Godfrey Announces Town Hall Meetings for Jail Discussion

BY MELANIE BUCK –

Polk County Sheriff Mike Godfrey announced two dates for town hall style meetings that will center around discussion for a proposed $10.9 million new jail facility at the monthly Polk County Republican Meeting on Monday, April 13. Godfrey said the first of the two meetings will take place in Cove on April 20, and the second will take place at the Polk County Jail on April 27. Godfrey said that visitors will be able to tour the jail at the second meeting so that current issues can be seen first hand.

During his presentation to the Polk County Republican Party, Godfrey explained some of those current issues and why, if a new jail is not constructed, that the current facility will be shut down by the state. Godfrey explained that the current jail is 35 years old and was built to hold only 26 people. Pointing out overcrowding issues, Godfrey said, “In 2014, we averaged 39 people a day in the jail with another 10 out on ankle monitors.” He explained situations where some criminals are allowed to remain free simply because there is not a place to put them.

Being unable to segregate inmates is a huge concern with the state, citing that not only should males and females be segregated but also violent/non-violent, misdemeanor/felony, sex offenders must be segregated and often times medical cases, such as those infected with certain diseases must also be segregated. “When we can’t segregate, we are opening ourselves up for a lawsuit,” said Godfrey.

Other warnings given from the state have been that there is no exercise yard and no Halon suppression system above the four-burner cook stove that is used to cook inmate meals. Also, there are no exterior doors in the west wing. “If there’s a fire in the kitchen, we have no way to get them out,” said Godfrey.

Sheriff Godfrey also gave examples of what would happen if the taxes to build the new jail don’t pass with voters on May 12. “We would only jail violent felons and could only jail them in other counties such as Sevier, Scott, Garland, and Howard Counties.” Sheriff Godfrey explained that there are three court days a week and the process of bringing inmates from where they are jailed to court and back takes valuable deputies out of the county for hours at a time and leaves the county vulnerable. “Say we put 10 inmates in different jails, every time we have court, an officer will have to drive to that jail, bring the inmate to court, and if the judge decides to keep them, the officer has to transport them back to that jail. Every time an officer arrests someone for battery, a deputy will have to transport that prisoner to another county. That is time that you do not have officers on the street. If I only have two deputies on shift and one is transporting a prisoner, that leaves one officer to cover the county. If he is on a call in Cherry Hill and a call comes in from Wickes, we’re just in trouble.”

As the Pulse reported, the site for the proposed jail was announced at Polk County Quorum Court in March. Deputy Sheriff Scott Sawyer presented the plan to the Court and stated that land has been found and upon voter approval of the ¼ and ¾ cent sales and use taxes, the new jail will be constructed on property behind Papa’s Mexican Café. The new jail will be built so that no prisoners will be seen by the public with a sally port system in place and solid walls being built around the outside exercise yard.

“We have the perfect opportunity right now; the rates on bonds are low, we have a County Judge that has a good construction background that can help oversee that and help us with the development of it, and we have the support of the City of Mena,” said Godfrey.

He added, “If I could buy a used jail that would fit 100 people and have it dropped in Polk County, I would. I don’t need a new jail, I just need one that will hold 100 people and I need it to meet minimum state standards, I need it to be safe, and I need it to be secure. I’m not about having a brand new jail, I’m about keeping Polk County safe.”

After a previous meeting, The Pulse asked Sheriff Godfrey about critics who advocate the use of the former Mena Middle School building located across Mena Street from the courthouse. Godfrey explained that he is not even aware of a construction company that would retrofit an existing building to match state requirements and if there were, Godfrey said, he suspected it would be cost prohibitive due to the concrete construction of the building. “They would have to be busting out concrete for plumbing lines, electric lines…and in the end, you would still have spent millions on a building that is over 60 years old.”

The town hall meetings are scheduled for Monday, April 20, at 7 p.m. in Cove City Hall and at Polk County Jail on Monday, April 27, at 7 p.m.

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Jeri Pearson

Jeri is the News Director for Pulse Multi-Media and Editor of The Polk County Pulse. She has 10 years of experience in community focused journalism and has won multiple press association awards.

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