“We need parameters on the cost,” she said. After the Triple X Road items, the Board was treated to a warning by County Engineer Stacey Trumbo about another area near the North Canadian. The idea behind the trust is … The Board expressed gratitude for the assistance in the project. During public comment earlier in the meeting, one resident, Sean Cummings, who said he was in favor of dissolution, suggested that the BoCC may simply not have the legal authority to dissolve the Trust, but that rather, the Trust may be responsible to dissolve itself by a majority vote of the Trustees. During an Executive Session that lasted over one hour, the Board discussed potentially dissolving the Oklahoma County Criminal Justice Authority (Jail Trust), as well as a potential claim against the State of Oklahoma and the Department of Juvenile Affairs for statutory payment of some costs of running the County’s Juvenile Justice Center. “I feel like we’re just giving someone a blank check to write whatever they want,” Johnson said. The BoCC will meet again in a special session on Wednesday, April 7, at 9:00 a.m. Oklahoma City Free Press is dedicated to providing high quality journalism that positively impacts our community. The trust took over operation of the jail on July 1. At Monday’s BoCC meeting, the private discussion about dissolving the Jail Trus resulted in District 3 Commissioner Kevin Calvey moving to not dissolve the Trust. In open session, the Board discussed a request by Sheriff Tommie Johnson III to enter a contract with a television production company who wishes to produce a television show about the Sheriff’s Office apprehending “wanted persons.”. The approval of that contract means that work will finally be able to begin on the project to repair the badly damaged road and install a new bridge. (Screenshot) “Please be advised that pursuant to the same subsection of the contract, we are giving the jail until April 29, 2021, to increase its staffing levels to ensure we are able to have detention staff available to complete medication pass and fulfill our other obligations under the contract, and to ensure adequate detention staff is available to maintain the safety and security of our employees at the Oklahoma County Detention Center.”, The letter says that if staffing levels are not improved prior to April 29, the company “will have no choice but to terminate our contract for cause effective May 31.”. In November, two inmates used bed sheets to fashion a rope that they used to escape from a 12th-floor window. The Trust held a special meeting on Thursday, April 1, to discuss the state of affairs at the Jail, and to discuss deaths in the jail, as well as to discuss CEO Greg Williams’s future with the organization. Johnson acknowledged her point respectfully and offered no argument. Trumbo said that the river has moved quite a bit in the area near Wilshire and Indian Meridian. Berry, former assistant state … Trustee Sue Ann Arnall echoed those concerns. || Editor's note: Marty can be found on Twitter @OKC_SPAN where he live-tweets local Oklahoma County and Oklahoma City government meetings. Comments ( 0 ) Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Email this article This signals a potential return to relative normalcy for public participation in County Government. The Oklahoma County Jail Trust held a meeting and passed a resolution that would allow them to move forward with allocating CARES Act funding to the jail. The Board approved an agreement of services with GSB, Inc to provide architectural and engineering for the addition of a new, more sanitary lobby area in the Juvenile Justice Center. Kevin Stitt. The BoCC unanimously approved a supplemental Agreement for Services with Meshek Associate in the amount of $50,000 to head off that problem. Later, the Board approved an item to accept a donation of a parcel of land from Timothy Dirk Smith by Quit Claim Deed. A major step was taken in the years-long saga of the North Canadian Streambank Stabilization/Triple X Road project, and the County learned about another pending problem with the river further north in the County. Some activists said that if the contract was approved, they would organize community protests to try to shut down the program. He also allowed one person to speak, though they came in after the meeting was called to order, a move that Calvey would not have permitted under his chairmanship. Kevin Stitt appointed jail trust chairwoman Tricia Everest Secretary of Public Safety March 22. Calvey said that his motion did not preclude the Board from issuing a future statement about the state of the Trust. Calvey stated that one concern from the public was that such a program would open the County up to liability. The trust also discussed the employment of Oklahoma County Jail CEO Greg Williams during a lengthy executive session. Gov. Smith, Roberts, and Baldischwiler is the firm that was chosen. OKLAHOMA CITY – A new Oklahoma County Detention Center Action Committee has named several proposed members, including two police chiefs, a state senator and several local activists.