WFHB Bloomington Community Radio
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Jails across Indiana are overcrowded.
That’s due, in part, to a 2016 state law, requiring non-violent felons to serve their sentences in county jails, rather than in state prisons. This influx of non-violent felons swelled the number of prisoners housed at county jails, which also hold those awaiting trial.
Monroe County Jail Commander Sam Crowe says overcrowding strains local resources. Crowe says the most common solution to overcrowding is what he calls the pre-trial release program. In this program, a court can waive an arrested person’s bail bond, allowing them to stay out of jail. Arrestees are considered for the program if a judge deems them ‘likely to return’ for their court date.
Commander Crowe says the pre-trial release program is being piloted here in Monroe County and it’s their main tool to decrease the number of people held in jail.
The Summer Study Committee on Corrections and Criminal Code meets again on October 10th. Indiana House Representative Matt Pierce of District 61, which includes Monroe County, is on the committee.
