Cells have been placed at the new Carroll County Jail site. The cells were built and shipped from Atlanta, Georgia. Construction crews continue to work and say the project should be completed by September or October of this year, according to Carroll County Sheriff Tony Liggett. Photo provided/CCSO
The Carroll County Jail is plagued with needed repairs, overcrowding, and staffing issues, according to Sheriff Tony Liggett’s annual report. Statistics from 2023 only emphasize the need for the new jail, which is set to be completed by October of this year.
The building, which has been housing inmates for 41 years, has a total bed space of 34 in eight separate cell blocks. Liggett says all of the cells are double bunked.
In 2023, the CCSO booked 637 offenders into the jail. Of those bookings, 366 were felony charges, 483 were misdemeanors, and three were civil cause and court appearances.
“The average daily population was 37,” Liggett wrote in his report. “The average female population was 12. The combined male/female average daily population was 49.”
In addition, 10 juvenile males and two juvenile females were processed in and out of the jail in 2023.
With only 34 beds and the current jail population at 57 in-house and 18 inmates housed in facilities in Warren and Cass Counties, the question is where are the inmates sleeping?
“There are multiple people in cells and those people who don’t have an actual bunk are on the floor on mats or in a boat, or portable bed, with a mat to keep them off the floor,” Liggett said. “We did have plans to take more of our inmates out (of the county to be housed) and then two jailers quit at the same time. We lost transport officers, and deputies are pulling double duty.
“We can’t continue this way.”
Liggett’s budget for out-of-county inmate housing is $100,000 a year.
“That is not gonna cut it with the number of out-of-county inmates we have right now,” Liggett said.
The cost to house an inmate in a jail in another county is roughly $37.50 per day, Liggett said. Cass County charges the county more than that per day.
“That is $21,000 a month,” Liggett added.
At the current rate, Carroll County could pay more than $246,000 in 2024 for the 18 inmates that are currently housed in outof county jails.
The new jail will house 104 inmates. The Indiana Department of Correction considers a jail full when it reaches 80% capacity, according to Liggett. For the new jail, that would be 83 inmates. The current total jail population, considering in-county and out-ofcounty, is 75.
“It is a state-wide issue,” Liggett said. “Jails everywhere are full and short-staffed.”
Arrests
Liggett says the top arresting charge for the year was Operating while intoxicated (233). Rounding out the list of top 10 charges in the county are Possession of Marijuana (91), Possession of Paraphernalia (85), Possession of Methamphetamine (76), Domestic Battery (70), Resisting Law Enforcement (66), Battery (35), Strangulation (18), Disorderly conduct (9), and Driving While Suspended-Prior (14).
The jail reported no jail or in-custody suicides or deaths in 2023.
“There were 30 inmate reports, or “disciplinary write-ups,” according to Liggett. Of those, 13 were inmate fights, six were from inmates destroying jail property including the padded cell, and food trays, nine were for inmates disobeying orders, and two others involved minor jail violations.
Programs and Services
In 2023, Liggett restarted religious services in the jail. The services had previously been suspended due to COVID.
In addition, in 2023 a Moral Reconation Therapy (MRT) program was started in conjunction with Carroll County Community Corrections. Six inmates completed the class in 2023, getting a certificate of completion, according to the Sheriff’s annual report.
“Due to overcrowding and lack of space for the program, it has been hit or miss when the classes were able to occur,” Liggett said in his report.
Another program suspended due to lack of space at the jail is a work-study program that was added in 2016.
“Once a month a class is given on how to look for work,” Liggett said. “Inmates are shown how to build a resume or fill out an application for employment.”
Due to overcrowding, and an inmate with medical issues, the class space used for the work-study program has been occupied, according to Liggett.
“This caused all programs and services to be suspended indefinitely again,” he said.
Jail Staffing
The jail currently has five full-time jail officer positions and one parttime jail officer.
“There are supposed to be seven full-time jailers,” Liggett said. “Due to staffing issues, we have been unable to keep all the full-time shifts staffed. There are two eight-hour shift jail officers and five 12-hour jail officers. The Jail Commander and transport officer are included in the seven full-time jailers that were approved for, and work Monday through Friday for transports, inmate work programs, court details, and supervision.
“The transport officer has been pulled back to the jail shift rotation to fill shifts. The Jail Commander and deputies are now providing transportation to and from other facilities as well as any court details the inmates have. The Jail Commander and the Sheriff have also filled shifts so that we do not have to pull deputies off the road to cover the jail.”
The jail was recently approved for five more jail officers to start immediately to get ready for the opening of the new jail later this year.
Maintenance/Unfunded Projects
The jail still has many plumbing issues, according to Liggett.
“Several times a week there are back-ups due to items inmates have tried to flush,” he said. “There were hooks added in 2013 to help stop blockages. The plumbing had to be replaced in the padded cell due to corrosion. In March of 2021, a new liner was inserted into the main sewer line to prevent leakage.”
Yearly maintenance is also needed on the control panels that operate the cell doors.
“One control panel controls the doors to two cells at the current jail,” Liggett said. “These control panels are original to when the jail was built. They need to be maintained yearly. Some are showing signs of malfunction, and others just yearly wear and tear. Preventative maintenance of all security doors should be completed yearly. It has not been done since 2010. There are a few jail doors that are becoming difficult to work. Parts for these doors are pretty much nonexistent.”
Liggett said with the growing inmate population, in addition to inmates being housed in other counties, having room to store inmates’ property is growing more difficult.
“The jail is in great need of more storage capability,” Liggett said in his report. “There is very little storage for operational materials, much less inmate property. Due to the increasing number of inmates, it is becoming increasingly difficult to store all items that inmates bring to the jail with them. Property of inmates being housed in other counties due to overcrowding is also being stored at our jail, which has made it even more difficult to store inmate property.”
Maintenance is also needed on the inside surface of the outside inmate recreational area, several masonry blocks are cracked, according to Liggett.
“These blocks need to be replaced and then painted to match the building,” he said. “Most places in the jail need painted due to age, exposure, and inmate wear.”
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