Ken Falk, legal director for the ACLU of Indiana, says Monroe County must establish a new jail as soon as possible. (Courtesy of Monroe County Government)
Monroe County officials must move quickly in establishing a new jail or face possible legal consequences. That was the message Monday from the American Civil Liberties Union.
ACLU of Indiana Legal Director Ken Falk, appearing at the Monday’s Community Justice Response Committee meeting, said progress on the jail initiative has stalled because county leaders are striving for perfection.
“You guys are desperately wanting to do the right thing and treat people well,” Falk said. “But it has hindered your ability to solve this problem. And there's a very basic solution, which is, you have to build a jail.”
Falk is the attorney who filed a 2008 lawsuit alleging conditions at the Monroe County Jail violate constitutional rights. The lawsuit focuses in part on overcrowding. Falk said that part has since been addressed but noted another glaring issue: the current jail has exceeded its functional life cycle.
Read more: 'I cannot move slow’: Monroe Co. Sheriff on current state of jail
Falk cited a 2021 criminal justice and incarceration study into the jail, which bluntly summarizes the situation as follows: “the jail facility is failing and cannot ensure consistent and sustainable provision of Constitutional Rights of incarcerated persons.”
Falk said, because that study pointing out the jail’s deficiencies exists, the county could be liable if someone were to sue for damages.
“Something bad is going to happen,” Falk said. “At that point, you can’t say whoever is being sued — the county — ‘we didn’t know’ because you know. You know. And constitutional violations require fault, require knowledge. Well, you all have knowledge.”
If a court were to rule the current jail is unconstitutional, every person incarcerated there in the two years preceding the ruling could sue for damages based on Indiana’s statute of limitations, Falk said.
Read more: County ‘starting from square one’ in finding site for new jail
In the meantime, Falk said, the county must maintain the current jail but should focus primarily on establishing a new one.
The ACLU lawsuit is subject to a private settlement agreement but has not officially been dismissed to date. It is scheduled to be dismissed in January 2024.
Falk said he has considered letting the settlement agreement expire and filing a new lawsuit but prefers not to.
“We’re all on the same page here — well, not all of us on the same page; same book, different pages,” Falk said. “But the time has come.”
Sheriff, commissioners clash
Also at Monday’s meeting, the friction between Monroe County Sheriff Ruben Marté and county commissioners was on full display.
The meeting started with Penny Githens, president of the board of commissioners, pushing back on comments Marté had made about not feeling supported by the commissioners.
“We are addressing the problems that a, we have been told about and b, we are responsible for,” Githens said. “The commissioners have no authority over the county’s budget.”
Githens referred to statements Marté has made about purchasing and accepting donations of furniture for the jail and said that, to her knowledge, he had not approached the county council nor the commissioners about funding for furniture.
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Githens said the commissioners are responsible for maintaining the physical structure of the jail, which includes roofing, HVAC and plumbing. She said progress is being made on several of the items from the sheriff’s presentation last month that highlighted the facility’s deteriorating conditions.
Marté replied, “I’m not going to respond to everything which was said here, but I can tell you that a lot of the things (that) were said are not correct.”
Marté also said he had requested that the commissioners provide him with cleaning equipment — but that he ended up borrowing the tools from a sheriff’s office in another county, which he was embarrassed to do.
He also pushed back on Commissioner Julie Thomas’ use of the word “aesthetic” in referring to the sheriff’s efforts to sanitize the jail.
Read more: Wastewater shows a rise in Monroe County COVID cases
“All I want is someone — commissioners — to support me in the lengthy job that we have to do together,” Marté said. “I just got here. The commissioners have been here for some time.”
It was then Githens repeatedly interjected in the middle of Marté’s remarks, to pushback from others on the committee.
“I can’t agree with the commissioners getting to say something and him not getting to respond,” said Monroe Circuit Court Judge Catherine Stafford
To that, Githens replied, “four weeks ago he got to say a lot,” alluding to Marté’s presentation of the jail.
Marté closed by reiterating a sentiment he has repeatedly shared: that he must work quickly to improve conditions at the jail.
“If you doubt what I’m saying, all of you are welcome to come down and I will personally show you, personally, what I’m referring to,” Marté said. “There are more things to get done right now that I don’t think you’re aware of — and I’d like for you to be aware of it so you can understand where I’m coming from. But you cannot understand where I’m coming from if you don’t come and see for yourselves.”
