Delbert Longley (left) talking with Greene Co Supervisors
The Greene County Supervisors recently held a discussion of the annual jail inspection report.
Iowa Department of Corrections Chief Jail Inspector Delbert Longley reviewed his report and brought up a few concerns. He said inmates currently go through unsecure areas of the jail to get to the visitation rooms in the lobby and the exercise room in the basement. He pointed out that both situations raise public safety and having access to confidential material concerns.
Delbert suggested having a video visitation, where a television would be in the lobby area and another would be in each pod of the jail. He said that is what today’s standards are for visitation purposes. As for the exercise issue, Delbert recommended having a fenced-in outside area at the law enforcement center as another inexpensive solution. He mentioned if any part of the current facility was to be modified or changed, the entire facility would have to be brought up to current state code, which could be over $1 million-worth of improvements.
Supervisor Chair John Muir thought the discussion was good, though he said it comes down to money and public safety.
“Public safety should always outweigh the money issue. But we also have to figure out how to pay for things. If money wasn’t an issue, the money would all be spent in an up-to-date, modern facility. We all have those decisions on, do you do that or do you pour money into a maybe obsolete facility. And we aren’t to that point yet of an obsolete facility. So we’re getting nearer, and nearer the time we have to start asking the public’s opinion and looking at what we can do.”
Delbert said if the County wanted to someday build a new facility, it would be a five year process to complete it. He added that the way the current facility operates, it wouldn’t be hard for an inmate to escape. Muir said there is no plan currently to build a new facility, but the Board is weighing their options of what to do.