Capacity woes at South Dakota women's prison taxing county jail
Capacity woes at South Dakota women's prison taxing county jail
From the Aberdeen Insider
Overcrowding at the South Dakota Women’s Prison in Pierre is amplifying capacity strains at the Brown County Jail.
That’s according to Sheriff Dave Lunzman, who briefed Brown County commissioners Tuesday morning.
Lunzman said the number of women at the county jail has been unprecedented lately. It was 16 as of Tuesday morning and has been as high as 18, he said.
That means male offenders have to be shifted around to make sure there is enough room for women, Lunzman said.
He updated commissioners during the open forum portion of the meeting just so they were aware of the situation. Overcrowding is not a new concern, but it’s being amplified now that women sentenced to prison are having to be housed in Brown County, he said.
The problem should be temporary, Lunzman said. Brown County is now housing three women who need to go to prison, he said after the meeting. Two might be sent to Pierre yet this week, he said, though there could be more women sentenced this week, too.
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