A Tour of "the New County Jail"

Today I went on a tour of the new county jail in Lubbock, or the Lubbock Detention Center.  The people in charge of the county detention center, if they enact the plan they present to the public, "get it." 

The configuration of the jail is such that the offenders will be in "direct supervision."  They will be in pods where they have access to a day room and courtyard area, juice bar, microwave, showers.  Under the supervision of an officer. With videos cameras recording everything.  For minor violations, they can be placed in the cell for 23 hours...The emphasis is on following the rules... They will have access to GED classes, learning life skills, parenting and anger management (mostly done by volunteers.) When they are first arrested, they have unlimited access to phone calls, to try to get out of jail... The day rooms have free access to phones.

The mental health ward will place an emphasis on medication compliance. 

A member of the group asked why the center is not open, if it has been finished for a year... The tour guide explained it has not been finished, because although the outside looks done, the electronics are not.  Taking over the building would mean the county would have to pay for fixing what was not right in the first place...

Visitation will be by video access.  And, eventually for those who can not travel to the detention center, computer access on a library or home computer will be possible... There will even be computer video access for some court proceedings (not trials.) 

This prison was spearheaded by our former sheriff.  The one, who when another mayor died, wanted to run on the Republican ticket, but I am sure because he was Hispanic, the Republicans did not support him.  The Democrats offered to support him to run as a Democrat.  He declined.. He did not want to change his party to win.  So, he ran as an Independent, and won handily.  This sheriff has been on many statewide commissions and committees, and currently is on the Texas Board of Pardons and Parole...So, the county voted to fund this state of the art jail... The county commissioners axed some of the technology, and to the credit of the sheriff's department, they sought out grants, and got them, to fund their plans...

It was a most enlightening tour... The people who toured us were obviously excited and dedicated to the project.  I am a realist, and I know not every employee who will work at the Lubbock Detention Center will have their zeal and vision... But what a culture of positivism.

Go Lubbock County Sheriff's Department!