The Clark County Jail tweaked its booking criteria at the start of the year to help counter overcrowding, and might begin working with the state to re-house some offenders, while it works to reduce the jail’s maximum population.
Corrections Chief Ric Bishop said the jail has been turning away some of those arrested, namely for misdemeanor crimes, leaving suspects with citations and court dates.
The practice isn’t new, he said, noting that the jail has long had a policy to turn away some arrests based on available space in the facility. He also said the jail still holds onto anyone booked or otherwise confined for violent crimes, those confined by order of a court, no-bail intoxicated driving offenses, stalking, luring and harassment.
The jail is aiming for a capacity of about 590 people, Bishop said. On Tuesday, it housed 675.
Bishop said officials are taking 60 days to see how well the new booking guidelines work in reducing the jail population, and the jail is starting to work with the state Department of Corrections to move some offenders to other detention facilities.
Those held under the Offender Accountability Act, a probationary program, don’t necessarily need to be detained locally, Bishop said.
The Department of Corrections can use prisons or jail facilities elsewhere in the state to house those offenders, Bishop said, which takes pressure off Clark County police agencies, which have only one option for a jail.
The changes come in the wake of an in-depth $300,000 study by consultants who shared their findings in the spring, telling county officials the 33-year-old facility is in need of an expansion and serious renovations to remain viable long-term. That same study projected that if the county followed best practices, the jail would need to nearly triple in size and add 467 beds in the next 20 years.
In the meantime, Bishop emphasized the jail isn’t planning on releasing anyone early, instead pinning its hopes on reducing the population through the booking guidelines, attrition and, if necessary, transferring offenders to other facilities.
When the jail population grows beyond 500 people, police agencies are asked to cite and release misdemeanor offenders. The jail will also start booking and releasing those arrested for failure to appear or comply with District Court. After turning away misdemeanor offenders, the jail will also turn down holding those taken in for out-of-county misdemeanor arrest warrants.
“We really have to balance public safety against our conditions inside the jail,” Bishop said.
About three years ago, the jail had space for about 830 people. That number declined as the jail added suicide-resistant beds and other fixtures to the jail, he said.
The number of available beds at the work center and jail declined further following the passage of the 2017 county budget. Bishop said the sheriff’s office did not fill a handful of vacant positions, prompting the reduction in beds.
