County Judge Bobby Howell appointed a six-member committee to study, research and review options regarding company bids seeking to operate and manage Bowie County's Correctional Center and the Bi-State Justice Building jail.
On Monday, Bowie County commissioners met in New Boston, Texas, to open bids from companies seeking to operate and manage the facilities. They got only one -- from LaSalle Corrections. La Salle, a private company, has managed the Bi-State jail since 2013. Under La Salle's management of the local jail, there have been four in-custody deaths since 2015.
They are:
• Michael Sabbie, whose July 2015 death prompted a federal lawsuit. A settlement was reached in the case earlier this year.
• Morgan Angerbauer's 2016 death in which a federal civil case is ongoing.
• Franklin Greathouse, who died March 11.
• Michael Rodden, who died July 6.
As of August, Bowie County remains on the Texas Commission on Jail Standards list of non-compliant jails. Inspections in the last year have indicated some employees have expired licenses, failure to follow the instructions of doctors treating inmates, failure to maintain accurate medical records and face-to-face checks and failure to consistently maintain correctional officer-to-inmate ratios.
Bowie County's maximum jail capacity for the Bi-State and annex will be lowered and capped if the jail is still deemed non-compliant as of Jan. 1, according to minutes from a recent Texas Commission on Jail Standards meeting.
On Monday, the lack of bids, other than La Salle's, prompted the formation of the committee.
Last month, commissioners agreed to permit the county to advertise for bids from contractors seeking to manage both the county's Correctional Center and the Bi-State Justice Building jail. The 748-bed Correctional Center and the Bi-State jail, which can hold up to 164 inmates, are being managed by LaSalle Corrections, a management arrangement that started in 2013. The correction company's contract comes up for renewal in February.
After the meeting, Jail Committee member Tom Whitten said that he wasn't sure of how many private jail operations and management service companies were in the region, but he added that the committee will see what other options are available.
The city of Texarkana, Ark., is part of the Bi-State Justice Center with the city of Texarkana, Texas, and Bowie County, Texas. The Bi-State Justice Center is jointly occupied by the law enforcement and criminal justice agencies of the twin Texarkana cities, and Bowie County, Texas. The facility is located on the state line, half in Texarkana, Ark., and half in Texarkana, Texas.
Metro on 11/28/2019