COUNTY COMMISSIONERS TO GRANT JAIL AUTHORITY TO SEEK BIDS FOR DETENTION CONTROL SYSTEM

  

The County Commissioners will grant the Sheriff’s Office and Jail the authority to advertise and seek sealed bids for a detention control system during their meeting on Monday, July 1st.

During their budget hearing on Tuesday, June 27th, Sheriff Otto Hanak, Chief Deputy Jay Petrash, and Captain of the Jail Jerry Green were all present to go through the Sheriff’s budget requests, including their requesting for a new control system in the jail. All three detailed how an aging control system does not provide the ability for the main control room to see which doors are open or unlocked.

Green detailed the lapse in communication between the doors and control room, but how the system that they were interested in would be able to tie all their individual door locks together.

The Commissioners seemed to express concern that there would be a system that didn’t function with the new locks that had been installed on the doors.

The aging system has been an issue for a long time, though the system’s faults has come to the forefront of attention after the disruption that took place at the jail on the 17th.

Hanak had placed the new control system on the 2017-2018 budget to ensure no further issues occurred, however County Judge John Brieden and Commissioner Joy Fuchs insisted that it was too much of a safety concern, and should be dealt with now. Brieden stated he would have it on the next Commissioners meeting agenda, as there could be no decisions made during budget hearings.

The Court will vote on the issue during the July 1st meeting in Court Room 103 at 9am.