PARENT'S RIGHTS NOW!

GEORGIA SHERIFF INDICTED FOR INMATE--RENT SCHEME

The AP reported today that that a Southern Georgia Sheriff was indicted for an inmate-rent scheme. According to the article:

A southern Georgia sheriff faces federal charges accusing him of billing inmates for room and board and interfering with an FBI investigation of local judges.

An indictment unsealed Thursday in U.S. District Court accuses Clinch County Sheriff Winston Peterson of perjury, obstruction of justice, using forced labor and extorting former jail inmates.

Peterson, 62, pleaded not guilty to the charges Thursday and was released on $10,000 bond.

Investigators say the sheriff charged jail inmates $18 per day for room and board. County officials agreed in April 2006 to return $27,000 to hundreds of inmates who paid the fees between 2000 and 2004. Peterson also used an inmate to do work at a business run by his wife, investigators say (emphasis added).

Given that there has been no accounting of Dorchester County Sheriff Nash's use of unpaid inmate labor, we reiterate our recommendation that Dorchester County suspend this practice for the foreseeable future. Furthermore, if inmates are going to provide services on behalf of the County, either they, their families, or their victims--as the case may be--should receive some sort of compensation. Dorchester County officials should remember that many of these inmates are in jail, and remain in jail, because they failed to provide for their families. If the County is going to allow them to work, the County should pass along some of the fruits of their labor to the families who are owed support.