BROWNSTOWN — Members of the Jackson County Council recently agreed to address the issue of a chronic shortage of jail officers at the jail in Brownstown.

Jail Commander Chris Everhart said the department recently had a staffing analysis conducted by an independent firm — something the state jail inspector recommends be done about every five years.

“But aside from that, just working in the jail for 23 years, I can tell you we have been understaffed for years because I’ve lived it,” he said. “But we didn’t want you to take just our word for it.”

He said he sat down with the inspector and told him he wasn’t looking to have Disneyland-type staffing that might include classification officers, hearing officers and others.

“I wanted to know what we need for day-to-day operations to function normally,” Everhart said.

Because of long-term understaffing, he said he is now concerned more because it has reached the point where jailers no longer can provide the services they need to be providing.

Everhart said the current level of staffing doesn’t allow the jail to maintain state jail standards and one specifically.

That’s a requirement staff observe every prisoner once an hour.

“That can’t be by camera. It has to be in person,” Everhart said.

In the segregation and administration cell blocks, that has to happen every 15 minutes, he said.

“That has changed because prior to 2019, we did not follow the jail standards because we didn’t classify inmates,” Everhart said.

A classification system calls for inmates to be separated by risk: Minimum, medium and maximum.

The walk-throughs also are safer for the prisoners, he said.

Since the classification system was implemented in 2019, jail violence has dropped by 86%, he said. But the walk-throughs for maximum risk inmates also requires two officers.

He said the shortage of jailers also means some of the medical and other types of appointments for inmates sometimes have to be rescheduled.

That’s another one of those key issues for more jail officers being needed, Everhart said.

He said the jail also has been running out of funds for overtime by May of each year, which is a good indication of the jailer shortage.

“Officers are working a lot of extended shifts and lots of overtime, which leads to burnout,” Everhart said. “Just a couple of weeks ago, I worked a 26-hour-long shift myself because we did not have the staff.”

He said he was on the road part of that time taking an inmate to an Indianapolis hospital, where he had to stay overnight and then drive home, which is unsafe after working such a lengthy shift.

Jail officers also have to accompany private third-party nurses when visiting inmates, he said, and transports that require jailers often leave the jail with just three officers, which means there is one officer at each control station. Even when there are four officers, if an emergency occurs, there is only one jailer who can respond.

A control room can be disabled if needed, but that is not a good situation, Everhart said.

“The jail inspector has brought that up for at least the last six years,” he said.

The shortage also means jail supervisors cannot be supervisors because they are too busy being jail officers, Everhart said.

He said besides the fact that jailers can go elsewhere and make more money, the understaffing issue is the main issue why jail officers leave the job.

“That typically is what our exit interviews are showing,” Everhart said.

There are other reasons why more officers are needed.

Transports continue to rise each year, and those larger hospitals, such as IU Health Methodist Hospital, require two officers for inmates brought there, he said.

The Indiana Department of Correction also no longer picks up inmates sentenced to prison, so jailers are required to transport inmates sentenced by the DOC to prisons.

And with the closing of the Jackson County Juvenile Detention Center several years ago, jailers have to take juveniles arrested to centers in Franklin, Terre Haute, Fort Wayne and counties, Everhart said.

While closing the center helped with the jail’s overcrowding issues, he said it also costs the county in transportation and overtime costs.

Deputies patrolling roads sometimes help out at the jail, but not very often, Everhart said.

He said as a private citizen, he likes to see deputies on the road patrolling.

“They have their own job to do,” Everhart said.

Everhart also said jailers now have to photocopy every piece of mail inmates receive because some of those sending letters have been spraying liquid narcotic onto paper and mailing it to inmates.

“It’s a nationwide problem,” he said.

Inmates also have to have mental assessments and meet with mental health providers now, Everhart said.

He said an increase in programs for inmates has led to the need to provide security for those who come in and administer the programs, including Bible study and Celebrate Recovery.

“All those programs are good, but that requires additional officers,” Everhart said.

Each inmate also is now required to wear an identification bracelet with their name and photo and a chip that can be checked by an officer making his or her rounds. That helps supervisors track how often staff members are observing inmates.

The eight additional officers should reduce overtime costs and liability and help with training and staff development, Everhart said.

Councilman Brian Thompson said he didn’t think it would be possible to add eight officers in 2023 and asked about the possibility of using commissary funds to bridge some of the gap.

Sheriff Rick Meyer said some of those funds are going to help with the increase in gasoline this year.

Thompson said he knows the additional officers are needed and the council would try to come up with a way to address the issue.