An outside consulting firm hired to study the Boulder County Jail’s staffing issues reported an “erosion” in control over the inmates as deputies deal with overcrowding and an increase in prisoners with mental health issues.
Mark Martin and Gary Bowker with MJ Martin Inc., based out of Nebraska, studied data from 2011 to 2015 at the Boulder County Jail and presented their findings and staffing recommendations Thursday to the Boulder County commissioners.
Bowker said he found a group of dedicated professionals at the jail, but said overcrowding and the changing demographics of people being housed there has led to staff losing some control over the inmates.
“I can say that I think there is some erosion of that, as do your staff,” Bowker said. “When that starts to happen, we start losing our jail. We start losing control of our jail to the inmates.”
Martin pointed out that the design of the jail was originally intended to hold 287 people, and that optimal capacity is about 85 percent of that. The Boulder County Jail regularly houses more than 500 people on any given night.
“You’re almost at double the original design capacity,” Martin said. “You’re operating a facility with almost twice as many inmates, with almost the same amount of staffing,” Martin said. “That’s an issue.”
Boulder County Sheriff Joe Pelle — who was not at the presentation — has long said that the jail was facing overcrowding and has repeatedly asked for more staff and an alternative facility.
“When the jail was first built, it was built for a different population than what we have now,” said Boulder County sheriff Division Chief Jeff Goetz. “The dilemma is the type of inmates that we’re dealing with now, we need more modules that have more seclusion to them than what we have right now. We’re trying to deal with just our physical box, and that’s our dilemma.”
The analysis by MJ Martin Inc. recommended that the jail add about 19 new positions. When factoring in relief for positions that don’t get any currently, the firm recommended about 29 additional full-time equivalent units.
Martin pointed out that the county spent about $452,000 on overtime in 2015, about $300,000 more than was budgeted.
“If you continue to have overtime, it is suggesting maybe we have some staffing shortages we’re trying to make up for,” Martin said. “Convert funds already spent on overtime to fund new positions. It’s not looking for new money, it’s really money you are already spending.”
Bowker also said that officers were experiencing burnout due to the increased overtime, inability to get time off, and increased workload. He said there is also a growing concern over their safety and the safety of the inmates.
“This was a strong theme from staff,” Bowker said. “They’re concerned about the overall well-being of inmates and their co-workers.”
‘More intensive supervision’
Bowker also pointed out that the increased workload also meant deputies were not able to devote the attention they needed to for things like monitoring inmates with special concerns, contraband enforcement and cell checks.
“What kind of quality rounds are we making when our workload exceeds our capacity?” Bowker said. “When you are making those rounds and you are that busy, are my antennae really up? Or are we so busy that we are trying to get through it so we’ve met our policy?”
That concern was one that was brought up by both deputies and inmates during a report released last week on the death of an inmate earlier this year. Stephanie Anderson, 29, of Denver, was found unresponsive in her cell on May 27, and efforts to revive her failed. The Boulder County Coroner’s Office this week ruled she died of “hypertensive cardiovascular disease with other significant conditions listed as obesity.”
Among the findings of the report were that Anderson was on suicide protocol and should have been checked every 15 minutes but had gone about two hours without a check before she was found.
A total of seven inmates died at the Boulder County Jail between 2012 and 2015, and all but one of those deaths occurred in the Building A, where Anderson was being held. Building A currently houses the disciplinary unit, the maximum security unit and all females in the jail, and is the unit Bowker said needed help the most.
“Our recommendations require more intensive supervision,” Bowker said.
MJ Martin Inc. found that, in addition to the overall increase in inmates, more and more of those inmates have mental illness, chronic medical problems and extensive criminal history. As a result, the study found an increase in infractions, fights, inmates placed on suicide protocol, and the amount of prisoner transports to mental health facilities since 2011.
Martin said an increase in alternative and community solutions for non-violent and more stable offenders has skewed the jail’s population.
“You do such a good job weeding out inmates in alternative programs, guess what you’re going to get?” Martin said.
Added Bowker, “As one of your deputies described it, it’s a whole new ballgame in terms of the type of offenders the jail is seeing.”
‘It’s a big challenge’
Among the other recommendations made in the report were to do more court hearings by video to reduce transportation time, have module kiosks for inmates so they can look up information rather than ask deputies, and explore areas where civilians could perform some duties currently tasked to sworn deputies.
While Goetz said the county’s conversion to e-filing would likely delay any exploration of video hearings, Boulder District Attorney Stan Garnett said it is something the courts have considered.
“It’s more efficient because my lawyers don’t spend time driving back and forth to the jail and it’s much more efficient for the jail staff,” Garnett said. “That’s the kind of thing I think we should explore.”
Garnett said the issues with jail crowding affect all aspects of the legal system and that a solution is needed. He said the having inmates housed with people with mental health issues or being housed at facilities outside of the county can have a negative impact on their ability to be rehabilitated and then reintegrated into the community.
“The jail needs additional staffing, and I also believe it needs additional capacity,” Garnett said. “These are issues that we all deal with in my office and the courts and the defense bar do as well.”
The jail currently double or triple bunks many cells, which leads to decreased time outside the cells as deputies are worried about having so many people out and about at one time. But some inmates also need isolation, especially as more inmates with mental health concern come in.
Boulder County Commissioner Cindy Domenico said that the jail was part of a “very complex system,” and said addressing mental health was something that needed to be looked at.
“We don’t have any great solutions out there,” Domenico said. “I wish we had some better answers. It’s a big challenge.”
But Boulder County Commissioner Deb Gardner said seeing the numbers in the study helped her to understand just how dire the jail’s situation is.
“I understand the issues better now, I think,” Gardner said.
Mitchell Byars: 303-473-1329, byarsm@dailycamera.com or twitter.com/mitchellbyars
