At the Tuesday night Monroe County Council meeting, public officials and locals debated an ordinance by county commissioners approving the purchase of a site for the new county jail. Elected officials have two more weeks to show progress toward better conditions for inmates or the ACLU of Indiana says it could sue.
To pass on its first reading, a county ordinance requires unanimous approval. The vote failed five to one, so it’ll come up again at the next council meeting for a simple majority vote.
Councilor Peter Iversen provided the sole yes vote strategically so officials have two more weeks to deliberate. He said he hasn’t decided which way he’ll go.
“If this is rejected, what is the plan to move forward should the ACLU let its settlement agreement drop?” he asked. “There's a lot of questions about next steps I think that we're going to hear in two weeks.”
Listen: County commissioners, council racing to beat deadline for new jail
Seventeen years have passed since Monroe County reached an agreement with the ACLU that it would improve conditions. Now, the county is in a tough position.
The latest settlement with the ACLU of Indiana runs out by May 29, and the civil liberties group said a new lawsuit is on the table. On the other hand, a proposal only exists for one shovel-ready jail site, a property called North Park. It’s criticized for its high price tag and distance from Bloomington services. County council rejected it once before.
Read more: Bloomington Council opposes county jail in North Park ahead of ACLU deadline
Councilor David Henry is a solid no vote on North Park. He introduced and later withdrew an amendment to change the ordinance into a rejection.
Henry said acting hastily means wasting taxpayer dollars.
“We've been basically given an ultimatum in an agreement signed by the Board of Commissioners and the ACLU, which ties our hands to make good fiscal decisions for the county,” he told WFIU/WTIU News. “We just have to weigh that against what consequences, if any: going to trial, being deposed, and finally, putting it to the public.”
But to county commissioner Jody Madeira, the threat of a class action suit means officials no longer have the luxury of time.
She and commissioner Julie Thomas addressed the council to defend their proposal.
“If the litigation continues, Monroe County will certainly have to resolve it through a consent decree or private settlement agreement,” she told WFIU/WTIU. “That will impose deadlines, benchmarks, monitoring, which might put us back at North Park because it's the most viable property, and we'll be in far worse circumstances than we are now because we'll also have to pay lawyers fees – not only for the county, but for the ACLU.”
She added that failing to meet the deadline means the court would enforce immediate remedial measures to improve jail conditions, which could include millions of dollars in repairs and prisoner transfers.
Repairing the jail is not an option entertained by most county officials, who agree that the Zietlow Justice Center is beyond fixing.
It has been plagued by persistent overcrowding, mold and inadequate facilities. Sheriff Ruben Marté shared his frustration with the council.
“What else can I say? What else can I do?” he asked.
Marté said he wasn’t interested in weighing in on the politics of a location.
“Every minute, every day, every hour, there are people in that facility that not everybody in this room sees except me and my staff,” Marté said. “And I’m telling you, it’s very difficult. I’m telling you, it’s getting worse.”
