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Article: Hennepin County jail hits population record; Overflow means more space must be rented.(NEWS)
- Article from:
- Star Tribune (Minneapolis, MN)
- Article date:
- February 10, 1998
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1998 Star Tribune Co. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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The Hennepin County jail held a record 788 inmates Monday morning, forcing officials to rent 166 beds - at rates as high as $78 a day - in other facilities to bring the numbers down to a manageable level.
It only took a week to break the previous record of 724 set Feb. 2, and with the three-day President's Day weekend coming up, the record probably will fall again, said Hennepin County Sheriff's Department Inspector William Wilen, who oversees the jail. Construction of a new 270-bed jail will begin next year, but inmates won't be housed there until early to mid-2001.
The number of inmates has gradually climbed over the past 60 days, but Wilen said he ...