|
|
| Computer Problems Gum Up Works at Texas Jail |
| By Brownsville Herald |
| Published: 12/16/2002 |
|
Jail management systems at the maximum security detention facility in Olmito are up and running after a three-day crash caused a backlog in the jail's inmate booking and release processes and held up the flow of information in local courts, officials said. According to computer center director Rudy Juarez, the rapidly growing workload at the jail may have overloaded a program designed for smaller facilities. It is the second computer crash reported in the jail in a month. Each time, inmate records are temporarily inaccessible and dispatch capabilities are shut down. The county uses a program called the Golden Eagle database. Meanwhile the 169 jail employees have had to manually process each arrest, causing a backlog in the booking process as well as hampering quick access to inmate information to county and court employees. 'It is a mess over there, and someone needs to do something about it,' said a local bail bondsman who complained that when the system is not functioning, it can take up to eight hours for him to issue a bond, instead of the typical half-hour or less. 'We rely on information in the computer to determine whether or not we can issue a bond to the inmate,' the man said and asked that his name not be revealed to protect his business interest. 'Usually people can be bonded out in a half hour, but now it is taking anywhere from three to six hours to release them once the bond is paid.' Jail officials maintain that although work is only slightly slower, inmates continue to be processed through the jail effectively. 'It has never been down for long periods of time, so there haven't been many problems,' said Captain Robert Lopez, who noted that if the database crashes for extended periods of time, visitation hours and inmate commissary accounts would be affected. But for suspects in custody that wait hours before they are released on bond, the malfunctions are a big problem. Jail officials are say that new safeguards in the booking system will continue to protect inmate's funds even when the database is not running and their deposits can not be added to their ledger - an assurance that comes on the heels of an internal investigation about missing inmate money. |
advertise
|
privacy policy
|
add URL
|
about us
|
terms/disclaimer
|
contact us
|
join our team
|
help
Comments:
No comments have been posted for this article.
Login to let us know what you think