Friday, January 27, 2012
YOUNGSTOWN
The candidates for Mahoning County sheriff weighed in on video arraignments Thursday, with two of them saying they would staff video arraignments if elected to the job.
Poland Township Police Chief Brian Goodin and former Youngstown Police Chief Jimmy Hughes said they want the video arraignments to continue. Jerry Greene, the sheriff department’s director of jail services, said he supports Sheriff Randall Wellington’s decision to end video arraignments Feb. 6 for Youngstown Municipal Court.
“I’ve seen it all happen firsthand. Right now, video arraignment is a nonmandated service. ... I support the sheriff’s decision,” said Greene, who compared the decision to running a struggling business that cuts nonessential services to stay in the black.
Goodin said at a Thursday press conference that if elected, he would look inside the department to find funding for video arraignments.
He said he agreed with safety concerns that have been voiced by Youngstown judges and other officials about the dangers of prisoners being in the courtroom near victims’ family or others waiting for their case to be heard, Goodin said.
He also said it can be dangerous for deputy sheriffs, reminding people of Deputy Sonny Litch, who was killed in 1981 while transporting an inmate in downtown Youngstown.
“I would do it myself if I had to,” Goodin said of staffing video arraignments.
Hughes said video arraignments would continue if he is elected, and he questioned the seemingly sudden announcement by Wellington.
“There was never a hint that they were not able to do their jobs by maintaining [video arraignments],” Hughes said.
“The way I look at it, when they [deputies] get a prisoner ready for transport for Youngstown police to pick up, there’s more time consumed doing that than getting them ready for video arraignment,” Hughes said.
He said video arraignments are necessary.
“There’s enough manpower and services in place to continue it without anything being shut down. Obviously the real gist is ‘Give us more money,’” Hughes said.
Wellington had requested $19.6 million this year for the department, but county commissioners allotted him $14.1 million.
Greene, who has been endorsed by Wellington, disagreed with Goodin and Hughes’ assessments.
“It absolutely was not a stunt and was not political grandstanding. I believe Goodin’s conference was grandstanding,” Greene said. He added that although he would seek additional revenue sources if elected, such as housing fugitives caught by the U.S. Marshals and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he thinks the county could give more to the department.
“We need additional revenues to our budget,” he said. “There’s a $4.4 million carry-over, and it was an unforeseen increase. I’m amazed that [people] aren’t outraged. Open [the jail] up and fund us.”
The commissioners have said the carry-over likely will go into the commissioners’ general fund administration code, where it will be added to the $398,910 the commissioners put in that code Dec. 22. The commissioners budgeted expenses out of the administration code at about $4.1 million.
That code pays for numerous expenses, such as unemployment insurance, workers’ compensation, interest on the county’s debt and matching funds for state and federal grants.