Reflections On The Two-Year Anniversary Of The Middle River Jail Buy-In

Middle River Jail

A slightly abbreviated version of this piece by Reta Finger, member of the local Valley Justice Coalition, appeared as an op ed in today's Daily News-Record. 

What follows is her original version as submitted: 

“As far as this facility goes,” writes an inmate at Middle River Regional Jail (MRRJ), “even the minimum security inmates are locked down 18 hours a day in a two-bunk cell about 11 feet by 6 feet. If the jail is short-staffed, we are locked down longer. One day I was sent to Medical Segregation due to food poisoning from the outdated milk they served us. These cells are unsanitary and way worse than general population cells, and you are locked down 23-24 hours a day.”

In 2014, many residents of Harrisonburg and Rockingham County protested the need for another jail costing $63M, believing that a new facility—paid for with our taxes—would only encourage more convictions and longer sentences. Since 1995, when our current jail was built, incarcerations had climbed 500%, while population increased only 25%. Many individuals, like local criminal justice expert Dr. Nancy Insco, were hoping for a reduction in the need for jail-beds by using alternatives proven to successfully rehabilitate offenders.

The solution, signed July 1, 2015, was a 250-bed buy-in at the MRRJ. Harrisonburg and Rockingham County each shared half the cost of $21,543,588, to be paid over ten years at 2.17% interest—besides $25 per occupied bed per day for services.

At this two-year anniversary, it’s time to take stock of this decision. Was it wise to commit our tax money to this? Has it lowered incarceration rates and provided alternatives that help inmates become contributing members of society? This issue concerns all of us, since over 90% of prisoners will eventually be released.

The local Valley Justice Coalition looks for ways to encourage our civic leaders to lower incarceration rates by every humane, evidence-based, and safe ways possible. Following are a few observations and evaluations about the MRRJ buy-in:·   

      

Middle River Regional Jail was originally overbuilt, resulting in heavy debt. Years later, Augusta County officials persuaded Harrisonburg and Rockingham County to buy 250 beds at MRRJ.

We now pay for these beds whether or not they are filled. In addition, inmates or their families are charged a burdensome $3 per day. 

Although carefully-arranged tours have shown well-cared-for prisoners, actual conditions are often less than humane. Besides lock-downs and spoiled food, visitors to MRRJ from our area have long commutes, and a lack of quality medical treatment resulted in several deaths in 2016.

On the positive side, MMRJ does provide a work-release program, which our local facility does not. Also, unlike our local jail, it does not require inmates to be in handcuffs when going to the visitor area.

But have we gotten the best possible return for our 2015 buy-in? After decades of experience, Dr. Insco states, "Jail populations will continue to grow unless the demand for beds diminishes. No jurisdiction will ever build their way of the problem."  

Concerned citizens are always welcome at the Monday noon meetings of Valley Justice Coalition at 110 Old South High Street in Harrisonburg.

For more posts on MRRJ: http://harvyoder.blogspot.com/search?q=middle+river+jail

Before We Expand The Middle River Jail

Our local jail numbers are growing by 10% this year, so
we're sending ever more inmates (all of our women) to
MRRJ, where their daily keep fee goes from $1 to $3.

The following appeared as an Open Forum in today's Daily News-Record:

According to a front page article in the March 26, 2019 DNR, the Middle River Regional Jail (MRRJ) Authority has already budgeted money for a Community Based Corrections Plan, a needs assessment study required by the Commonwealth in order to apply for a 25% state grant for expanding the facility if deemed necessary. According to the DNR, this alone would cost more than $57,000, in addition to a facility planning study for an additional $84,000. Engineering services by the Timmons Group would cost yet another $12,000. 

For a bit of history, Harrisonburg and Rockingham County joined the Middle River Regional Jail Authority in July, 2015, in response to overcrowding at our local jail. The $21.5 million, 10-year deal provided our community with access to 250 MRRJ beds. Up to that time, our locality was spending $1.2 million a year renting around 100 beds at Middle River as a temporary solution. Meanwhile, in spite of our crime rates remaining comparatively low, we keep adding some 10% more inmates annually to these numbers, resulting in still more crowding.

But before we invest in ever more costly jails we should consider the recent experience of the Riverside Regional Jail in Prince George County. Similar to MRRJ, it serves four nearby counties and three adjacent cities. According to a March 5, 2019 piece in the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Riverside is facing a $2.4 million budget operating deficit in the coming fiscal year due to a shortage of inmates.