“It’s tragic. He had been in the jail for about two years awaiting trial on a rape charge. Department of Corrections officers who typically work in state prisons will be brought in to help supplement jail staff, according to an agreement between the trust and the DOC. “Oklahoma County has a critical staffing need due to a crisis incident involving OCDC staff affecting availability of detention center employees and supervisors with training to manage secured environments and ODOC has employees with such specialized training,” the agreement states. While the public is not privy to the conversations that happen during the Executive Sessions, the printed agenda does include the topics to be covered by the Board behind closed doors. Click this link or the red button below to support our mission. After a contentious budget meeting, Oklahoma County officials decided to spend more than $40 million on the jail. Blumert said that she would vote no, even though she believed Johnson’s intentions were good and respectful, but that she has a problem with filming people while they’re being arrested. They were all involved in the planning and the processing and also in the actual going in and rescue of the hostage. An Oklahoma County jail inmate was killed following a hostage situation Saturday. This man literally died asking for better living conditions.”. District 1 Commissioner Carrie Blumert wearily seconded that motion, and the three Commissioners voted unanimously to not end the Trust. In it, the trust acknowledges staffing problems at the jail. No action on Williams’ employment was taken, and Williams returned when the trust wrapped up its executive session and continued to participate in the meeting answering questions from trustees. Jess Eddy calls Oklahoma County Jail Trust member and former Sen. Ben Brown a "racist motherfucker" during a meeting Monday, Sept. 21, 2020. The trust took over operation of the jail on July 1. Many members of the public have been aware for the past week that the BoCC had an item listed to consider the dissolution of the Jail Trust. Maughan allowed a number of speakers to address multiple agenda items, mostly regarding the Jail Trust and the Sheriff’s proposed television content. That group includes former Oklahoma City police chief M.T. Maughan’s department has been saving road money for several years in order to fund this necessary work. The group that oversees the Oklahoma County Detention Center discussed a laundry list of issues Thursday. Since then, inmates have been killed by other inmates, high-profile escapes have gained widespread attention and several staffers have been fired and charged for misconduct. The nine-member trust voted to return the remaining $25 million in fear they would not have time to spend it ahead of the end-of-the-year deadline. “They’ve been vital in an emergency situation, and I appreciate them, and if this contract is the way you describe it, we should be even more grateful if these are indeed free services.”. She said that people often feel unduly influenced to sign a waiver for a television appearance because they are at the mercy of law enforcement officers and they may fear reprisal if they don’t sign. The shooting has outraged criminal justice activists who spoke at Thursday’s special meeting. The trust assumed oversight of the jail from the Oklahoma County Sheriff’s Office six months ago, and the results so far are a mixed bag. Finally, the Board approved an Agreement for Services with Central Bridge Company. The Oklahoma County Jail Trust could pay an outside law firm $50,000 in a lawsuit filed by one of its own members. While the former Chair of the Board, Calvey, created strict rules for public comment during his tenure, today the new Chair, Maughan, took a more generous approach. The 38-page report listed numerous problems including phones that didn’t work, moldy showers on almost every floor of the 13-story facility, overcrowded cells, bed bugs, roaches and inadequate and inconsistent staffing. “I am confident Tricia’s wealth of experience and heartfelt passion for serving the state will translate into success in this role.”, Food for thought: Reader funding saves local journalism, Pot probs podcast: A sober discussion of the bambalacha, Podcast: David Walters has opinions on the power grid, NonDoc offering (paid) 2021 summer internships, New page offers info about tribal nations in Oklahoma, Oklahoma County Criminal Justice Authority, Oklahoma County commissioners approve sheriff’s department reality show, Turn Key Health to Oklahoma County Jail: Staff up or we’re out, Jail trust changes meeting schedule, shoots down rule change, Five (other) takeaways from Oklahoma’s Feb. 9 election, Six months in, Oklahoma County’s jail trust is a chaotic mixed bag, Straight-party voting is going strong in Oklahoma. Click this linkto support our mission. Oklahoma County Commissioner Kevin Calvey, who also serves on the jail trust, filed the lawsuit to compel to force the trust to do what the commission says. That contract says that the State will pay a daily rate of $108.63 per bed for 50 beds at the Juvenile Center and up to an additional 28 beds utilized by other counties. “Tricia is a proven leader who has done a tremendous job over the last few years building successful relationships with law enforcement and delivering meaningful criminal justice reform for Oklahoma,” Stitt said in a statement. “The jail trust and its administration of the Oklahoma County jail is an abject failure that has cost the lives of inmates, made the environment incredibly dangerous for law enforcement and other jail staff members,” Prater told The Oklahoman newspaper. Can you blame them?” Laws said. Three items were handled on Monday to finally move forward on the North Canadian River Streambank Stabilization/Triple X Road project. OKLAHOMA CITY – After weeks of debate, three Oklahoma County commissioners voted to approve a controversial jail trust. Two speakers, Nicole McAfee and Chad Whitehead, specifically referred to filming people in one of the worst moments of their life, that being while they are arrested. The Sheriff neglected to say how filming the arrest of community members would accomplish that goal. For now, the Trust will continue under their indenture. Oklahoma City Free Press is dedicated to providing high quality journalism that positively impacts our