At last night’s Monroe County Council meeting, a new coalition of twelve local organizations called upon the council to invest in expanding housing, mental health care, food security, and substance use treatment in the community instead of funding a $230+ million new jail. This coalition includes Care Not Cages; Care, Not Cuffs, Hoosier Action Chapter; Courage to Change Sober Living, Inc.; Democratic Socialists of America, Bloomington Chapter; Exodus Refugee Immigration, Inc.; Indiana Recovery Alliance; Dr. Jeremy Voyles, Ph.D.; Monroe County NOW; Mother Hubbard’s Cupboard; New Leaf, New Life; Opportunity House, and Pantry 279.
In April of this year, New Leaf, New Life published a position statement urging county leaders “to prioritize repairing the existing jail to meet constitutional standards, while committing remaining resources to evidence-based alternatives to incarceration.” This position statement has now been endorsed by the eleven other organizations within the new coalition. New Leaf, New Life Executive Director Stacy Flynn read the position statement aloud at last night’s County Council meeting.
New Leaf, New Life, which runs a reentry mentorship program as one of its services has helped thousands of individuals secure clothing, hygiene products, bus tickets, and obtain personal documentation. New Leaf, New Life points out in the statement that “Monroe County’s own data shows most people in the jail are held pre-trial, often for low-level offenses or simply because they cannot afford bail. Expanding the jail will not reduce recidivism or improve community safety — but investing in services like ours does.”
New Leaf, New Life’s reentry mentorship program demonstrates a recidivism rate of 14.8%, nearly half the Indiana Department of Corrections Monroe County rate of 29.2%.
Centering the voices of people with lived experience with incarceration is one core component of the new coalition’s mandate to the county. “It’s critical to have people who have been formerly incarcerated at the center of this conversation. Their voices need to be heard, and they need to lead the way” said Nicholas Voyles, Executive Director of Indiana Recovery Alliance, one of the organizations endorsing the position statement and joining this new coalition.
The County’s proposal to build a jail almost double the size of the current facility comes in the context of a marked decrease in jail population following the pandemic as the use of Release on Recognizance and other diversionary policies were implemented. Importantly, during this time frame crime has not risen in Monroe County. In fact, violent crime is down 24.3% according to Mayor Kerry Thomson’s 2025 State of the City address, further demonstrating the lack of need for a larger facility.
The proposed new jail has been estimated to cost $237 million before interest on the bond. This cost is in stark contrast to the $62 million estimate for renovation of the current facility, an estimate provided by Monroe County’s own commissioned study. By these estimates, if renovation were pursued, it would free up $175 million that the new coalition of organizations say should be invested into vital supportive and social services that help Monroe County’s 140,000 residents.
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