Monroe County Commissioners are seeking more time to address alleged unconstitutional conditions at the county jail through a joint motion to extend a longstanding private settlement until May 29. The current extension is set to expire April 15.
The extension delays further litigation from the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana, which first brought legal action against the Monroe County Jail in 2008 for claims of overcrowding, lack of sanitation and dangerous living conditions. The jail is housed in the Charlotte Zietlow Justice Center on North College Avenue.
According to the Monday motion, the ACLU alleged in a Jan. 7 notice to the court that “no progress had been made towards resolving the problems in the Monroe County Jail” since the private settlement agreement was reached nearly 15 years ago.
The purchase agreement will be presented to the county council for approval during its meeting May 12 or May 26. Approval of the agreement will grant an extension of the private settlement until the new jail is built and approved by the Indiana Department of Correction for prisoners to live in.
If the purchase agreement is rejected, the ACLU plans to dismiss the private settlement agreement, allowing for potential new legal action regarding the jail’s conditions.
The county jail was built in 1984 with an initial bed count of 128, though renovations over several years raised the bed count to about 298.
A private settlement agreement in 2009 limited capacity to 278 while the county worked to address overcrowding concerns.
In October, the Monroe County Council unanimously voted against funding the $11.375 million purchase of the North Park site that would build a justice complex including a county jail, court spaces and prosecutor’s office, citing high costs and reduced accessibility.
In a Dec. 29 letter to the county legal department, ACLU of Indiana Director Kenneth Falk did not agree to extend the 2009 settlement on the basis that efforts were not made to improve the jail’s conditions. However, the ACLU and Monroe County later agreed to extend the private settlement by 90 days until April 15, according to a Jan. 7 filing.
A Feb. 24 resolution later stated “The Monroe County Council no longer wishes to consider the ‘North Park’ property for the location of the new facility.”
However, a March 26 resolution by the county commissioners wrote “the North Park site is the only site that Commissioners unanimously support as it provides the most cost-effective and timely solution with the least amount of risk of further delays or confronting unknown site and/or design issues.”
As of Monday’s filing, the Monroe County Commissioners have determined only a jail will be built and selected a property for where the structure will be located. It is not specified where the property will be.
During a Board of Commissioner’s meeting last Wednesday, a motion granting board president Julie Thomas authority to pursue an extension on the private settlement passed unanimously.
The county commissioners plan to approve a purchase agreement for the jail’s property before the end of this month.
