Recommendations from the Stop the Jail Committee | Eastern North Carolina Now

    Publisher's note: Below is a comment made by Harold Smith, chairman of the Stop the Jail Committee, to me regarding the Beaufort County Commissioners' proved position of building a jail somewhere. Further down, below the comment to me, is Mr. Smith's public comments made to the Beaufort County commissioners.

    "The Long Range Facilities Plan is something that should be pushed. Frankly, it makes too much sense and really shouldn't meet with much opposition on the Board. Maybe that is wishful thinking. It's simply the right way to determine how to appropriate our tax dollars, rather than the erratic and unpredictable approach that has been used in the past." - Harold Smith

Public Comments by Harold Smith to the Beaufort County Board of County Commissioners

    First, we recommend that the Board direct the County Attorney to petition for Court Order 13 R 85 to be vacated. To leave the Order in force and subject the County to potential contempt of court liability is a potentially serious mistake.

    Second, we strongly recommend the development of a comprehensive Long Range Facilities Plan before any further consideration is given to any capital project involving a jail/courthouse/Sheriff's Office, or any other property.

    This plan should include a current inventory of all facilities owned and maintained by the County and an evaluation of their condition. Once those data are obtained we ask that the Board, with public input, prioritize the needs of the county into: immediate (needed now), short-term (3-5 years), intermediate (5-10 years) and long-term (10+ years).

    This list of priorities should be reviewed and revised annually. Most importantly, the plan should also include a strategy for capital financing and debt management.

    Therefore, we recommend that the Board direct the County Manager to present a proposal for the development of a Long Range Facilities Plan at the March meeting.

    Last, we ask for the Board's support in our efforts to obtain grants to study the County's current detention process. We envision these grants supporting a study that would include the physical facility, in addition to judicial and law enforcement departments and offices (both public and private, including bail bondsmen) and their policies, practices and procedures as they impact the detention facility. It would include the population and legal trends that impact sentencing and the jail census. The results of this study should provide suggestions for improvement of the current facility and associated processes as well as the basis for determining the needs of any future facility.

    Our Committee has done a great deal of research and has accumulated valuable information on how to approach the planning, design and ultimately the construction or renovation of an appropriate detention facility for Beaufort County and we are prepared to share it with the Board and staff as you deem appropriate.

    We offer our assistance if you so desire to use it.