June 7, 2010 in City

Geiger to focus on inmate treatment, training

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The Geiger Corrections Center will soon become an interim version of the treatment-focused “community corrections center” that is to be part of a jail-construction bond measure next April.

Although Geiger will be available for overflow from the Spokane County Jail, its new mission will be to provide 144 beds for offenders who are nearing release. Jail officials already have started rearranging inmate populations to conform to Geiger’s revised role.

Inmates who are considered suitable candidates will receive a formal regimen of classes, substance-abuse treatment and other help in turning their lives around.

Topics will include parenting, relationships, anger management, budgeting and “Moral Reconation Therapy” to teach the difference between right and wrong.

The success of the plan “really all comes down to our partnership with the city of Spokane,” Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich said.

He intends to join forces with the city to restore a pilot corrections program that was curtailed by budget cuts last year after about six months of operation.

Now, the city – which started its own pilot program in February – is to handle out-of-custody rehabilitation programs while the county focuses on in-custody efforts.

Officials are putting the program together as they go, waiting for experience to help them develop long-term arrangements. But the idea is for each side to bill the other for services.

“We have common interests and common needs, and we looked at ways we could address those needs,” city General Administration Director Dorothy Webster said. “I’m optimistic that this can work if we can find the financial resources to manage it.”

In the beginning, Knezovich and Webster hope to demonstrate success with available resources.

Knezovich said this month’s planned layoff of 67 corrections deputies was based on falling jail populations, and provides no savings for restoring community corrections programs.

Despite the layoffs and budget cuts last year that cut the pilot program short, most of the programs continued to be offered on a limited basis, Knezovich said.

“We’re going to try to restructure and do as much as we can with what we have left,” he said.

The pilot program was carved out of his existing budget, and Knezovich said that’s what he plans to do again, “but there’s going to be a point where we’re not going to be able to do that anymore.”

City and county officials envision a county program with 24 specialized employees and a $1.4 million budget and a city program with six employees and a $363,600 budget.

Initially, however, sheriff’s officials plan to rely primarily on existing corrections deputies.

They hope to restore and expand programs with other agencies such as job training by Goodwill Industries and Volunteers of America and housing assistance through the county Community Services Department.

Restoration of a county electronic-monitoring program also is on the agenda. But Lt. Mike Sparber, the sheriff’s jail project manager, said that is “a little ways off” because of the need to work out details with district and municipal court judges.

Another sensitive issue is the hiring of “case workers” to design treatment and training regimens for Geiger inmates. That work had been handled by 15 corporal/probation officers whose jobs were eliminated last year.

Because of union rules, only two of them managed to bump back into regular corrections deputy jobs, even though some of the 13 who were laid off had 20 or 30 years of experience.

Sparber said he plans to discuss the issue next week with the corporals’ union, but tentative plans call for recalling only one of the laid-off workers.

“What we don’t want to do is bring the program back and not be able to sustain it,” Sparber said.

Three comments on this story so far. Add yours!

• 

  empyrius on June 07 at 11:17 p.m.

  Mandatory education for all inmates is an excellent start! Compulsory GED and/or college classes for all inmates or else 24/7 County jail lockdown is quite reasonable. Yet, this, “‘Moral Reconation Therapy’ to teach the difference between right and wrong”, raises some disturbing social engineering questions. Whose version of “right” and “wrong” is being taught to the inmates? Will these be humanistically guided notions of morality? Will these be morals as taught by the Holy Bible, and if so, will these be conservative or liberal interpretations of Scripture? Or will we base the religious morality upon the Judaic or Muslim religions? . . .

  Job training provided by Goodwill Industries and VoA does what? Trains people how to price second hand clothes or apply for community service type of jobs which felons and drug convicts in regards to the former will all too quickly get bored with, and in the case of the latter cannot participate b/c “criminals” cannot have jobs that provide services for at risk populations. Well those dead-end “opportunities” will sure keep my people off the drugs and alcohol! NOT!

  Now, a mandatory Whitworth education (no school loans attached!), career training job placement (provided by the government if necessary!), and mandatory participation or back to lockdown you go is a wonderful start!

  What would Jesus do? Feed you and teach you how to fish free of charge! Gospel.

  Peace

• 

  Dazzeetrader11 on June 08 at 12:07 a.m.

  Silly….something’s got to be done though. Recidivism is the bane of this society. From Council meeting tonight, we learned from Jon Snyder’s own admission that the Mayor has $200 million hiding in funds few knew about. How about she pony up $10 million to begin the program instead of buying unnecessary buildings miles away from the courts.

  Oh…she’s “green” and this must be why it’ll be a 10 mile round trip to the property room instead of funding one a few blocks away. If she’ll do this folly, why wouldn’t she pay for inmate counseling? Better return on investment to curb the costs of courts, attorneys, damages, clothing, meals, deputies, transport, jail cells, etc…not to mention maiming and deaths caused by criminals who didn’t get it right the first few times.

• 

  horse_feathers on June 08 at 3:57 p.m.

  I”m voting no new jail. Problem solved.