CLEARFIELD- Population numbers are up at the Clearfield County Jail and members of the Prison Board, including Commissioner John Sobel, had a discussion on the factors that play into the situation.
District Attorney Ryan Sayers said that he has seen a serious uptick in child sexual assaults and child sexual abuse material possession as well as other crimes, especially driving under the influence or while intoxicated.
He noted that there’s usually an ebb and flow over the year, but this year it seems to have ballooned this summer and he is hoping things calm down a bit in the autumn and winter.
President Judge Frederic Ammerman agreed and also said that they see people coming in that once had different resources that are either no longer available or hard to access.
He and Sayers both noted a need for mental health facilities across the state, more homeless shelters and resources, more help for handicapped individuals and the elderly and so on.
Facilities and programs continue to close and lose funding and budgets are stretched from local to statewide.
The population at CCJ for July began with 161. There were 137 committed, 115 released and the month ended with 183.
The population as of Tuesday morning was 178 with 12 out of county, 11 of which are expected to return Wednesday.
There are 37 inmates on home detention and five on work release, where they work during the day and spend the night and weekends at the jail. Warden Krista Oates said she expects three more to join the work release program.
Good news for the jail and court system included the fact that the jail is fully staffed with 32 full time and three part time corrections officers and the two open probation positions have also been filled.
There are still two open positions in the domestic relations office.
Also, work on the new lock system will begin Monday and Oates said that she cannot give a date when it will be completed, but she hopes once the work begins it will move quickly.
There was also one extraordinary incident where an inmate on suicide watch had somehow acquired two mattresses instead of the standard one.
The inmate refused to give up the second mattress and to obey CO commands to be cuffed so that staff could retrieve the mattress, and so an inert pepper ball round needed to be deployed.
The next Prison Board meeting will be held September 16 in the conference room at noon.
