By Bonnie Eslinger - Palo Alto Daily News Staff Writer
San Mateo County could reduce the number of inmates at its packed Redwood City jail and save money by electronically monitoring those awaiting trial, according to a grand jury report released Thursday.
Although the county plans to build a new $160 million jail in Redwood City that could eventually accommodate up to 768 beds, it won't open for years from now and conditions at the existing Maguire Correctional Facility, meanwhile, are dangerously overcrowded, San Mateo Civil Grand Jury Foreman Bruce MacMillan told The Daily News.
The state-designated capacity for Maguire is 688 inmates, according to the report, but in 2011 the average daily population there was 856. And the vast majority -- an average of 649 -- were pretrial detainees.
MacMillan stressed that the grand jury isn't calling for the release of high-risk criminals.
"But if there are individuals charged with non-violent, non-aggressive crimes, they might be suitable for this (electronic monitoring)," he said. "If we have over 600 persons in the county jail that are awaiting trial, there must be some of them eligible for electronic release."
It would cost the county $7 to $10 a day to electronically monitor someone, compared to $169 a day to lock that person up, according to the grand jury.
Santa Clara, Sacramento and Santa Cruz counties all have electronic monitoring programs for pretrial detainees, the report says, but San Mateo County uses it only for some inmates who have been convicted and sentenced.
The sheriff's office told the grand jury it does not want to electronically monitor pretrial inmates because they could endanger the public, Assistant Sheriff Trisha Sanchez said.
In a written response to the grand jury report, Sheriff Greg Munks said studies of the pretrial population show that "only a handful of inmates would even qualify for such a program." Munks was unavailable for comment.
Asked how many actual pretrial inmates would qualify, Sanchez referred to an April 21, 2012 jail count that indicated 572 of 950 inmates were awaiting trial. Of those, 230 were eligible for bail and the sheriff's office would only consider 19 as qualified candidates for electronic monitoring, Sanchez said.
When tallying supervision, equipment and administrative costs, electronic monitoring runs about $163 per person a day, she added.
Three county supervisors interviewed about the grand jury's findings said they're open to exploring the use of electronic monitoring for some pretrial inmates.
"Maybe for some lower-level ones," board President Adrienne Tissier said. "But I don't think we should do it willy-nilly."
Supervisor Dave Pine said there could be other advantages besides cost in electronically monitoring people. "Research shows that minor offenders can be turned into more serious future offenders when they spend time in jail where they're exposed to more serous offenders," he said.
Board Vice President Don Horsley, the county's former sheriff, noted that people charged with serious crimes are released on bail with no monitoring. "What's better? Somebody who posts bail and they're out, or having them on electronic monitoring?"
The grand jury recommends that the sheriff's office do an "objective" study on the feasibility of an electronic monitoring program and issue a report.
Emily Harris, an organizer for Californians United for a Responsible Budget, which seeks to reduce prison and jail spending, said Munks should investigate any solution that might reduce the need for a new jail. She noted that money from a proposed half-cent sales tax increase on the November ballot would be used to reduce a budget deficit that's partially the result of costs for a new jail.
"I am not surprised that Sheriff Munks would be ignoring proven cost-effective strategies for reducing the jail population, especially those that are used in other counties," she said. "He's so committed to building this jail."
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