Why? A major reason is that the Chesterfield County Jail, with around 300 beds of its own, and which has supplied nearly half of RRJ’s inmates, has seen their jail numbers drop by some 34%, resulting in that County’s share of RRJ’s income decreasing from $11.9 million in the current fiscal year to a projected $8.4 million in 2020.

According to the Richmond Times piece, “Chesterfield's sheriff, Karl Leonard, attributed the county's drop in part to rehabilitation programs his department has created for offenders with substance abuse problems and more inmates being diverted by county judges into diversion programs rather than sending them to jail.”

The highly successful Heroin Addiction Recovery Program (HARP) promoted by Sheriff Leonard in his Chesterfield County Jail was designed by the McShin Foundation and has recently been adopted by the Rappahannock/Shenandoah/Warren Regional Jail in Front Royal as well.

John Shinholser, former Board Chair of Rubicon, Inc., Virginia's most comprehensive substance abuse treatment facility, and who with Carol McDaid heads the McShin Foundation, will present a report on the HARP program at the next meeting of our local Community Criminal Justice Board at 4 pm. June 3 on the lower floor of Harrisonburg City Hall. For those interested, the meeting is open to the public.

Reasons for increases in our incarceration numbers are varied and complex, and answers are not easy to come by, but before we invest in ever more steel and concrete cages to house non-violent offenders we need to study every effective alternative possible.

Former Inmates Weigh In On MRRJ Article

Reporter Patricia Borns did an investigative piece on the Middle River Jail in Verona that was published in the Staunton News-Leader yesterday. She wrote this after receiving a copy of complaints in a July 5 letter to the Virginia Department of Corrections signed by 20 women incarcerated at the facility.

Middle River houses 150 offenders from  Harrisonburg and Rockingham County and one of the inmates transferred there had sent me a copy of the letter several weeks prior. After giving MRRJ an advance copy I posted it on my blog with the understanding that I would also post any official MRRJ response.

I print the following responses to the article in the News-Leader without names, although all signed their online posts.

[It should be noted that the treatment of inmates at Middle River Jail may not be significantly different than at many other facilities. Not every inmate may have the kinds of negative experiences as described below, and most members of the MRRJ staff are undoubtedly dedicated and good people.]

Here is a sample of the posts, slightly edited for brevity and clarity:

"I was housed at MRRJ once. I am a diabetic. First they lost my insulin altogether so I went over 15 hours without medication. I ended up being sent to the hospital. Before the trip to the hospital i was denied a bond. But after being hospitalized the jail found the seriousness of my growing illness they made a bond appear out of thin air. Once they woke me up to sign the paperwork for my bond they removed all Middle River property from me and left me naked in a hospital bed. Didn't even bother to tell any family to notify them of my condition."

"My friend DIED in that jail! She was supposed to be sent to Augusta Medical for psych help and died due to lack of appropriate medical treatment!"

"It's sad that they can't get the meds they need. Rockingham County jail is just as bad. It's so sad." 

"It took them a half hour for them to get a wheel chair for a girl that was having a panic attack... And then another girl had a stroke and took them 20 minutes. M.R.R.J is the worst jail possible and you only get fed twice a day on weekends. We should at least get snack bags because some of us don't get money for canteen and we are hungry sometimes."

"I was just incarcerated and myself was one of the ones who had signed that letter. And the living conditions at M.R.R.J are insane. I mean we get two rolls of toilet paper and certain amount of pads and we were locked down for a week and weren't allowed to take showers. The food is also horrible and you get fed the same thing sometimes twice a day. I mean they need to be looked at and matters at the jail need to change because that jail is very inhumane. I thought Rockingham County jail was bad. But M.R.R.J is ten times worse." 

"I was there from June 11-July 6 and I  asked them several times could I see a nurse to get checked for a UTI bccause of the KoolAid there. And just to get pads you have to put in a request form. Something needs to be done."

"I was doing a weekend and I lay in a cold holding cell floor the whole weekend with pneumonia. I coughed so much in that cell I cracked my ribs. I asked to see medical 10 times and never got to. This was ten years ago."

