Richmond County deputies are finding creative ways to limit the number of suspects being brought to the detention center to help reduce the jail population.
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Deputies are still bringing in violent offenders and drunk drivers, such as Dominque Thompson, who has been sought since October for allegedly shooting four rounds into his mother’s vehicle.
But if local troublemakers are not following a deputy’s order, that officer is no longer reaching for handcuffs to haul them in for disorderly conduct. Deputies may try to resolve the issue instead. And people who have been wanted on minor probation violations for months may have to wait a few more months before being arrested for it.
The alternative measures are being implemented to reduce the daily count at the jail, authorities say.
An analysis by The Jail Report of arrests shows that bookings are down over 50 percent from this time last year. During the last week in January 2020, there were 183 new arrests. During the same period in 2021 that number dropped to 89.
On Monday, for instance, the sheriff’s office booked six people. There was a hit and run by a drunk driver; a domestic violence incident; a convicted felon who led officers on a chase; a reckless driver who didn’t have a license; a pub worker who stole a customer’s gun, and that young man who is accused of shooting his mother’s car.
The average daily jail population has been above average for much of the last two years, according to the sheriff’s office.
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The maximum capacity is 1,050 inmates and the jail’s daily population averages over 950. Of those 950, over 800 are felonies awaiting trial.
Many have been sitting in jail for over two years and still have not been indicted. The incarceration levels are reaching a point where the safety of the inmates and staff are constantly being evaluated, authorities said.
Jail leaders say they don’t want to find themselves involved in a federal consent decree due to jail overcrowding.
The sheriff’s office has tried to address the problem. But a request for funding to add 200 additional bed spaces for low level offenders in the upcoming SPLOST was not approved. So these alternatives to incarceration allows the deputies to exercise discretion as well as sound judgement when dealing with an offender.
Meanwhile, COVID-19 has taken its toll on the jail. Since the pandemic began, 49 inmates and 61 correctional staff have tested positive, sheriff’s Sgt. William McCarty said. None have died.
“I am told the most we had out in the past two or three weeks was 12-15,” sheriff’s Sgt. McCarty said Thursday by email. “As of right now, there are seven out. Two will return in a couple of days.”
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Nationwide, arrests are also down since the pandemic began. Many law enforcement agencies have reduced police-initiated arrest such as traffic stops and stop and frisks. That minimizes officers’ contact with the public and possible roles in spreading the coronavirus.
In Columbia County, arrest numbers have been lower as well, mainly because of COVID. Officers have been instructed for a while to rely more on tickets for some offenses, such as suspended licenses. Oftentimes, after court, the offender would then go through the booking process.
The jail in Appling has not seen any community spread of COVID-19, sheriff’s Maj. Steve Morris said. The agency has set aside a unit for new arrivals who don’t make bond. Those inmates are kept there for two weeks before being moved to general population once they are cleared, Maj. Morris said.
“We are pretty much back to normal now,” he said. “So, you will start seeing those numbers come back up.”
Greg Rickabaugh is the Jail Report Contributor for The Augusta Press. Reach him at greg.rickabaugh@theaugustapress.com
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