From his corner office in the Jackson County Courthouse, Jackson County Executive Frank White can see the Jackson County Detention Center from his window. His perspective on the jail and its problems span several years.
“This is not going to be a quick fix; it took us a long time to get here,” said White.
Last week, an independent auditor told the Jackson County Legislature that the Jackson County Detention Center is in a crisis because of staffing shortages that put jailers and inmates in danger. The County Executive has a different take on the status of the jail.
“Overall, I think the jail is in better shape today than it was 2 years ago,” White explained.
He said he is worried about the safety of jailers and inmates, and he wants the public to know his office is working on solutions.
White pointed out the new page on the Jackson County website, showing pictures of plumbing repairs to fix the sewage leaks and the $2 million spent to repair cell-doors to be more secure.
“We lost our accreditation in 1996 and so we have an accreditation manager who is working hard on getting that done. He's trying to have that done by 2020," White said.
White admits the shortage of jailers is at the heart of the problem at the Jackson County Detention Center. He said his staff is attending job-fairs and other community events trying to recruit new jailers but with a starting salary of $12.60, it’s difficult.
“Everybody needs to give me solutions to say okay, how do we attract more people who want to work in the corrections facility,” White added.
The Jackson County Executive said he would like to see officials in county government and law enforcement work together to come up with short and long-term solutions to solve the staffing crisis and fix the problems in the Jackson County Detention Center.
