Elmore jail judged third worst in Idaho

"In all honesty, the Elmore County Jail is about the third worst facility in the state, and the other two who are in even worse shape are either being replaced, or about to be abandoned due to unacceptable liability exposure," wrote Bill Lynn, coordinator for the Idaho Sheriff's Association District III Jail Inspection Team.

Elmore County officials were made even more aware of the urgent need for a new jail after Idaho Sheriff's Association District III Jail Inspection Team inspected the facility on May 17.

In a letter to Sheriff Rick Layher and copies to the Board of Elmore County Commissioners, Lynn noted, "We are fully aware of all the shortcomings of the Elmore County Jail, and I know that we are both concerned for the high exposure to liability because of those numerous shortcomings.

"I will not enumerate all of the deficiencies in this cover letter, but I would direct you to the non-compliance summary report, and the similar report from previous years, and urge you to do all that is possible to correct, at a minimum, all life safety issues noted," Lynn wrote.

County officials have long recognized the current Elmore County jail facility is inadequate to meet the needs of the county and the board of commissioners determined that it is within the public good to erect a jail of suitable size and capacity for current and future growth.

Nearly two weeks prior to the latest jail inspection, the board passed a resolution to request "the issue be submitted at the November 2004 general election and that the question be posed to the voters regarding issuing negotiable coupon bonds to an amount deemed necessary to defray the expenses of erecting and furnishing a new Elmore County jail facility."

The bond request is expected to be for $7 million to construct the facility which will include a completely self-contained dispatch center.

The elected officials have yet to determine the length of the bond obligation, or the exact size of the facility which they hope to build.

The continuing trend in low interest rates for construction loans and signs of resurgence in the local real estate market are encouraging. County commissioners and citizen volunteers will begin speaking with communities across the county to inform them of the work completed and the reasons for moving ahead with the bond initiative for the November ballot.

Questions about location were settled several years ago with the purchase of land on E. 8th North Street near the golf course. The commissioners worked with several citizen workgroups and received input from the public on the general design for a new facility. Voters turned down previous bond initiatives in part due to the mixed support expressed by both county officials and workgroup volunteers.

While issues with size kept the question of a new jail bond from moving forward, the need for the new facility continued to grow.

The current jail, built approximately 30 years ago, no longer meets the minimum guidelines established for detention facilities. Courts recognize the guidelines as adequate for detention facilities. Other small county jails of similar age were recently closed by the courts when conditions no longer met minimum facility standards. The capacity of the old jail was reached several years ago and adaptive programs such as work release can no longer ease the overcrowding. There were periods over the past several years when a 'waiting list' had to be established for persons who had to remain in the community while waiting for available space in the current jail to serve time imposed by the county court.

Meanwhile, the population of Mountain Home, and the county overall, continues to rise. While the number of crimes committed as a percentage of the population has remained fairly constant, the overall growth in the population places additional strain on an already overburdened system.

"Often folks forget that the county jail serves as the only detention facility for the county as a whole, but also as a holding and processing facility for Mountain Home, other local law enforcement and federal detainees in transit," said Elmore County Sheriff Rick Layher.

Questions or comments on the jail bond issue are encouraged and may be directed to the jail committee by mail: Attention Jail Committee, c/o Elmore County Commissioners, 150 S. 4th East St. Suite #3, Mountain Home, Idaho 83647; or by e-mail commissioners@elmorecounty.org.