Dutchess County (NY) Executive Marc Molinaro recently appointed me to be vice chair of an advisory committee to review plans for the development of the new
Dutchess County Justice Transition Center in Poughkeepsie. The chair is former
State Senator Steve Saland.
The DCJTC consists of the County
Jail and other facilities and programs that provide alternatives to incarceration
and help with the transition back into the community.
Our
group met on the evening of August 12 to get to know one another and learn what
is expected of us. We were also presented with information about our role. We
were unanimous about having our monthly meetings in the evening and open to the
public. They will be held in the County Legislature Chambers on the sixth floor
of the County Office Building at 22 Market Street, across from the Bardavon. A
meeting schedule is being developed and will be publicized. The County will
develop a Web site to keep the public informed and I will post information on
this blog. All of us seek feedback from residents of Dutchess County,
particularly the City of Poughkeepsie. Feel free to post a note here or at the
end of other DCJTC blog posts.
There
are several issues that need to be addressed. With an inmate population of 292,
the current County Jail is full. The County spends more than $8 million a year
to house additional inmates in other counties’ jails. Pods capable of housing an additional 200 inmates will soon be installed at the jail complex in the
City of Poughkeepsie. Yet, that is still not enough to meet the need for the
number of people currently incarcerated for anywhere from a few days up to just
under a year.
This
out-of-county housing of inmates, as much as four hours away, has additional
costs, including transportation, staffing, scheduling issues with the courts
and attempts at rehabilitation, and difficulties for family visits.
The
current configuration of the County Jail is severely inefficient, cobbling
together several buildings, including one with a zigzag design that caused the
County to hire an inordinate number of corrections officers (COs). In Dutchess
County, $27.5 million of the $40 million jail budget is spent on personnel.
There are 223 COs, which equates to a ratio of 1.2 inmates for each CO. Warren
County in Upstate New York, has a ratio of 3.4 to 1. At a typical cost of
$110,000 per CO for salary and benefits, those expenses add up quickly and are
borne by County taxpayers.
Our
committee will review siting and design to provide adequate inmate capacity and
address special populations, balancing the needs for incarceration and rehabilitation.
This must be accomplished while ensuring public safety and enhancing the surrounding
neighborhood. That last point is of particular interest to me, because I grew
up and lived around the corner from the jail. The property under consideration
includes the original site on North Hamilton Street and additional land along
Parker Avenue near the Walkway Over The Hudson. This property is important to
the city and we should think outside the box to incorporate open space and
retail along the streets that serve as the gateway to the Walkway, which annually
attracts 750,000 people from all over the world.
Another
advisory group is looking at “special populations” housed at the current jail
and how both physical space and programs, particularly alternatives to
incarceration, can address them. A third committee was appointed by the County
Legislature and will serve in an advisory role to them. This is why the new
facility will be called the Dutchess County Justice Transition Center, because
it will be more than a traditional “jail” in both construction and program.
I
appreciate Marc's confidence in our panel and his desire to
have wide-ranging input on such an important issue. We have a lot of work ahead
of us over the next several months. Together, we can and will change the
criminal justice system in Dutchess County and make it a model for New York and
the nation.
