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Genesee County worries over flooding county jail if Flint city lockup reopens
Published: Sunday, February 20, 2011, 12:00 PM Updated: Monday, February 21, 2011, 10:24 AM
By Ron Fonger | Flint Journal
GENESEE COUNTY -- The last time the city of Flint reopened its police lockup, it funneled so many fresh suspects into an already packed county jail that it created an overcrowding emergency and forced the early release other inmates.
Four years later -- with city voters considering a new 2-mill property tax to pay for reopening and operating the lockup again -- county officials are worried that history may be about to repeat itself.
"There's nothing that's been worked out on this thing," county Sheriff Robert Pickell said. "I talked to the mayor very briefly and said, I'm concerned about the jail (and) overcrowding. He said, We'll work something out.
"I've got to have something worked out," the sheriff said.
The Flint Journal could not reach Flint Mayor Dayne Walling for comment this week and county Board Chairman Jamie Cutis expressed frustration about how difficult it's been to reach key officials in city hall because of Flint's financial crisis.
"We need to get together and work it out ... What they need to do is put a task force together with the mayor, city council, the judges and sheriff and really critique (the plan or) you are going to cause one in, one out," Curtis said.
Pickell has bad memories about former mayor Don Williamson's decision to reopen the city lockup in 2007 after a weekend in which four people were killed.
Prior to 2007, the lockup had been closed since 1981 except having been opened briefly under former mayor Woodrow Stanley.
After the lockup opened, the county started getting as many as 20 new suspects at a time from the city -- a recipe for disaster because the county jail was already over capacity on most days.
If the county jail population exceeds 580 inmates for more than a week, the sheriff is required to release inmates until that number is reduced.
The city lockup has a capacity of 120, but police can only hold prisoners there up to 72 hours. By holding suspects overnight, however, police have time to get them to a district court and a judge can order them to the county jail.
Pickell already has a jail admission policy designed to avoid overcrowding. The policy automatically accepts those arrested for various felony crimes, including drug distribution, fresh assaultive spouse abuse and stalking-type crimes, and residential and commercial breaking and entering.
Creating more long-term jail space led Pickell to suggest housing some inmates at the Midland County Jail, but neither the city nor the county appear ready to foot the bill.
Curtis said the county also believes Midland County jail officials would be very selective on the type of inmates they would be willing to accept.
He said he’s not urging city residents how to vote on the city jail millage but said residents should know “there are consequences to opening the jail, just like there’s consequences” to it remaining closed.
cindyvicious February 20, 2011 at 12:11PM
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Prisoners aside, this reads like a form of evolution that went horrifically awry.
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poker4funn February 20, 2011 at 12:36PM
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Its long past due that the Sheriff's department addresses the issue of its inability to house the necessary amount of criminals in the county. Midland offers to house criminals at a rate less than Genesee County and yet they don't want to take advantage of this money saving offer.
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ic23b February 20, 2011 at 1:10PM
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100% in agreement. There is a no fear of lock-up from criminals in Genesee County.
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pavjo February 20, 2011 at 1:29PM
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Poor Jamie: Now he wants to pay Midland to house our criminals. He jsut doesn't get it. THE COUNTY IS BROKE!!!!!! Wake up Jamie. You do not have the money!!!!
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spaul1960 February 20, 2011 at 2:04PM
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Perhaps the time has come to have a discussion about the kind of things that are illegal, and whether or not they should be. How many people are arrested for doing things that while stupid or not socially approved of don't hurt other people? Should we bother trying to lock them up, or should we stick with locking up people who hurt others?
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younglawyer February 20, 2011 at 2:08PM
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The main problem here is not that the County is out of money (although that is clearly A problem). The main problem is that we have hopeless, uneducated, primarily minority people committing senseless crimes because they cannot think of another way to handle their problems. Flint is rampant with crime, and mostly from black people. Although this may sound racist, it is not. The facts show that flint is primarily black in demographics, and the white people who live there are primarily poor. http://www.idcide.com/citydata/mi/flint.htm. However, there are more black-on-black crimes in Flint. If you would like to see for yourself, please stop by the Flint district courts or Genesee County court sometime, and you can count for yourself the number of each race being charged on any given day. Thus, there is, and has always been, a correlation between race, poverty, education, and crime. If the minority black people, those who are uneducated, would simply stop having babies who end up growing up in bad homes and never get an education themselves, then Flint would be MUCH better off. Pick up and read the book "Freakonomics" by Stephen Dubner and Steven Levitt. I guarantee you that if you read the book, you will think entirely differently about crime/race correlations than you do now.
