Cape County jail administrator details challenges facing facility

"Right now, many counties in Missouri are short-staffed; it's a problem all across the country, actually," explained Richard Rushin, jail administrator for Cape Girardeau County Sheriff's Office.

Overcrowding and understaffing have made it difficult for Rushin, who's served since March 2021, to find enough programs to keep inmates engaged.

"There aren't many special programs they do," Rushin said of the inmates held in the jail at 216 N. Missouri St. in Jackson.

"[But] we're providing them [electronic] tablets, so that's gonna give them opportunities to read the Bible, check out jobs, fill out applications, listen to music and watch movies."

Beyond the tablets, which are provided to inmates at no cost to the public, Rushin said board games such as chess and checkers are also available, along with packs of cards. Jail cells are grouped into a total of nine "pods," and each pod is equipped with a television.

Richard Rushin, jail administrator for Cape Girardeau County Sheriff's OfficeSubmitted

Additionally, Rushin explained inmates are afforded "at least an hour of rec (recreation time)" every day, an hour usually spent indoors. Although "basic exercises" are permitted, Rushin said weights and other gym equipment are not.

In the 1960s, Rushin's father taught a shop class for inmates at a Denver federal correctional facility, crafting everything from Christmas figures to model airplanes, even taking the prisoners to a Denver Broncos game. Today, however, short-staffing, overcrowding and the management of public opinion are challenges.

"Nowadays, people would really frown on taking inmates to a football game, because they feel (prison) is a place to go and do your punishment. People who can't afford to go to a professional football game might not want to see (prisoners) going," Rushin said, adding that many things have changed since his 22-year hiatus from law enforcement in 1999.

"A lot of good changes and a lot of bad changes. There used to be a lot of mental health hospitals where people could get help. Nowadays, there's people on waiting lists," Rushin explained. "Unfortunately, when people violate laws from being homeless, like trespassing, they end up in our jails, and our staff have to deal with their mental issues. It's countrywide. We do the best we can, but when people have mental issues like that, being in a jail facility is probably the worst place for them."

Rushin estimated 15% to 20% of inmates are in need of psychiatric medication. Once drug addiction is factored in, however, Rushin suggested the number of inmates struggling with mental health could be much higher.

Often, there just doesn't seem to be enough room for them all.

"Our jail was built to hold about 218 inmates, and we're sitting at 260, 270 every day. I'd say 90 to 95% of people we have in here are felons. There's just no room for the misdemeanors right now," Rushin said.

When he began working, Rushin recalled having 12 or 13 deputies doing a job requiring nearly four times that number. Rushin has since increased the number of deputies to that target. Yet challenges remain. For example, the demands of solitary confinement are sometimes necessary more often than space can accommodate.

"You have people, sometimes, that are violent towards staff and other inmates. The only option you have is to put them by themselves. My staff does a great job of communicating with them, but for some people, that's their outlet — they'd rather be in (solitary) than with the population. But we've only got six cells that we can utilize. At times, those are full. It's a big challenge for our staff," Rushin explained.

To overcome capacity issues, Rushin said county jails will trade prisoners back and forth.

"Believe it or not, a lot of the time, we take that other person from that other place, and they act better for us. The change of scenery helps them," Rushin said.

Still, he said he would prefer to solve the underlying issues of understaffing and overcrowding, which he estimated affects as much as 80% of neighboring county jails.