Built in 1991, the county jail was born in controversy and it has never receded. The thoughtless design and shoddy construction ensured that the county jail would be beset with problems for the entirety of its use. Some of the issues that have repeatedly been documented include visible mold (its looks like hair growing from the ceiling), plumbing issues, overcrowding, doors that don’t lock, blind spots, and bed bugs. In 2008, the federal government removed all of its inmates housed there because of dangerous conditions and have never returned. In addition, the Department of Justice monitored the jail for over a decade. It is a monument to the corruption and lack of accountability and transparency that are hallmarks of county government in Oklahoma. Recently, interested parties in Oklahoma undertook to remove the county jail from the Oklahoma County Sheriff's authority and place it under the Oklahoma County Jail Trust Authority. A remarkably complicated process completed in July, there is not enough evidence to conclude whether this change will substantially improve the lives of those incarcerated there or criminal justice in the county.
Oklahoma County Jail Basics
Average Daily Population: 1700 Demographics: Unknown Budget: $30,218,508 Boss: Greg Williams, Contact information unavailable Accountable to: Oklahoma County Jail Trust Authority Members: M.T. Barry, Jim Couch, Sue Arnall, Tricia Everest, Francie Ekwerekwu, Ben Brown, Todd Lamb, Kevin Calvey, P.D. Taylor Meet the Members
Oklahoma County Jail/ Jail Trust/ Board of County Commissioners
Bail Percentage of individuals held in the county jail because they cannot afford bail: 80% This can also be called pretrial detention. The vast majority of individuals in the jail are there not because they have been convicted of a crime in a court of law but because they cannot afford to pay the fee to be released while the case makes it way through the court system. The person may be innocent or the charges may be dropped but the individual's life, along with the lives of the individual's family, is completely disrupted. The chance to maintain employment which would better allow the individual to pay the high cost of being involved in the criminal legal system largely vanishes once an individual is not capable of paying for bail.
The US and the Philippines are the only countries in the world that allow for-profit bail companies.
The person facing a charge is given a bail amount and that person can either stay in jail or contract with a for-profit bail company (a 2 billion dollar a year industry comprised primarily of large corporations). The person will pay the company ten percent and the bail company doesn’t ACTUALLY pay any money to the court; they just promise that you will appear or they will pay.
There are usually about 6 million people in local jails awaiting trial because they cannot afford bail.
* Prison Policy Initiative and Vera Justice Institute High Cost of Food and Phone Calls While individuals are housed in the Oklahoma county jail, they may eat the substandard meals but if they have family members and friends willing, they may have money placed in their commissary account. The commissary allows them to supplement their diet and buy from a minimal selection of health and hygiene products. Family members may also pay to talk to the individual. Because the commissary and the phone services are operated by for-profit, private vendors, the cost of both is often so significant that they are limited in accessing the services.
Price Sample*: Cost for services: commissary/ phone calls On site video visit, $3.75 for 15 minutes Remote video visit, $7.50 for 15 minutes Vienna sausages (5), $1.72 4oz beans and rice, $1.20 8oz Doritos, $2.43 *Research conducted by author