Commissioners Finally Act on Hospital Admissions for Jail Inmates | Eastern North Carolina Now

Publisher's note: This post appears courtesy of the Beaufort Observer.

    Beaufort County Commissioners by a vote of 5 to 2 requested Sheriff Ernie Coleman present a policy providing for a notice to be given by his department to the person(s) designated by the inmate should the inmate be admitted to the hospital. Fake Frankie Waters and Ron Buzzeo voted against the motion. Both Waters and Buzzeo have been supporters of Sheriff Coleman.

    The Beaufort County Manager promised the resolution and notice would be sent to Sheriff Coleman within two days of our meeting. A response with the language inserted into the jail medical plan is expected at the next Commissioners meeting on Monday October First. It will be interesting to see what we get, if anything.

    The suggestion that the Jail Medical Plan is the place to have this requirement was made by the Institute of Government at UNC Chapel Hill. All other responses about the requirement for a notice to designated parties were political and not based on law or human compassion. Those groups were the Association of County Commissioners, the State Attorney General, and the Sheriff's Association.

    It is frustrating to know these groups produce political answers to issues that favor the opinion of certain selected public officials like Frankie Water and Ernie Coleman.

    Both Coleman an Waters are up for election this fall. Would you want your relative or loved one to be in jail, sent to a hospital, and die with your only call being to come and pick up their belongings. This flies in the face of the intent of our bill of rights and human decency.

    You have an opportunity to stop both of these big spenders by not voting for them in November. We believe Tony Keech will make a good sheriff and any body in the pool of candidates but Fake Frankie Waters will make a good commissioner.

    Be sure to vote. Early voting begins October 17.