The Wabash County Jail was rated overcapacity for the entirety of 2017, with inmates continuing to be transferred to jails in Miami, Elkhart, Blackford and Wells counties because of limited space.
That’s the primary finding in the Sheriff’s annual jail report released on Monday.
While the jail has enough portable beds to house up to 105 inmates at a time, Sheriff Bob Land says the safety of jail officers is a concern when the population surpasses 80. The reason? Land says he does not have enough jail officers to supervise more than 80 to 85 inmates at a time.
The jail’s official holding capacity is 72.
“Most of the jails (in Indiana) are overcapacity,” Land explained. He says sheriffs from all around the state are looking for ways to comply with the Indiana Department of Correction’s jail standards, which determine how many inmates should be housed in a given facility.
“We would need another facility to house all of our inmates,” he continued. “My only options right now are to find other facilities in other counties to house those inmates.”
The report estimates the Wabash County Jail’s average daily population (ADP) as 84.41 in 2017. But the combined ADP last year was much higher at 148.68, which includes inmates held at facilities outside the county.
Total admissions were down slightly, with 1,242 admissions in 2017 compared to 1,247 in 2016.
Drug-related charges were the most common offense cited in the report. Other top offenses last year include operating while intoxicated, theft, probation violations, domestic battery, disorderly conduct, public intoxication, battery, resisting law enforcement and operating while never licensed.
The number of female inmates arrested here continues to rise. The report found that there were 370 females booked in 2017 compared to 346 in 2016. By contrast, male bookings were down to 872 from 901 in 2016. Land says he does not know why this is occurring, but the trend is not limited to Wabash County.
Future maintenance concerns mentioned in the report include the jail’s security doors, air conditioning units, lighting systems and ventilation fans. It also states that plumbing and roof leaks continue to be a problem.