Finance committee satisfied with jail proposal

YOUNGSTOWN — City officials say they are satisfied with a tentative agreement to board their misdemeanor prisoners in the Mahoning County jail.

At a council finance committee meeting today, council members asked questions about the proposal, mostly related to its cost and why no other community in the county has to pay to house its misdemeanor prisoners.

Under the proposal, the county would house the first 71 city misdemeanor prisoners beginning May 1 with the city’s only costs being about $3 a day for meals for each inmate, plus medical costs not covered by the county’s health insurance.

Beginning with the 72nd city misdemeanor inmate and until the city reaches its ceiling of 221 inmates, the city would pay a flat fee of $68.84 per prisoner per day.

The city’s current agreement with the county has it paying $68.84 a day to house inmates at the jail charged with or convicted of violating city ordinances.

The proposal calls for the city to pay to house inmates at the jail and the county misdemeanant jail, expected to reopen in August after being closed for two years, for not only city ordinance violators but those charged with state misdemeanors.

For full story, see Wednesday's Vindicator and Vindy.com.