The Kern County Grand Jury released a report Thursday, citing several issues regarding the Sheriff's Office's Lerdo Jail facility.
The jury noticed various areas of the facility that needs repairs as well as a few health and safety concerns related to the jail’s kitchen. The jury also found problems related to the road that leads to the facility during a recent investigation.
“We get these reports quite frequently, and they always make recommendations that require more money, which I understand, but there’s just not enough money right now,” said Sheriff Donny Youngblood.
The report said the road leading to the jail, located 14 miles north of Bakersfield at 17365 Industrial Farm Road, is in need of major repairs but did not provide any specifics on what those needs are. Youngblood said he isn’t aware what road issues the jury is referring to.
The jury was more specific regarding repairs that it said were needed in the facility. These include lights and faucets not working, doors not closing properly, shower stalls missing shower heads, continually running toilets and more.
The jury said some of these issues have been addressed by the jail since they were initially brought up during the jury’s inspection, which occurred in March.
Safety issues were also found in the kitchen, according to the grand jury. These include refrigerators and freezers missing multiple daily temperature log entries as well as a lack of caution signs put in place regarding wet floors in the kitchen.
On an unrelated matter, some employees also expressed concerns to the jury about the current level of staffing of detention deputies and the need for more, according to the report.
“We’re aware of the issues,” Youngblood said. “The shortage of sheriff’s deputies in detentions is not a new problem.”
The jury also focused on some positive developments at the jail in its report. One is a pilot program that the jail implemented early this year in which it houses and treats prisoners who need mental health services but are unable to be admitted into a state hospital due to a lack of bed availability.
“We have about 60 or 70 inmates in the program. The state pays us to house them,” Youngblood said. “They’re treated here, and sometimes they are releasable. Other times they’re sent to a hospital when a bed opens up.”
The jail is also looking into collaborating with Marley’s Mutts to develop a program in which inmates can care for dogs.
“We’re weighing the benefits of it,” Youngblood said. “We used to have a program with wild horses years ago, but we’ve had nothing like this in the recent past.”
The grand jury recommended that the Sheriff’s Office budget for road repairs as well as address all health, safety and maintenance issues in the facility itself. With many of these needed in the female barracks, the jury recommended renovating or replacing the barracks.
The jury also recommended that the department address staff retention issues.
“The committee would like to thank the Lerdo staff for their time, information and hospitality provided during the tour and inspection,” the jury said in the report.
Chief Deputy Tyson Davis, who oversees the Lerdo facility, was unavailable for comment on Thursday.
June 21, 2018
Bakersfield.com
By Joseph Luiz
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