The move will cost county taxpayers $640,000, and that's just the initial investment, enough for jail officials to turn the lights on. Operating the 184-bed wing, and providing drug treatment, vocational training and other programs, will cost another $4.8 million per year.
Tuesday's premature decision marks an election-year about-face by the GOP council majority.
Last fall, the council denied Sheriff Jim Winder's request to reopen Oxbow, and instead budgeted $685,000 for a deliberate, detailed and decisive study that would have explored all facets of the county's criminal justice programs, including manpower and facilities needs. It would have provided all the facts the council needed to make wise decisions.
The plan was to have been in hand by this November, before the 2009 budget was adopted. But the study stalled - county officials have yet to issue a request for proposals. And while the county was dragging feet, crime surged and the 2,000-bed Adult Detention Center filled up faster than a downtown hotel on an LDS Conference weekend.
Winder recently released 14 misdemeanants early to alleviate overcrowding, and announced that more than 10,000 arrestees have been freed immediately after booking in the past three years due to a shortage of beds. And that led to a knee-jerk reaction by the council, one that may have more to do with the upcoming election than actual needs.
Still, the move looks good on paper, and in the papers. As a rule, law-abiding citizens don't want criminals roaming the streets, and the statistics seem to justify the move.
But these aren't hardened, violent criminals who are being set free. The increase in crime is a temporary, seasonal spike. The county's alternative-to-incarceration initiatives - ankle monitoring, day reporting and drug-treatment programs - could easily be expanded. And any overflow of prisoners could be channeled to jails in other counties for a nominal fee. Or maybe not.
The fact is we don't know, you don't know, and until the study is completed, neither does the council. It's not too late to wait. The council should reverse its decision.
