Seal Beach PD Takes Control Of City Jail

The following article appeared as the headline story for THE LONGBEACH BEACHCOMBER NEWSPAPER.

SEAL BEACH PD TAKES CONTROL OF CITY JAIL

     For the first time in 13 years the Seal Beach Police Department will take control of its own jail operations this February, ending their relationship with a private jail management company whose jailers have been convicted of orchestrating inmate beatings and another who conspired with an inmate to commit murder.
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     Cutting its ties with Correctional Services Inc., a company which provides prison and jail operations nationwide, the Seal Beach city jail was shut down this past June while officials tried to decide what to do next with a jail left close to shambles.
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     "Correctional Systems didn't want the new contract we offered them," said Doug Shur, police department spokesperson for the jail. "Then there were the problems. They broke the camel's back with the misconduct."
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     In 2002, a guard on duty staged a fight between inmates, turning off surveillance cameras before asking an inmate to "rough up" another in order to silence him. The city's relationship seemed to sour following the incident, prompting city council officials that same year to consider operating the jail with city employees or asking the Orange County Sheriff's Department to take over.
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     "The contract with Correctional Systems looked good in the 90's and everybody was happy," said Shur. "But since the 2000s, the bad things happening were being stressed."
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     After considering their options, the city decided to renew Correctional System's contract for three more years. 

     Then, in November 2004, Correctional Systems guard Alonso Machain set out with former Seal Beach jail inmate Skylar Deleon, whom he met while working at the jail, to steal a yacht from an elderly Newport Beach couple, killing them by tying them to an anchor. Machain was later charged with two counts of murder.
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     During Correctional System's reign over the jail, three inmates died while incarcerated, which according to lawsuits was a result of guards improperly responding to medical problems of two of those inmates. Inspections by state regulators and health officials also mounted numerous violations over the years, including missing documents to show jailers had sufficient training, poor kitchen sanitation, and a lack of female employees to assist female inmates.
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     "Safety for our jailers and inmates is our main concern," said Shur. "We have higher standards, many not considered by Correctional Systems. As a private jail, they had a lot of latitude to meet some standards."
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     Now that the privatization of the jail is over, the Seal Beach Police Department will have total control over operations of the jail that has given them a bad name in recent years. And with the new renovations in store for their 30-bed jail house, it is as if they are wiping the slate clean.
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     "We're getting ready," says Seal Beach city manager David Carmany. "We're doing housekeeping, sandblasting the floors, painting the walls, bolting new beds to the wall. It's a big renovation."
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     "Overall, the jail is getting a big face lift," said Shur.

     According to Shur, who's quarterbacking the renovation project, floors were left unkempt, paint was running off the walls, and kitchen appliances were left broken.
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     "The renovations are for the morale of our officers," said Shur. "But also for inmates so they don't have to stay in a place that looks like an armpit.""
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     The police department must now hire guards, medical staff, install payphones, and provide food services for their inmates. The city approved $1.2 million over two years to get the project off the ground, but according to Shur, much of the costs will be deferred with "pay-for-stay" inmates, a program which allows those who are incarcerated in larger jails around California to pay a daily or monthly fee so that they could be housed in a more modest jail, such as Seal Beach. ...."We want to attract and provide space for them," says Shur. "We want to comply with state and federal rules and made our renovations to cater to both state and federal inmates."
With only 27 sworn officers on the police force, The department plans to hire nine community service officers to act as guards for the jail, hoping to hire close to an equal amount of female and male officers in an effort to comply with such standards Correctional Systems violated.
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     "We're taking all the past misconducts into consideration," said Shur.
The police department originally planned to open the jail Jan 21, but according to Shur, was forced to push the date back in order to hire more quality officers.
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     "We're eager to go forward," said Shur. "There has been a lot of planning by the city, by the police department, and we're all excited to see if this thing is going to work and see if it's successful."