EL PASO COUNTY, CO – The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office is trying to figure out what to do with a record breaking number of inmates.
Right now, there are 1,592 inmates at the Criminal Justice Center, with the sheriff’s office linking the increase to the rising population in the county.
A moratorium was put in place back in 2006 to help with the overcrowding, giving first time misdemeanor offenders a summons instead of jail time.
Now they are considering other options, like sending inmates to other counties or requesting some be reclassified so they can be housed at a work-release facility.
The sheriff’s office says they are looking into long term plans that would not require them to build a new jail.
Source: KOAA News 5. See more at KOAA.com.
