RECOMMENDATIONS | JAIL OVERCROWDING

Two consultants from U.S. Department of Justice National Institute of Corrections offered these observations at an exit interview Wednesday with various representatives of Mahoning County's criminal justice system:
Finding 1
An openness to change exists, as demonstrated by the establishment of a county Criminal Justice Working Group and the invitation to outsiders to analyze operations.
Recommendations
Review NIC document on Guidelines to Develop Criminal Justice Coordinating Committee.
Keep interest high and meeting fatigue low.
Finding 2
Lack of stability because of fluctuations in available jail beds and funding, conflict between the city and county over jail funding and absence of clear, unified strategy on how to cope.
Recommendations
Accept that the number of beds is less than designated capacity and plan to accommodate that even if additional funds become available.
Widen the view to a "system's" issue vs. "sheriff's" issue.
Develop a stable, permanent funding base for the criminal justice system, including the jail.
Decide on what the number of beds is, not what it should be.
Choose who sets the local policies: outsiders or selves.
Finding 3
Criminal justice system integrity is threatened by the jail-bed shortage, which creates a sense of powerlessness to stem the tide (especially among law enforcement and county and municipal courts) and can undermine public confidence in the ability to maintain public safety.
Recommendations
Develop a correctional strategy.
Allocate jail beds to all components of the local system.
Identify where the jail fits into the continuum of sanctions.
Identify gaps in correctional programming.
Develop and/or expand other sanctions that can be used to manage defendants and offenders.
Finding 4
Limited collaboration, coordination and communication to address common issues; focus has been on quick fixes.
Recommendations
Review NIC's Developing a Criminal Justice Coordinating Committee publication.
Adopt cyclical planning model.
Share political risk.
Finding 5
Limited analytic capability, which hinders subcommittees that need information.
Recommendations
Identify an analyst who can convert data into information.
Gather data and information on which to base policy decisions
Take action on the Analytic Plan (to be included in the final NIS report).
Finding 6
Lack of public education strategy.
Recommendations
Have a designated person communicate with the press on behalf of the system as a whole.
Analyst's information/data could be shared with the public.