In
Lieu of a New Jail
By Albert B. Kelly
I wasn’t sure how to feel when the County announced that it
was re-evaluating plans to move ahead with building a new county correctional
facility in Bridgeton. Part of my mixed emotions had to do with the fact that
the existing facility is long past its useful life- something our County
officials readily acknowledge.
Part of my reaction had to do with where the existing jail
is located, which is right smack in the center of the community and I can think
of several more beneficial uses for that slice of geography than a jail
facility. That area has redevelopment potential that includes the adjacent
court facilities and it would certainly benefit the community from a
revitalization standpoint.
But for all of that, I also understand caution on the part
of County officials given the changing numbers as it relates to inmates.
Regardless of the reasons, bail reform, changing police practices, lower crime
figures, or some combination of these, it certainly makes sense to proceed with
caution when it comes to spending taxpayer dollars on such facilities. My point
is that I find no fault with proceeding carefully given the current landscape.
But even acknowledging the need for caution and taking a
conservative approach, I can’t help but wonder if we’re missing an opportunity
here to do something far more beneficial and productive than what we might
commonly expect from a traditional county jail. What I mean to say is that we
might well be at a moment where we can re-think what we’re doing in such a way
that we move beyond merely treating the symptom (i.e. crime) to dealing more with
some root causes.
We know for example that a fair number of those who end up
in our jails and prisons suffer from some type of mental health issue- they can
be scary but they’re not necessarily criminals, at least not at the outset.
Yet, calling police is mostly what’s available to us when we encounter
individuals suffering from some type of mental illness and the end of that is
often jail.
In the same way that we have few options for those suffering
from mental illnesses, we also have few options for the homeless. We have a
shelter located on the outskirts so we don’t have to have them too close, but
it’s limited in who it can help and how it can help. That means a chronic
subset of disorderly homeless that we can no longer just shuffle them back and
forth to jail.
We also have a portion of our population suffering from drug
and alcohol addiction, often combined with mental illness. Like the homeless, there
are limited options available in terms of programs and supports for those
hoping to end the cycle of addiction whether as an outpatient or in a facility.
And like the homeless, we no longer have the option of shuffling them back and
forth to jail.
We have our incorrigible criminals to be sure, but we have
far more on the edge of criminality who mostly suffers from mental illness,
homelessness, addiction or some combination of these and the problems only grow
worse. People talk about inequality and it’s real. The connection they fail to
make is that inequality, left unaddressed and unattended, often looks like the
scary homeless woman muttering to herself on the street corner, or the menacing
guy yelling at cars and arguing with demons only he can see.
People talk about police brutality, use-of-force, and
defunding the police. It’s a fair and valid conversation and one that is long
overdue, but the part that doesn’t get much play is the part where police are
forced to deal with things that are better left to social workers, mental
health practitioners, and addiction specialists. To a man with a hammer, every
problem looks like a nail- we shouldn’t ask police to deal with things outside
of their training.
So we don’t need a shiny new traditional jail but that’s not
because the problems are less, it’s because we’re criminalizing homelessness,
poverty, mental illness, and addiction a hell of a lot less. In lieu of a new
jail, I would argue that we need a hybrid facility that combines mental health
services, addiction treatment, social services, and workforce development. More
than anything else, a facility focused in these areas would do more to take
chronic problems off our streets than anything a traditional jail might offer.