As usual. This Seattle PI editorial on conditions at the county jail is scathing.
Last week's Justice Department report blasting conditions and treatment of inmates at the King County Correctional Facility is infuriating.
While the DOJ commends the jail's staff for fully cooperating with its investigations, the report's findings are plainly, brutally clear. It concludes that conditions at the jail "violate the constitutional rights of inmates," and enumerates shortcomings and flaws across the board in the jail's system. There are problems with inmate intake; inmates are "routinely subjected to" unnecessary use of serious force; the jail fails to protect inmates from harm and to provide them with medical assessment and care.
Scathing, but incomplete. As you will see if you read the whole editorial, no one is to blame for these conditions, or at least no one the PI wants to name.
Who should be blamed? The King County Council has a Democratic majority. More important, the King County executive is Ron Sims, Democrat. If the PI were willing to name and shame those reponsible for these deplorable conditions, they would have to start with Sims — which may be why they didn't name anyone in that editorial.
Unlike the editors at the Seattle PI, I believe that elected Democrats are (mostly) sane adults, who can be held responsible for their actions, and for the actions of those who work for them. And I think that improvements at the jail (and elsewhere) are unlikely unless officials are held responsible for failures. Even if those officials are Democrats.
Cross posted at Jim Miller on Politics.
(The PI doesn't give credit, either. The DOJ in the first line is, of course, the Department of Justice, which works for George W. Bush, Republican.)
Posted by Jim Miller at November 26, 2007 01:56 PM | Email ThisLoad it up full of prisoners and never let them off.
Doing this might even reach the ridership claims made by Sound Transit.
Posted by: Smoley on November 26, 2007 02:26 PMBring on Joe Arpaio
Posted by: JDH on November 26, 2007 02:36 PMJail funding is one of the first to get cut. And, are the conditions bad or do the inmates expect cable, workout rooms, etc.
Posted by: swatter on November 26, 2007 02:54 PMI bet if the state totaled the number of county and state jail beds, it would have more than enough, if they would just operate the system better.
Posted by: tc on November 26, 2007 03:06 PMNow there's the type of tent city I approve of.
Posted by: RBW on November 26, 2007 03:45 PMOutrageous.
Wait a minute. What "rights" are we speaking of? Not specified in the P-I article.
Perhaps I could muster some sympathy had not each King County inmate violated some of my own constitutional rights by their criminal acts.
Are no-cost room, board, medical, entertainment and legal defense constitutional rights?
If the crimes and their associated denial of the constitutional rights of law-abiding citizen's are grave enough, the "punishment" is no-cost support for the rest of the criminal's life.
I certainly don't enjoy those rights.
Heck, I just fixed the roof over my head. In the sleet. And earlier, I was trying to earn the money to pay for a King County inmate's delicous hot meal. I'm having a Stouffer's tuna casserole, myself, about four minutes from now.
Yum!
I'm joking to suggest that I deserve any pity.
And so should the P-I be joking that the inmates treatment deserves some kind of guilt, outrage and more funding from those they have assaulted.
Posted by: Bart Cannon on November 26, 2007 06:06 PMI have always laughed at the fact that the title of the facility is "Correctional Facility." It isn't correcting anybody, despite the concerns of the liberal left. It is a detention facility and perhaps if it isn't so pleasant, the County wont have to detain the same people over and over again. Ask Sheriff Joe what his return rate is on his prisoners.
Posted by: Desert Rat on November 27, 2007 03:21 PMEach person in jail violated your rights? That's impressive.
I'm sure everyone that's in jail for possession is curious as to how that applies. Heck there are a number of crimes that someone could be in jail for that have no bearing on other people at all.