And by all means, do not misinterpret me. I am NOT blaming race as the factor, it is just an incidental variable that is associated with the uneducated and poor. Who I am blaming is the uneducated people who cannot understand that the days of “freebies” are over in this economy and society, and that they cannot rob a liquor store and think their problems are solved. Moreover, the government is corrupt in Flint, and we all know it.
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Imjustsayin February 20, 2011 at 3:22PM
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And if you did the same research in El Paso, Texas, or Laredo, Texas, you would find that as a majority hispanic town, the crime rate of hispanic on hispanic is much higher than any other race demographic of those 2 towns. Where is your argument about the educated, Wall Street CEO's who rip off americans everyday and are a major part of our economic demise? A predominantly white male system, where millions and billions are stolen each year, destroying our financial structure and you fail to educate us as eloquently as you did about the blacks in Flint? I don't need to read any books to know about cultures in fighting or specific crimes that have a propensity to be committed by a certain demographic.
I too want to know, how can you represent anyone that you have such contempt for? If you are truly a lawyer, you must practice under an imaginary white sheet, where your minority clients actually trust you to defend them ,and you with such contempt walk into court and defend them, unbeknownst to them that hey put there defense in the hand of a bigot.
Years ago, a black friend told me to stop telling him I wasn't racist prior to making a comment about a black person. He said, if what you are saying is what you beleive, there is no need to announce you are not being racist if you aren't. Feel free to remember that in the future.
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intheknow767 February 20, 2011 at 6:30PM
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You completely misinterpreted younglawyer...
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Imjustsayin February 20, 2011 at 9:43PM
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What? And you're not going to at least tell me what I misinterpreted? Well, the nerve of it all! Since you are in the know, I am shocked..shocked I tell you that you didn't make me understand what the contemptuous young lawyer meant. Not too worry, I stand by my comments because like you and so many others, I have an opinion. I think I understood him/her quite well. Now don't get yourself uptight worrying about it. I'mjustsayin
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9ball9 February 20, 2011 at 11:29PM
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No young lawyer, you are wrong. Maybe you are too young to know. The problem here is a long term downward spiral in the county’s approach to law enforcement. It has nothing to do with race. For three or four decades, the courts have targeted the wrong people for diversion (probation) programs and jail space is the significant factor. Police agencies cannot lodge for crimes, judges cannot sentence appropriately and violent offenders are regularly released for lack of space. This county has a huge disproportionate number of warrants for not appearing and its commonplace for police officers to stop people with a dozen warrants… and then release them. The criminal justice system in Genesee County is targeting multiple repeat violent offenders for probation. First time offenders get nothing. Eight time offenders are put on probation. Ten time offenders are your killers, robbers, gangsters, hard core drug dealers, etc. The killers did not get to the point of killing, overnight. They had lots of practice at crime with much help from a very forgiving liberal Genesee County Justice system. If the sheriff and the county commissioners really want to reduce crime, they need to pull the entire sheriff’s police activities funding and realign spending to the jail. The senior millage should be reduced and the elder abuse portions returned back to the taxpayers, and then, ask the voters to exchange the paramedic levy for a debt levy to construct a 2,000 or more bed jail facility. From here, overhaul the entire county criminal justice system and start jailing the offenders early on, before they cost lives and untold grief later on. In five years you would see a remarkable difference in crime. Add some consolidation of police services for the icing and Flint - Genesee County may have hope of heading back towards a place with a decent quality of life. For now, it’s in ruins and people like the sheriff and county commissioners, are significantly to blame
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younglawyer February 21, 2011 at 8:07AM
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Well, I have to respectfully disagree with everyone. While we are all entitled to our views, the sad fact is that the law enforcement agency is not entirely to blame, nor is it the most to blame. It is PEOPLE who raise children in a horrible environment with no means of having them obtain a better life for themself. Thus, the cycle perpetuates itself.
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Barking Bear February 21, 2011 at 1:03PM
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And we pay them to do just that! The system is broken and throwing more money at it won't help. We need some very creative thinking and change in the way things are done.
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numero407 February 20, 2011 at 2:58PM
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How can you represent people in court that you have contempt for?
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younglawyer February 21, 2011 at 8:09AM
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One, you assume I am a criminal lawyer. Two, you assume I am defense lawyer. Three, your comment shows what I am talking about: uneducated people who jump the gun on things.
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numero407 February 21, 2011 at 1:41PM
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If you are not a Defense or Criminal Attorney. Then that means your Racist comments are from sheer ignorance. Continue to stereotype a race of people at your own peril. ( You Educated Fool.)
