Saturday, November 10, 2007
The article, which can be accessed by clicking here raises the following questions:All of them were jailed for falling behind in their child-support payments, said Chief Deputy John "Barney" Barnes, the jail administrator. None of them was a violent offender or a flight risk, he said.
So they were working for the county for free. These inmates could save the new school thousands of dollars in labor costs.
On any given day, about 35 inmates from the Dorchester County jail are doing free work for the county, Barnes said.
He estimates inmates provided 75,000 hours of labor last year to public works projects around Dorchester County.
Another worker was less upbeat. He was angry that he was sentenced to a year in jail for owing $1,300 in child support and he's not able to make any money to pay it off. But he said working is better than sitting in jail because the time seems to pass quicker.
Counties around the country are relying on inmate skills to bolster shrinking budgets, said Capt. Cliff McElvogue, superintendent at the Hill-Finklea Detention Center in Berkeley County.
"Some of these counties will tell you they could not make it without inmate workers," he said. "There's no doubt about it. The economy is tight.
To me, this is the best detail the jail gives," Tony Washington, who is serving a year for not paying child support, said as he sorted cardboard boxes at the recycling center. "You're not out mowing lawns in the sun, and I get to deal with people." But he wishes he could be making some money.
"I've got seven kids," Washington said. "I'm in here for not paying for one of them, and now I can't take care of any of them."
- Who and which entities are benefiting from this free labor?
- How could Dorchester County survive without benefit of this free labor (75,000 hours per year)?
- Is the practice legal?
- What safeguards have been instituted to insure that the labor is truly voluntary?
- Why did County Counsel allow this questionable practice to continue unabated for so long?
This article raises further concerns about the use of the jail slush fund. As written in the Post and Courier:
Nash said no taxpayer money is going into the [Romanian] chiefs' visit, but the jail fund picked up the tab for some of their meals and snacks. The jail fund comes from inmates and includes money from haircuts, medical exams, collect phone calls and a $15 processing fee for arrested suspects that Nash put on hold after County Council questioned whether it was legal (emphasis added).
Just a few years ago Sheriff Nash promised to create an independent board to oversee the "Prisoner Recreation Fund." At that time he indicated that he paid the jail chaplains from the Prisoner Recreation Fund, which comes from a commission paid by the company that provides telephone service for the prisoners. However, there is no indication that the independent board either exists or was ever created. Moreover, there is no indication that there is any independent oversight over how Sheriff Nash assigns the "voluntary inmate labor."
We think that it is safe to say that Sheriff Nash has no idea either where Dorchester County inmates are being assigned or how monies from the Prisoner Recreation Fund are being spent. Certainly, it is inappropriate to use prisoner work assignments as a way of currying political favor. And the "Prisoner Recreation Fund" should not be used to pay for anything that does not directly benefit the prisoners. More important, given that the County may have to repay hundreds of thousands of dollars to people who were deprived of their property without Due Process of Law, Sheriff Nash should cease distributing these funds at least until a determination is made of how much has been embezzled and whether it has to be repaid. Additionally, he should immediately create that independent board to oversee any future dispersal of funds.
Labels: Inmate Labor
