Benton County Jail Considers Switch To Hot Food

The Benton County Jail may soon serve inmates hot meals, said Capt. Jeremy Guyll.

The change hinges on how much it will cost the county -- including buying warming equipment, said Chief Deputy Rob Holly.

At A Glance

A Day Of Food

A typical menu at the Benton County Jail would be fresh fruit, cold cereal, hard boiled egg and coffee cake with whipped margarine for breakfast; ham salad with Miracle Whip on wheat bread with shredded lettuce, gelatin and milk for lunch; and peanut butter and jelly sandwich on wheat bread, potato salad and a cookie for supper.

Source: Criminal Detention Facilities Review Committees

By The Numbers

Jail Food Budgets

• The Benton County Jail served 569 inmates cold meals Aug. 13. The county has budgeted about $575,000 to feed inmates this year.

• The Washington County Detention Center served 633 inmates hot meals Aug. 13. The county has budgeted $642,000 to feed inmates this year.

* Both jail budgets run close to actual expenditures, administrators said.

Source: Staff Report

Questions for Sheriff Kelley Cradduck were referred to Holly.

Holly said he estimates the jail would need about $30,000 in equipment to keep food at the temperature the state requires. A proposal from the jail's food service vendor showing costs isn't yet complete, Guyll and Holly said. Cost is the top concern, Holly said.

"To me, right now, it's a money matter," Holly said. "If it doesn't cost us anything extra, then why not do it?"

Sheriff's Office administrators moved to consider changing to hot food after local church members began pushing for change earlier this year. The state Jail Standards Committee is also deciding whether to mandate some type of hot-food service.

Two jails in Arkansas serve only cold food, said Danny Hickman, coordinator for the Criminal Detention Facilities Review Committees. The jail has served cold food since at least 1998, Guyll said.

Most Standards Committee members have concerns about serving only cold food to inmates and want some type of hot meals served, Hickman said. Holly said the Standards Committee shouldn't require hot food be served.

A public hearing on jail standards is expected this year, Hickman said.

Cradduck brought up switching to hot food during an Aug. 12 county committee meeting, said Kevin Harrison of Rogers, a justice of the peace. Harrison said the Quorum Court would be open to considering the idea. The money could come from jail commissary revenue, so the county wouldn't have to spend more on the service, he said.

The county also could accept donations explicitly for covering hot food services, George Spence, county attorney, said.

The Rev. Roger Joslin, vicar at All Saints' Episcopal Church in Bentonville, said his church would consider donating if it meant serving hot food to inmates.

Joslin said he's passionate about helping inmates get hot food.

"They are our children, for the most part," Joslin said. "We want them to be treated humanely."

The cold-food-only policy at the jail has drawn support and criticism for years, Holly said. Joslin brought up the issue with former Sheriff Keith Ferguson but saw no change. Now, he's hopeful for change under Cradduck, he said.

Cradduck and Guyll met with Joslin earlier this year, Guyll said. The idea to allow Joslin's church to serve hot food to inmates was initially well received, but problems arose. Obstacles included meeting dietary standards, removing food allergies for about 50 inmates and providing food already under contract, Guyll said.

In a July email provided by Joslin, Cradduck wrote he wanted to continue to consider a switch to hot food at the jail despite problems "because it is simply the right thing to do." He said the process may take longer than he and Joslin would like.

Guyll asked the jail food vendor, CMB Managed Services, to look into costs for switching to hot meals. The proposal should be ready any time, he said.

"I have no issue with inmates having hot meals," Guyll said. "We just have to have the money in place and the contract with the food service to do so."

Hickman said hot food doesn't have to be costly. Hickman said he thought beans were served for about 75 cents per tray just a few years ago, he said. Hickman served seven terms as Boone County sheriff before leaving office at the end of 2012.

Based on Washington County's tray price, Benton County needs about $160,000 more per year to pay for hot food at the jail, Holly said. Benton County Jail serves three cold meals per day at about 89 cents per tray, Guyll and Holly said. The Washington County Detention Center serves three hot meals a day at about $1.16 per tray, said Maj. Randall Denzer, jail administrator.

"All we are doing at this point is doing a comparison to see what it would look like if we did (switch)," Holly said.

The jail's food vendor contract will be up for bid at the end of this year anyway, Holly said. However, officials aren't willing to take on more costs because the Sheriff's Office is facing a 3 percent budget reduction as the county struggles to pay for ambulance service, Holly said.

The cold meals meet nutritional requirements set by the state, Holly said.

Inmates have complained about only getting cold food or poor diets at the jail for years, but any lawsuits brought up are usually dismissed in court, said Jason Owens, an attorney with Rainwater, Holt & Sexton representing the Benton County Sheriff's Office.

In 2008, an inmate sued after losing weight, claiming he went from 413 pounds to 308 pounds, but the suit was dropped after the inmate was caught giving his food away, according to court records. Two other cases since 1999 that tangentially mention cold food concerns at the jail fizzled in court, according to news reports and court records.

All meals at the jail are certified by a dietitian, Guyll said. Some inmates gain weight in the jail, not lose it, Holly said.

"There are some people who say 'Cold meals? Oh, my gosh, that's terrible,' but I can guarantee you that no one is in here starving," Holly said. "No matter what the meals served, there is nothing spectacular about the meals being served in jails anywhere."

No lawsuits related to cold food service at the jail are under way, Owens said.

Hickman and Denzer said they believe serving hot food has other benefits that create a safer jail atmosphere. Inmates are at all-time lows when they get to jail and don't need much to overreact, Denzer said. Hot food keeps inmates calmer because people with warm, full stomachs are less likely to get into fights, Hickman said. That means fewer opportunities for deputies to be injured.

Benton County residents should think about what they want for their own children who end up in jail when considering hot or cold food, Denzer said.

"How would they like their family treated if they were in here?" Denzer said.

NW News on 08/21/2014

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