February 20, 2011 at 3:03PM
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Here we go again, the city doing what they must do to combat crime and the sheriff complaining about it, because he doesn't have enough jail space. Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't Pickell's main responsibility to run the jail? If so, end his political and halfazz law enforcement programs and concentrate on what this county needs most, "JAIL SPACE". There needs to be a serious restructuring of the sheriff department.
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1954usa February 20, 2011 at 3:58PM
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With the high number of police laid off, the County Jail continues to be full. Who is arresting these people? Maybe the City of Flint should look at renting spots in the City Jail for income like Midland? Notice if the Genesee County Jail gets full, the finger always gets pointed in the opposite direction!
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numero407 February 20, 2011 at 4:07PM
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The Sheriff looks tired, perhaps he should retire.
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90220 February 20, 2011 at 6:02PM
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He isn't the only one that needs to retire.
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numero407 February 21, 2011 at 1:45PM
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You must be laid off. I'll retire when I'm ready. Ask me face to face.
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numero407 February 21, 2011 at 1:53PM
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90220 I'll make you a deal, I'll retire when a certain female relative of yours stops selling herself on Dort Highway.
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offdahook February 20, 2011 at 5:23PM
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Numero407, he'll turn into a fossil before he eve retires!
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untanglingwebs February 20, 2011 at 9:59PM
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Lack of foresight is the problem. The county jail was not built large enough and they thought they could add on to the top. Structural problems are prevnting that so over the years the county jail system tries to continually reinvent itself.
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theruins2 February 20, 2011 at 10:58PM
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After reading a world headline this evening, about the Pirates of Somalia, I see a few interesting similarities: Pirates are running things, the local Civil Government unable to stop criminals. Pirates use proceeds of crime to buy alcohol, drugs, prostitutes and guns. Plenty of these are available locally, again, authorities ineffective at stopping them. Pirates train children in their trade, making them a formidable armed force to help older Pirates kill and steal. Starting to sound familiar? The worst part is, the Pirates do incarcerate people...recent British couple held for over a YEAR! (388 days) Seems they do not have a "Prisoner Overpopulation" problem....now they hold over 660 hostages, and a pair of U.S. citizens just captured. How long before Flint criminals start holding hostages? What keeps you awake at night? Thankfully, the U.S. military sends ships to that area to try to rescue people attacked by these Somalian criminals, even using sharpshooters to kill some of them trying to take U.S. citizens hostage. Well, they do own yachts and ships, so they at least are worth rescuing, I guess. Hey, maybe if we kept yachts in our driveways, we would be worth more attention from authorities when we are victims of criminals? Just sayin...
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Bullseye February 21, 2011 at 7:12AM
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So what they are saying is even if we open the city jail they will just turn them lose from the county jail. I was not going to vote for any millage anyway until walling and all his appointees are gone.
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burtonguy February 21, 2011 at 7:54AM
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If we could have any size jail in Genesee County, how many prisoners should we hold 1000, 2000, 3000 more? Has there been a study for this?
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younglawyer February 21, 2011 at 8:05AM
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One, you assume I am a criminal lawyer. Two, you assume I am defense lawyer. Three, your comment shows what I am talking about: uneducated people who jump the gun on things.
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numero407 February 21, 2011 at 1:48PM
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You sir are an Educated Fool. They cannot teach you about life in college books.
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JohnofGB February 21, 2011 at 9:59AM
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Pickle's main job is that of a jailor. The Genesee County jail has had overcrowding problems for twenty years. I believe his tenure would have been better served if he, when he took office, would have made provisions for expanding the jail to alleviate this two decade old problem. But , our sheriff has spent more time getting in front of the cameras and in the other media rather than addressing the biggest problem facing his "job description". And , now, the that county is economically challenged, Pickle is whining. He has had plenty of time to fix this problem in better times. He blew it.
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doinit4me February 21, 2011 at 11:23AM
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You would think that since a large portion of the crime in the out-county areas starts, goes through or ends in Flint the Sheriff would be chomping at the bit to incarcerate Flint residents. It is amusing to say the least the the Sheriff is complaining about overcrowding instead of figuring out what he is going to do with the added prisoners if Flint opens it's jail (and by all means it should). We don't need studies or focus groups or seminar's in tropical locales for our commissioners to figure out what to do.
This issue is similar to the whole Police Officer issue in Flint. There is a job to do in Flint that requires more Police Officers. There is no way around that one. The Sheriff has a job to do and it requires more jail space. There is no way around that one either. Both issues are basic, essential functions of each unit of government and why they have been ignored for so long indicates that our local and county "leaders" have been everything but. |
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