"I would love for him (Sheriff Ortiz) to concentrate all of his power, his resources, behind law enforcement and let us, commissioner's court, worry about jail operations..." - Commissioner Kevin Wolff(Nevermind the fact that running jail operations is the job of the Sheriff under Texas law...)
Well, folks, its baaaaaaacckkkk.... Commissioners are talking up jail privatization. We touched on the issue on the front page, but I wanted to dedicate a stand alone page to this. Privatization has always been the BCSO's boogie man, the one threat that would quell any employee or uppity union uprising, scare the pants of the newly deputized and start the rumor mill up at full speed.
Sheriff Ortiz has said time and time again that he will not allow the jail to be privatized. The Commissioners must have his consent or the issue of privatization is dead where it stands. Its that simple. For you, the issue then becomes whether or not you believe Sheriff Ortiz and only you can make that determination. For myself, I believe him.
That said, Commissioner Kevin Wolff has been harping this issue lately and appears to be the primary voice behind it even though his dad, Judge Nelson Wolff has already told him that he is pretty much wasting his time. For whatever reason, Commissioner Wolff thinks attacking this particular windmill is the smart thing to do right now despite all of the other issues facing not only the Sheriff's Office, but the for the County as a whole. Back in 2009, Wolff proclaimed that privatizing the jail will save $10 million annually. To my knowledge, he has never said where he gets that figure and given the track record of private corrections companies, I would like to see his homework.
The issue of privatizing jails and prisons is not a new concept and the idea took off in the 80's with the huge influx of people being incarcerated for drug offenses. Communities saw dollar signs on the backs of the inmates and welcomed the private corrections companies with open arms. Then, buyers remorse set in. Once in place, these companies often end up saddling the host Counties or communities with the legal burdens of lawsuits brought forth for abuse, civil rights violations, sexual misconduct and other issues, not to mention a marked decline in the security and safety of the facilities. Doing just a bit of research on private jails and prisons in Texas is overwhelming... So much information is there and numerous studies have been done by disinterested parties to show that the perceived savings typically do not materialize. Check out the links I'm providing at the bottom of this post for more information.
So whats it all really about then? Honestly, I do not know. I suspect, like I'm sure many of you do, that its a power play on the part of Commissioners Court and I'm sure that the Sheriff probably doesn't want to give up part of his legal responsibilities. I don't think Ive ever heard Sheriff Ortiz give the reasons why he will not privatize and I would be interested to hear them. Its commendable that he has taken a stand against the Commissioners and lets hope he won't let us down.
Let me know what you think. Post comments or email me or both.
Let me know what you think. Post comments or email me or both.
Interesting link here.... George Block, President and CEO of Haven for Hope is all for privatizing the jail and has contributed to the blog at MySA.com where he pats the commissioners on the back for this folly. I'm trying to track down an email address for Mr. Block as I would like to provide him some information on why privatization is a spectacularly bad idea, but with all the money that the County has thrown at him for Haven for Hope (FY08-09 Budget was projected for $10,000,000 if I recall correctly), I'm not surprised to see him supporting whatever the Commissioners want. Maybe he should concentrate on addressing security concerns at Haven for Hope and screening their employees a bit better before making ignorant suggestions.
2011 "Kevin Wolff hits a home run" (MySA.com blog writer George Block, President and CEO of Haven For Hope) In support of privatizing the Bexar County Jail
Other Links
2011 "Private Prison Promises Leave Texas Towns In Trouble" (NPR)Texas Prison Bid'ness (Exposing the underbelly of prisons and jails for profit)
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