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Article: Buchanan County jail filled dozens beyond capacity
- Article from:
- St. Joseph News-Press
- Article date:
- November 22, 2008
- Author:
CopyrightCopyright 2008 St. Joseph News-Press. Provided by ProQuest LLC. (Hide copyright information)
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Less than a year ago the Buchanan County Sheriff's Department
reported a surprisingly low number of inmates in the county jail.
Now, it's seeing the opposite.
Sheriff Mike Strong said that last week the Law Enforcement
Center hit an all-time high of 252 inmates. The jail is meant to
house only 212 people.
Though Mr. Strong said the jail isn't about to break out into an
open bay arrangement with cots, it is overcrowded. But what is
causing the rise in crime is lost on him.
"It's been steadily creeping up the past month. I don't what it's
a direct result of," he said.
He speculates the economy may have a hand in it.
"It seems like when our economy worsens, people getting arrested
goes up. But ...