Oxford News

HAMILTON — Sheriff Richard K. Jones claimed last year the Butler County Jail was the "king of the jails." While other jurisdictions had no room, he said his jail had a lot of beds in several locations.

But last week the department informed area police agencies because of the economy, prisoner intake will be limited at the jail.

Starting Friday, July 25, outside police agencies have been requested to call ahead before bringing a fresh arrest to the Butler County Jail, according to a letter sent by Maj. William Stump.

"The current negative economic climate is straining our efforts to remain within the constraints of our budget. The large inmate population housed for all jurisdictions within Butler County has proven challenging and costly," Stump stated in the letter. "The diligent oversight and teamwork by the jail staff and court personnel have been effective, but more help is needed. We are therefore asking for your cooperation in our effort to reduce the local jail population."

Stump said the fees collected for housing prisoners from other agencies has "helped, but it has not given us the ability to house an unlimited number of local inmates."

"We ask that each jurisdiction join the effort to reduce their number of inmates by considering alternatives to incarceration," Stump said.

Stump assured persons arrested on particular charges — such as felony offenses, misdemeanor domestic violence offenses, endangering children or violating protections orders and persons wanted in jurisdictions outside Butler County — would be accepted at the jail.

The sheriff said Wednesday, July 23, that the new policy may mean that some low-level, non-violent offenders may not be accepted at the jail.

"These are tough economic times for everybody," according to a statement issued by Jones. "We all have budgets to watch. Putting people in jail is costly for taxpayers, even if it's just a few days until they can get to court. Alternatives to jail such as ankle bracelet monitoring, probation, reduced bonds, perhaps night court, are all things to be considered. In the meantime, I need to manage my jail like a business. I owe that to the taxpayers of Butler County. We all just need to work together to prevent financial problems down the road."