A lawsuit filed by the City of Pine Bluff against Jefferson County over jail-bed space fees has not been settled, and now the two sides are headed to court.
City Attorney Althea Scott, on behalf of the city of Pine Bluff, filed a lawsuit against Jefferson County, Judge Gerald Robinson, Sheriff Lafayette Woods Jr. and all current Quorum Court members in circuit court in response to Woods' request for the city to pay $180,000 in jail fees for the year 2021.
The lawsuit claims that, in a previous lawsuit between the city and the county, a settlement agreement was reached between the two pertaining to city inmates held in the Jefferson County Detention Facility.
Pine Bluff paid approximately $960,900 from March 2006 through December 2008 to the county for a minimum of 75 jail beds.
The city also had first priority on an additional 30 beds.
The agreement said that once the new county jail was opened, the city would have the use of 75 beds and would only be charged a daily fee if more beds than allotted to the city were used.
In addition to paying almost $1 million, the city supported the county's proposed tax to pay for the new jail and its operation. and said a Memorandum of Understanding in Support of the One-half Cent Jail Tax between the county and the city from County Judge Jack Jones set out that 120 beds would be shared by the city and other municipalities with Pine Bluff allotted 90 beds.
The addition of the 400 beds would create more free jail beds, with the agreement saying that the usage of the beds from the pool would be at no cost to the city.
In December 2020, the Jefferson County Quorum Court voted to authorize the county to impose fees for the use of jail facilities and services of $30 per day for each inmate received from any city.
The city received an invoice for the month of January 2021 in the amount of $9,780 and $6,150 for the month of February.
According to the current lawsuit filed by the city, the ordinance neglects to mention the existing settlement agreement between the parties.
The lawsuit states the city never exceeded the number of beds allotted to it, and the county is in breach of the settlement agreement entered by the parties in 2006.
In an answer to the complaint filed May 6 by Attorney C. Burt Newell, the county admitted to the payments from the prior agreement but denied several allegations filed by the city which weren't detailed in their answer.
Retired Jefferson County Circuit Clerk Judge David Laser has been assigned to hear the following case after orders of recusals and assignments were filed by Circuit Judge Robert Wyatt Jr., Jodi Dennis, Mac Norton, Leon Jamison, Earnest Brown Jr. and Alex Guynn.
"Based on advice by the city attorney, the city has decided that the court should determine whether the city is obligated to pay these fees," said Mayor Shirley Washington in a memo to the City Council. "It is our belief that the current agreement regarding this matter -- the Release and Settlement Agreement -- continues to be valid and binding to all parties."
Under the agreement, Washington said there is no basis for the city to provide such funding and said the city attorney has stated that the legislative auditor would find the city is not authorized to make such payments due to the existing contract.
"If the city issues such payments it could result in the city receiving audit points," said Washington.
She added that the city attorney advised that Pine Bluff would expose itself to a lawsuit for illegal exaction by members of the public.
"The county disagrees with this legal option," she said.
According to Judge Gerald Robinson, meetings have been had several times regarding this matter.
He said the meeting held Monday was a waste of time for both parties.
"It appears that it will not be resolved unless we go to court on this," Robinson said.
"We thought that we had it worked out, but the meeting today was appealed. I was hoping that we would get it worked out, but that's not the case so we'll move forward to court proceedings."