March 25
March 25, 2009
Vernal Oliver Sr.
March 27, 2009
As the deadline steadily approaches, Lafourche Parish Sheriff Craig Webre said the Five Star Committee needs more time to present its findings to the parish council about a new parish jail.
The committee was given the responsibility of researching the parish’s funding sources and figuring where existing millages can be consolidated or eliminated to funnel funds into improvements to the Lafourche Parish Detention Center.
The Lafourche Parish Council gave the committee one year to review the current financial status of the parish, which includes reports from a disbanded Blue Ribbon Committee and the Nicholls State University economic and finance department. Those reports showed that the parish government should devise a master plan to address its taxing base.
The one-year window is quickly approaching. The group was formed last April. However, the committee is not ready to make a sound decision about the new jail at this time.
“The commission is on its own initiative on a couple of things aside from the original charges to examine the parish funding,” Webre said. “But the committee knew within a few meetings that we needed to back up and expand our focus.”
The group asked the council to redefine the scope of its work in December to examine the parish financial structure as well as what it will take to actually build a jail in the parish.
“In order for us to do the job they asked of us,” the sheriff said, “we have to answer the questions that come before funding like what kind of jail should we build and how many beds will the jail hold. Then we tackle how much it will cost.”
“Looking at the money issue now is like putting the cart before the horse,” Webre added.
The council, spearheaded by District 7 Councilman L. Philip Gouaux, granted the committee’s requests. However they did not expand the time frame in which they wanted answers.
The committee still has to present a report to the council at one of its April meetings, either on April 14 or 27.
“Developing a committee like this will allow us to gain data on where we can consolidate some of our boards in the parish,” Gouaux said. “The finding will help us support the building of a jail and make Lafourche Parish a more efficient and business-oriented parish.”
To speed along the process, the committee separated itself into two subgroups, one group to look at the finances and another to look at the operations of a jail, which includes construction.
One consensus from the group is to hire a consultant from the National Institution of Corrections to design a comprehensive plan for the construction of a new jail.
“I think it would be a mistake for us to just build for today,” Webre said. “We need to think about the jail 20 to 30 years from now. The science in planning a jail is to project the demographic that will be based on future need.”
Webre said the Lafourche Parish Sheriff’s Office is putting up $10,000 for the consultant. The group will ask the council to match the funds, totaling $20,000.
The NIC is a federal agency that helps correctional facilities examine how to construct new jails.
“When building a new jail there is a far amount of research and planning and the NIC has put a lot of effort in to make sure that each correctional facility that seeks their help goes about it in an efficient way,” Webre said.
The parish government allots $1 million annually for the maintenance of the detention center and inmate medical and housing expenses. Parish President Charlotte Randolph said, “The Five Star Committee is working hard on this, and I am impressed with their progress. They are very serious about assessing the jail and what it will take to build a new one.”
“The dilemma in the end will be the funding,” she added.
The detention center was built in 1976 and was designed to house 76 inmates, said Assistant Warden Cortrell Davis. Today, the facility has been reconfigured to handle more than triple the load – 243 inmates.
The Lafourche Parish Jail houses offenders arrested by the state police, City of Thibodaux Police, port commission, Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries agents and authorities from the parish’s various cities and towns.
The jail is sectioned to house hardened criminals in single-man cells, less violent offenders in four-man cells and women prisoners in a separate wing with four-person cells. At most, the jail holds 35 women at any one time, Davis said.
“We have always added inmates, but never done anything to improve their support,” the assistant warden said. “We need to do something with the plumbing, kitchen, laundry room, storage area, learning center and the locking system.”
Virtually every realm of the antiquated 31-year-old facility is outdated or in need of repair, he said.
Webre agrees it will take the entire Lafourche Parish government to fix the problem with the jail.
“Everyone in the judicial system has a vested interest in the jail,” he said. “The courts and the judges who sentence people cannot do their jobs without a parish jail. The district attorney’s office prosecutes people for convictions. The parish government provides general health, safety and welfare of its citizens and for them to fulfill their duties, a parish jail is needed.”
Lt. Sean Scott, administrative coordinator at the Lafourche Parish Detention Center, shows Five-Star Committee members the trustee inmates’ cells. The cell has a hole in the floor caused by leaky pipes underneath. * Photo by KEYON K. JEFF
