Mark Stoops, County Commissioner candidate
News Release
Stoops for Commissioner
Thomas for County Council
Democratic candidates Mark Stoops (Commissioner, District 2) and Julie Thomas (Monroe County Council At-Large) held a joint press conference on Saturday October 4. With the Monroe County Jail in the background, the two candidates outlined their opposition to the construction of a new jail in Monroe County.
Both candidates believe that the County cannot afford to build a new jail. The estimated cost of building a new facility is between $ 40 and $ 60 million. In addition to the approximately $ 3 million each year in debt service, cost to operate the facility is likely to exceed the operational costs in the County’s current jail facility. According to Stoops, “This brings the grand total of new funding up to $ 6 million each year – which is roughly a $ 25% in our County budget just to warehouse more people in a jail.” Thomas noted, “This debt and the higher cost of maintenance is an increased burden on our community which we cannot afford.”
Stoops noted that with the predicted additional expense of a new jail facility, there is no additional money allocated in this figure for additional programs and services. “I would ask the all of the elected officials – County Commissioners, County Councilors, and Judges – who have voiced a support for $ 6 million each year to build a new jail to commit instead to invest $ 2 million each year to properly fund and maintain programs proved to reduce recidivism in our County along with finally building the Juvenile Treatment Facility.”
“As a community, we ask our Judges and our law enforcement agencies to solve our social problems. If we adequately address poverty, mental health issues, addiction, unemployment and underemployment, and the need for educational and vocational training, we will go a long way toward reducing our jail population,” Thomas said. Stoops added, “The jail is not the place to house people with mental health and drug addiction problems.”
Our current jail is overcrowded due to a high recidivism rate. Thomas pointed out that in the one-day census taken in the Monroe County jail in June 2007, of the 251 inmates just three were in jail for the first time.
Julie Thomas, County Council candidate
Stoops and Thomas both proposed an increase in funding to address mental health problems, treat addictions, and provide vocational and educational programming to help break the cycle of poverty. Thomas hopes to engage existing grassroots organizations such as Citizens for Effective Justice, New Leaf/New Life, and Decarcerate Monroe County in efforts to help the County define community needs and provide guidance on alternative programming. “Thanks to groups such as these, our community has an active coalition of folks who are opposed to building a new jail and involved and efforts to reduce recidivism,” Thomas said.
Stoops noted, “Prevention programs have proven to cost one-sixth of the expense of incarceration. We can leverage that money to drastically reduce the long-term criminal justice costs for Monroe County.”
Stoops, Democratic candidate for Monroe County Commissioners, District 2, served on the Monroe County Council for 8 years, and he was also a past president of the Council. While on the County Council, he served as the Council’s representative to the Community Corrections Advisory Board and the Youth Services Board. He was a founding member of the Monroe County Criminal Justice Coordinating Council.
Thomas, Democratic candidate for Monroe County Council At-Large is seeking office for the first time. Her campaign themes include support for a green economy in Monroe County, civic engagement, and public safety initiatives.
The public is invited to share their ideas at a series of four meetings designed to gather residents’ input into the proposed construction of a new jail, a juvenile treatment center, and community corrections (including work release). These meetings are organized by the Monroe County Community Corrections Advisory Board.
October 16, 5 pm to 7 pm, at the Nat U. Hill meeting room at the Monroe County Courthouse: to discuss the proposed juvenile treatment facility with Judge Steve Galvin.
October 30, 5 pm to 7 pm, at the Monroe County Public Library (Kirkwood Ave): to discuss work release and community corrections with Sheriff Jim Kennedy.
November 6, 5 pm to 7 pm, at the Monroe County Public Library (Kirkwood Ave): to discuss the proposed jail with Judge Mark Kellams.
November 20: 5 pm to 7 pm, at the Nat U. Hill meeting room at the Monroe County Courthouse: to discuss the proposed site and master plan with PMSI (a consulting group hired by Monroe County).
Contacts
Mark Stoops (markastoops@yahoo.com)
Julie Thomas (thomasforcouncil@gmail.com)
