Agencies work together to prevent jail overcrowding

By Susan Taft
staft@campcountynow.com

The Camp County Jail usually remains full, but Camp County Sheriff Alan McCandless said no one who would pose a threat to the community has been, or will be, turned away.
The jail has a capacity of 34; however, that does not mean there are 34 available beds.  There are four six-person cells, one four-person cell, one two-person cell and four single cells.
“All jails in the state of Texas are regulated by the Texas Commission on Jail Standards which means there are classifications and requirements on every inmate,” Sheriff McCandless said. “Even though we have 34 capacity, we might sometimes be in a situation where several cells have very violent offenders. Sometimes three, four or even five beds are available, but we can’t mix these inmates who were arrested on violent charges with those who are arrested on charges like burglary or theft and especially Class C misdemeanors.
“We try to keep one single-person cell open to help with discipline purposes or for violent inmates. There is no television in that cell, nor any amenities, nothing an inmate can destroy.
“I go the extra mile not to turn down any Class A or B misdemeanor warrants or any on-site arrests,” he said. “We have never been in a situation where we had to refuse anyone who would be a threat to the community.”
Law enforcement officers encourage those wanted on Class C misdemeanors to see City Judge Steven Simmons or Justice of the Peace Bobby Carpenter directly.
“The only inmates we may not be able to accept are those with Class C misdemeanor warrants,” Sheriff McCandless said. “Those type warrants generally consist of traffic violations, unpaid fines and things of that nature. We encourage them to get the case resolved before they get arrested.”
Sheriff McCandless said County Attorney Angela Hammonds and District Attorney Chuck Bailey go the extra mile to expedite cases.
“I’m fortunate that both the county attorney and the district attorney work with me on expediting cases where the inmate can’t make bond,” he said. “The court date might be three months away or more, but they make every effort to expedite the cases so the jail doesn’t remain overcrowded.”
Mr. Bailey said he works to expedite jail cases by completing the discovery process as soon as possible, making an offer appropriate for the crime committed and the criminal background of the defendant, and setting the case for trial as soon as possible.
“Some cases are more easily disposed of than others, while some cases require a trial,” he said. “A proper disposition is the goal, regardless of whether the defendant is incarcerated or not.”
County court is only held once a month, but County Judge Thomas Cravey and Mrs. Hammonds are willing to set up special court sessions to help clear beds in the jail.
“They are very cooperative in setting special sessions to avoid having those who are being held on Class A or B misdemeanors, and who can’t make bond, be held in jail for another 30 days until the next docket call,” Sheriff McCandless said.
Normal misdemeanor criminal court is on the fourth Tuesday of each month. This is commonly referred to as docket call because all pending cases that are ready for prosecution are called.
“This usually takes all day,” County Judge Thomas Cravey said. “We schedule cases in the morning session for defendants represented by attorneys and the afternoon session for defendants who have chosen to appear without an attorney and represent themselves. The number of morning and afternoon cases will be roughly 50/50.”
Judge Cravey said most cases in county court are resolved by plea bargain.
“We occasionally will have a bench trial on docket day or one may be scheduled on a different day,” he said.
Court for jail cases is held on an as-needed basis, varying from once or twice a month to sometimes once a week.
“We are usually in court one to four additional days throughout the month, and we may have one jail case on that docket or 10,” Mrs. Hammonds said. “It really varies based upon the need of the sheriff’s department and who is in the jail with just misdemeanor cases.”
Judge Cravey said these consist of defendants not eligible for bond, unable to financially make bond, or waiting for transfer to state prisons or other counties.
“Not all defendants who appear at these hearing will be released,” he said. “Frequently, defendants receive a county jail sentence for a violation of their probations. Expediting the hearings still permits the jail to calculate sentences and release dates.”
Mrs. Hammonds said they have special settings whenever the need arises from the jail.
“The jail is limited by the total number of inmates it can hold at one time,” she said. “It is further limited by the number of female inmates it can have. If there are inmates that cannot make bond on a misdemeanor case, or inmates who are incarcerated on a motion to revoke and there is no bond set, we will often have a hearing to take care of those cases first rather than waiting for our set monthly docket.”
Mrs. Hammonds said that the time inmates who can’t bond out of jail are held until they go to court varies widely depending on the individual.
“Generally, if someone can’t make bond on a misdemeanor, they go to court within a month,” she said, “sometimes it is even within a few days depending on the population of the jail.  However, if the inmate has both misdemeanor and felony cases, they are not generally brought over for a special session because they typically cannot, or will not, resolve their misdemeanor case until the felony case is resolved.”
Judge Cravey said there are special provisions for handling defendants with hot check charges.
“We hold court as often as needed to facilitate collection of restitution and reduce jail crowding,” he said. “Most hot check defendants are eligible for a payment plan. A common procedure is to book them into jail on outstanding warrants, bring them immediately, or on the next business day, to appear before me, and release them with a monitored payment plan. They are required to appear in court on docket call day to monitor their compliance.”
Sheriff McCandless said another difficult situation as far as clearing beds in the jail is when an inmate is sentenced to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
“There is a paperwork process that sometimes takes up to 30 days from start to finish, to get them in TDCJ,” Sheriff McCandless said. “You might have seven or eight that plead to TDCJ, but you still have to wait until the paperwork goes through. We usually always have some inmates in custody awaiting trial.”
Sheriff McCandless said there is no doubt that Camp County is going to need a larger jail in the near future.
“I think it is something the county is going to have to look at in the next five years or so,” he said.
There is the option of housing inmates in an out-of-county jail; however, that is costly.
“It costs $40 per day per inmate to house them somewhere else,” Sheriff McCandless.
“That equates to $1,200 a month for just one inmate. That’s why cooperation from the county attorney, the district attorney and the judges to keep the inmates rotating out is so important.”