community. The mother of an inmate inside the Oklahoma County Jail claims her son did not receive medical treatment in a timely manner when an abscess he has been battling burst inside his cell. Columnist covering local government in Oklahoma City and Oklahoma County. There have also been two successful escape attempts in that time. Another item to approve an agreement with a consulting firm for the Juvenile Center was deferred to the next regularly scheduled meeting. OKLAHOMA CITY (KOKH) — The first meeting is in the books for the Oklahoma County Jail Trust. McAfee went on to say that in a situation like that, the power dynamics are imbalanced so that “informed consent” can hardly be achieved. We give voice to those who aren’t heard and expose that which is hidden from the public. || "I'm a gadfly, former ne'er-do-well/current rare-do-well. District 2 Commissioner Brian Maughan said that this sort of program was not unprecedented in the County. Maughan has been contending with this issue for years, and was celebratory of the progress. Patrol supervisor or watch commander. This comes just a day after it … Many members of the public have been aware for the past week that the BoCC had an item listed to consider the dissolution of the Jail Trust. The Violent Crimes Apprehension Team, which does include members of our tactical unit and the, uh, the patrol had a response as well. The parcel of land is effectively useless to Smith, and without this project being completed, he would stand to lose that parcel to the river anyway. Without streambank stabilization, the school and lots of land will eventually be destroyed. Calvey, an attorney, said that the contract included an indemnity clause and that the production company had included an up-to-date insurance certificate. OKLAHOMA CITY — In July, the county seized control from the Sheriff’s Office and turned Oklahoma County jail over to the newly formed Oklahoma County Jail Trust. The movement of the river over the years has destroyed the road, some land, and one home. © Oklahoma City Free Press LLC, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021. The Trust, which has operated the Jail since July 2020, has been under fire over the course of their tenure as operators of the Oklahoma County Detention Center (Jail) due to an outsized number of deaths at the jail and, in general, other poor and inhumane conditions. The Oklahoma County Criminal Justice Authority, otherwise known as the jail trust, approved an agreement today with the Oklahoma Department of Corrections that would bring in officers from that agency to supplement jail staff because the trust says it currently lacks the staff to safely operate the jail. Jail trust attorney John Michael Williams said the financial risk would largely be assumed by DOC. Johnson claimed that he understood and “heard” the concerns of the members of the public, but that his goal for the television show would be to increase public investment in co-creating safety alongside law enforcement. Johnson went on to say that if approved, he would have final say on the edited version of the content that was created and he invited the Commissioners to participate in that eventual review with him. The services will cost no more than $51,500. The Oklahoma County Criminal Justice Authority, otherwise known as the jail trust, took on daily operations of the facility from the Oklahoma County Sheriffs Office July 1, 2020. Additionally, he allowed people to far surpass their allotted, some would say restrictive, one minute of speaking time. At times, Thursday’s chaotic and hybrid remote-in person meeting was fraught with technical problems ranging from unmuted microphones, feedback, bad audio and speakers confused about if it was their time to speak. Williams said the jail currently has about 330 employees, while the inmate population is more than 1,000. Sheriff Tommie Johnson said he was concerned about how much the agreement would cost, and he also questioned whether those employees would be paid more than regular jail staff. It’s never been so corrupt and it’s never been so dangerous,” he said. Williams said 68 DOC officers would begin working at the jail Friday. The meeting comes on the heels of yet more controversy for the jail trust, which has been bathed in squabble since the body took over the jail’s day-to-day operations from the Oklahoma County Sheriff Office in July. “It’s the incompetent administration of that jail. The three Oklahoma County commissioners voted unanimously Wednesday to create the trust, which is a nine-member body that will oversee all aspects of the jail, such as facility management and upkeep, inmates, employees … Long-awaited heavy road work around river in east county approved. Several community members decried the idea as unethical and inhumane, saying that this kind of content would vilify people on the margins of our community. There were situations where Tommie Johnson’s officers proceeded to point guns at demonstrators because they were angry people had the nerve to stand up for the rights of people inside the tower. Oklahoma City's award-winning independent, online news, Commissioners keep Jail Trust, allow Sheriff to participate in TV production, Government according to columnist Marty Peercy, Oklahoma County Commissioners to consider ending Jail Trust, Jail Trust Chair says rumor is not true that CEO Williams is being fired, County Commissioners give reasons for staying with Jail Trust for now, Jail Trust focuses on Health Dept criticism, staffing, medical contractor, Jail Trust formally establishes Action Committee, hears reports, Jail Trust sets date for Oklahoma County Jail takeover, approves contracts. 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