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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPRISON BOARD MINUTES April 2026 FRANKLIN COUNTY PRISON BOARD MINUTES Franklin County Administration Building April 14, 2026 Present: Ben Sites, Sheriff/Chairman Bob Ziobrowski, Commissioner John Flannery, Commissioner Harold Wissinger, Controller Hon. Shawn Meyers, President Judge Carrie Gray, County Administrator John Thierwechter, Asst County Administrator Doug Wilburne, Probation Chief Ellen Eckert, Pre-Release Supervisor Rebekah Reigner, Court Administrator Michelle Weller, FCJ Deputy Warden Etta Rotz, Deputy Controller David Sunderland, FCJ Deputy Warden I. The meeting was called to order by Sheriff Sites at 8:30 AM. II. Public Comment A. There was no public comment III. Minutes for the March 2026 meetings were discussed. A. Commissioner Flannery moved to accept the minutes, Controller Wissinger seconded the motion and the minutes were unanimously approved. IV. Warden’s Report A. There were 157 commitments and 152 discharges in March. B. The average daily population was 270.9 with 228 males and 42.6 females C. The recidivism rate for all commitments was 46%. The recidivism rate for only those committed on new charges was 40%. D. A snapshot look at statistics for March showed there were 90 sentenced and 188 unsentenced inmates. There were five inmates being held for other counties and five federal inmates. There were 36 inmates on approved temporary absences to other facilities and seven awaiting transport to the state institution. E. There was $901.51 in revenue from Room & Board fees and $8,407.43 collected from Central Booking fees. F. The average length of stay for those released in March was 69.9 days. G. There were 42 inmates held in other county jails, with a total expense of $88,927.78. Sheriff Sites asked how many inmates were generally held at other jails, separate from the current situation of the closed housing unit. DW Sunderland answered there are generally an average of five inmates. There were 31 inmates held for other agencies, with a total income of $20,133.00 H. PrimeCare’s medical report was presented. There were 1314 sick calls. There were seven trips to the ER. There was one hospital admission for a total of 3 days. There were 863 mental health contacts. There were no inmates at Torrance State Hospital and one inmate awaiting transfer. There were three inmates on constant observation. There were 64 in the Medication Assisted Therapy (MAT) program. There were 148 on the MH caseload and an additional 39 with SMI diagnoses. There were 22 commitments placed on detox protocol. There were three pregnant inmates. I. Sheriff Sites asked if the hospital admissions number included offenders that were not medically cleared for commitment and DW Weller answered that it was for jail commitments only. J. February’s expenditures and budget were reviewed. It was discussed that there is sometimes a delay in billing for jail expenditures. K. Commissioner Ziobrowski moved to accept Warden’s report, Controller Wissinger seconded the motion and the report was unanimously approved. V. Intermediate Punishment report A. The Pre-Release department received 41 intakes in March and processed 39 discharges. B. There were five inmates placed into employment. C. There were 386 hours of community service completed. D. The Drug and Alcohol RIP/DCIP program had 92 offenders. There were eight successful discharges in March. E. The Pre-Trial Supervision program had 56 offenders. F. The Sex Offender Program had 42. G. There were 31 offenders on the Mental Health caseload. H. There were 22 on the Intensive Monitoring Program caseload. I. There were 16 participants in the Good Wolf Treatment Court. J. There were 22 offenders detained and there were 20 that were given alternative sanctions. Sheriff Sites asked for clarification regarding these numbers. Chief Wilburne explained that those given alternative sanctions included progressive sanctions and were not necessarily going to be otherwise incarcerated. K. There were 192 daily jail bed days saved by using the alternative sanctions of intensive/electronic supervision (682 days), DCIP/D&A RIP (3195 days), treatment court (450 days) and pre-trial release (1631 days). L. The Community Release program collected $12,211.43 in March and the Probation Department collected $283,242.92. VI. Jail Expenses A. There were no jail expenses pending approval VII. Old Business A. DW Sunderland provided a staffing update. There are 53 FT officer positions and three PT officers. There is a Basic Training class currently in session. B. DW Weller and DW Sullen gave a facilities update. The jail received its preliminary findings report from the state inspection. The jail is now working on the suggested corrective actions, which will be finalized and sent next week. A final report of compliance will then be issued. The contractors for the security upgrade have been working through housing units to complete the installation. The resource fair co-sponsored by the Franklin Together Re-entry Coalition was held on March 26th, and positive feedback was received from both vendors and incarcerated individuals. VIII. New Business A. An inmate walked off from their community job yesterday and is still pending apprehension. IX. The next meeting is scheduled for May 12, 2026 at 8:30AM at the Franklin County Jail. Controller Wissinger moved to end the meeting, Commissioner Flannery seconded the motion, and the meeting was adjourned.