I read the Nov. 9 editorial, titled "A tax for what?," and found the editorial criticized the jail over-crowding process from a very narrow point of view. While I took it as a misinformed critique of myself and my colleagues on the Washington County Quorum Court, that is not my primary concern. I feel the editorial dismisses the hard work and countless hours both county leaders and, especially, volunteer citizens have put into this issue. This issue has brought together diverse groups with differing perspectives who are effectively working together in an inspiring manner. So, in defense of the process and its milestones thus far, please allow me to provide a different frame of reference on the issue.
To date, the Quorum Court has been presented with solely doubling the current capacity of the jail at a cost to taxpayers of $38 million, not including the funding of ongoing operations. This plan was widely criticized as a financially unviable option. More broadly, many realize this expansion-only solution is not sustainable. More understanding of the makeup of our inmate population and recidivism is needed before moving forward. For example, we know cases of drug addiction and mental health issues greatly burden our jail. These are issues of public health, and all can agree these would be better addressed outside our jail system. My fear is that a sole focus on jail expansion treats only the symptoms of our increased number of inmates at the cost of considering better solutions for the underlying problems.
In the meantime, reasonable and well-thought-out solutions brought by citizens and leaders have been funded and implemented. These areas include the opening of the Northwest Arkansas Crisis Stabilization Unit, establishment of an ombudsman working to reduce inmate population and funding a comprehensive study of our criminal justice system. Also, the Quorum Court recently approved funding additional positions for the prosecutor and public defender to accelerate adjudication of criminal cases to help reduce our pretrial inmate population, the largest subset of our jail population. These steps allow for flexibility to dedicate efforts to achieving long-term, effective solutions to jail crowding.
The jail population issue is extraordinarily complex. It went without adequate attention and has festered for years, but that neglect cannot force us to rush into an ill-informed solution focused only on jail expansion. The reasons we have a high inmate population are multifaceted, and the solutions needed will also be multifaceted. Those solutions are still coming into focus as we gather information. Every option needs to be thoroughly studied prior to going to the people for additional tax revenue. To simply ask the people to blindly fund an expansion-only solution would be careless and lazy as leaders and has the potential to magnify our jail population issues for the future. It's not effective policy and not a responsible way to approach the people's money.
The challenges that Washington County faces regarding its jail population and criminal justice system sit as an immense burden on my shoulders. It is a decision that will affect many individuals for many years to come. I want everyone to know that dedicated and selfless leaders, both elected officials and citizens, are working very hard to do what's best for Washington County. For lasting solutions to be forged, leaders and citizens need to develop comprehensive solutions, take ownership of proposed solutions, and commit to implementing those solutions. I look forward to that work continuing and invite any and all to become informed and invested in this issue.
Commentary on 11/20/2019