SIKESTON DECISION TO CLOSE CITY JAIL WILL IMPACT COUNTY

SIKESTON -- A decision by Sikeston city officials to close the city jail could prove costly to Scott County government.

Scott County officials said Wednesday that the closing of the city jail means the county will have to accommodate more prisoners in its jail at Benton or pay to house them in county jails in neighboring counties.

Sikeston city officials told the Scott County Commission Tuesday that they plan to close the city jail Feb. 1.

Sikeston city officials said recently that the jail was being closed as a cost-saving move. Under Missouri law, cities are not required to maintain jails.

City Manager Steve Borgsmiller suggested the move could reduce the city's liability insurance. Sikeston currently pays nearly $47,000 annually in liability insurance for its police and fire operations.

The city plans to close the jail and construct three holding cells so prisoners could be held there before being transported to the Scott County or New Madrid County jails. The city of Sikeston straddles the Scott County and New Madrid line.

The Scott County Jail can accommodate a maximum of 48 male prisoners. When a woman must be incarcerated, it lowers the maximum capacity because she must be confined in a separate area from the men.

A sheriff's department spokesman said the jail operates at near capacity, housing 43 to 45 prisoners a day.

Sheriff Bill Ferrell said the county already is having to transport many of its prisoners to neighboring counties.

The closing of the Sikeston city jail will mean more work for the sheriff's department, which will probably require additional staff, he said Wednesday.

"I don't think there is any way you can get around it," he said. "We are already at the point we probably need an additional person anyway."

Under the current arrangement, some defendants are incarcerated briefly in the city jail and then are released on bond without having to even step foot in the county jail.

Ferrell said Sikeston is a busy place in terms of crime and arrests. "Half of the population of this county is here in Sikeston," he said. "The Office of Probation and Parole is here in Sikeston."

Ferrell said one "stop gap" solution might be for the county to consider operating the city jail. He said the 14-bed facility could help alleviate overcrowding at the county jail and help with the processing of prisoners.

"Everybody is talking about a solution to the problem. This might be a temporary solution to it," he said.

Ferrell said county officials discussed the possibility of expanding the county jail or building a new one three years ago. But in the end, they elected not to pursue it. The decision to close the city jail will likely prompt county officials to reconsider the issue, Ferrell said.

Some information for this story was provided by the Sikeston Standard-Democrat.