing their problems after the tour. While hearing such complaints from inmates comes with the job for Darby and other officials who work in jails across the state, some rise to a far more serious level. The Tulsa World reviewed two years of county inmate complaint records filed with the state Health Department's jail inspection division. The World's analysis found jails with high complaint rates and examined problems that inmates may have with making their complaints heard by authorities. The Tulsa World review of complaints show a disproportionate number of inmates filing complaints at several county jails, including the Bryan County Jail, which had 47 complaints investigated in the two years included in the review. Of those complaints, 29 were substantiated. The Bryan County Jail, near the Texas border in southern Oklahoma, has a maximum population of 120 inmates, making its complaints per inmate high among county jails, according to the World's analysis. John W. Judge, director of the Health Department's jail inspection division, said the complaints at the Bryan County Jail are mainly due to problems at the aging facility which has sewage backup issues. "They do have quite a number of complaints in Bryan County," Judge said. "It's an older structure." Other larger county jails with a high number of inmate complaints compared to their maximum population include Marshall, Caddo, Canadian, Delaware, Washington, Okmulgee and Seminole counties. Making the complaint For Darby at the Tulsa Jail, if inmates are orderly, they are allowed to roam as they please during the day within their division's common area to watch TV, talk on the phone and go into the recreation yard for some sunlight, he said. If they are unruly, they begin to lose privileges. "The unwritten rule here is that we get along so we don't lose what we have," he said. Inmates at county and city jails, whether they are in for a few hours for minor infractions or months for major criminal charges, have a short list of people to which they can report problems. Read More. |
MARKETPLACE search vendors | advanced search
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
|
Comments:
No comments have been posted for this article.
Login to let us know what you think