By Wayne Gates

In just over 100 days, expansion work on the Brown County Jail is scheduled to be complete.

Chief Deputy Chris Hodges said that the date of completion is on schedule for August 31.

He said that wrapping up construction is going to be a complicated process.

“It’s like a giant game of dominos where one system has to be done before you can complete the next one. By the time they get all the systems online at the same time and they verify that everything is working then we will be able to get our occupancy permit from the state.”

He added that he and the staff are looking forward to the day the 40 man dormitory expansion is open for business.

“The anticipation is there. We are over capacity in the jail like many counties are in the state of Ohio. Once this is opened up and we are actually able to start classifying inmates and get dorm occupied, I think it will make it a safer environment for both the corrections officers and the inmates,” Hodges said.

The county is already advertising for five new corrections officers to bring the jail up to full staff.

“Our hiring process takes a minimum of two months from posting the job, the physical fitness assessment, the written test, the background investigations. the panel interviews and phycological assessments, polygraph examinations, medical checks,” Hodges said.

He added that additional supervisory training is necessary in the first few months for new corrections officers, so now is the time to begin trying to find the right people for the job.

Hodges said one of the biggest benefits of the new dorm will be increased safety for everyone.

“You don’t want to put somebody who is looking at a life sentence without the possibility of parole in a minimum scurity pod because they don’t have anything to lose,” he said.

“An OVI offender that has to serve three days has to go into the facility with the people that are in here for the murders and the rapes and looking at multiple life sentences. So you are taking a minimum classified offender and putting them in with maximum offenders.”

Since the 40 man dormitory is for low risk offenders, that will open up more space in the two-man cells for more maximum and medium security inmates.

The open design of the new dormitory is also designed to reduce inmate violence and disciplinary problems.

“With the minimum security pod opening up, there is going to be direct interaction with the corrections officer on a daily basis. They will not be locked in a room and isolated by themselves,” Hodges said.

“When you do that, they have nothing else to do but think of ways to pass the time and normally that ends up becoming something destructive. If you put them in a dorm where there are forty other inmates and a corrections officer, studies have shown that will actually reduce the risk that an inmate will become combative or vandalize the facility.”

Hodges added that the new administrative spaces that will be available will also contribute to efficiency and public safety.

“What we have now is not ideal. Our detectives are separated from the road patrol, so there isn’t as much daily interaction between the two where they can share information. That limits our effectiveness,” Hodges said.

“In the new construction area road patrol and investigations are going to be in the same wing. They will be able to talk daily about the cases that they’re working.”

The increased capacity will also reduce potential crime in the county.

“Right now, if someone has been arrested for a misdemeanor theft case, for example, we typically don’t space for them. And if someone is out there waiting on a theft case to go to court, there is nothing preventing them from going out and stealing again,” Hodges said.

He added that he was grateful for the hard work of Endeavor Construction and the patience of the general public as the project continues.

“I think that everybody has been great to work with. The public hasn’t complained too much about parking or other issues. The commissioners have also been good at making sure the changes that need to happen are getting made. I think it’s coming together well.”

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