"I would like to state that I can positively verify these complaints being made by these women!!! I recently spent several days at MRRJ, & the girls were not only trying to get sanitary products when they were having their periods, but then were also being denied toilet paper when they asked for it, and THEY NEEDED THAT TO SOAK UP THE BLOOD OF THEIR MENSTRUAL CYCLE BECAUSE THEY WERE BEING DENIED THE BASIC PRODUCTS REQUIRED FOR SUCH THINGS?!! I wish McCauley could hear how RIDICULOUS THAT STATEMENT about the reality of things being different than what was written in the letter sounds?!!! That makes me so ANGRY BECAUSE , once again, its just being shrugged off like it doesn't matter?!!! And the statement about the pads being used for other things like padding pillows is also pretty absurd?!!! I guess if someone in a wheelchair gets arrested, they tell em to stand up and walk, coz you know? Theyre probably just pretending to be paralyzed or something right?!!! Give me a BREAK?!!! I want to state for the record that the complaints made by those girls are 100% TRUE & ACCURATE AS TO THE REALITY OF HOW CONDITIONS ARE AT MRRJ?!!! Its COMPLETELY UNACCEPTABLE?!!"

"I was housed at MRRJ, and yes it sounds about right. Women inmates receive very little compared to the male inmates. And I have seen situations, and they ignore you, you never get anywhere.... The staff treats inmates like they are worse than dirt. Most staff are really unprofessional and rude. I'm a person who believe in punishment such as incarceration if deserved but that jail is the worse I ever heard."

Here is a link to the text of the letter by the 20 female inmates as posted on my blog, along with several additional comments by former inmates: http://harvyoder.blogspot.com/2015/07/women-at-mrrj-voice-some-grievances.html

A Healthcare Nightmare For Virginia Inmates

A jail sentence can be a death sentence

An article in the December 10, 2016, Virginian-Pilot highlights a pattern of serious medical neglect and malpractice at the Fluvanna Correctional Center for Women, one of two women's prisons in the state. 

This resulted in a 2012 lawsuit on behalf of female inmates for "failure to meet the minimum standards of medical care for inmates," according to the Pilot. The article goes on to report that a settlement was reached in which an outside monitor was appointed to oversee its healthcare services and "to bring the level of care up to the bare minimum a state must provide for those it imprisons," but added that "Fluvanna has yet to meet that standard, according to the independent monitor’s most recent report."

Perhaps the saddest example of that kind of neglect has to do with an inmate serving time on drug charges who had colostomy surgery due to a cancerous mass in her bowels. She went through enormous pain due to her condition and her chemotherapy and radiation treatments, but was given inadequate pain medication and had to wait five months to return to U.Va. for a follow-up appointment in July of 2014, By that time she had developed a severe blood infection that had spread throughout her body, and "her tumor had grown through her buttocks and was continuing to enlarge outside her body".

Here's a link to the entire story: http://pilotonline.com/news/government/politics/virginia/at-fluvanna-correctional-center-for-women-horror-story-after-horror/article_9096368d-54ce-5018-beb7-bea8732e8965.html

Meanwhile, the Department of Justice is investigating the Hampton Roads Regional Jail for recent cases of deaths resulting from lack of appropriate care for inmates suffering from mental and physical conditions.

The most well publicized of these was the case of a mentally disabled 24-year-old who died in August 2015 after losing 46 pounds over 101 days at the jail. His crime? Shoplifting $5 worth of snacks at a convenience store.

According to a piece in the Richmond Times, two other Hampton Roads inmates died recently after their requests for emergency medical care were denied.

Closer home, both the Rockingham/Harrisonburg and Middle River Regional Jails have received numerous complaints about inadequate medical and mental health care, though some recent steps have been taken to respond to persistent family and inmate complaints. These include long waits for receiving medical attention, unaffordable co-pays for medical and dental services that are available, and the use of outdated formularies for medications rather than inmates having access to the drugs prescribed by their doctors. 

One of the cases that has recently come to light at the RHRJ has been that of a woman who complained of severe pain for months and was later found to have advanced Stage IV cancer which should have been aggressively treated months earlier. Also, our local jail still defends its frequent use of a restraint chair or the isolated padded cell for "medical reasons" in some cases where an inmate is suicidally depressed.

The Middle River Jail, which houses over a hundred inmates from our area, was the subject of an extensive investigation by Channel 29 last year which cited a case of a woman dying in an isolated cell from lack of proper care, along with other cases of neglect and malpractice that resulted in painful and untimely deaths due to cancer.

It should be noted that the Middle River Jail has underspent its annual healthcare budgets by tens of thousands each year for the past decade, using the money saved in its general budget or returning some of it to the localities it serves. Here's a link for more information 

http://harvyoder.blogspot.com/2015/12/channel-29-deserves-praise-for-mrrj.html

The Middle River Regional Jail Authority is currently under pressure to consider accreditation for its medical services through the National Commission On Correctional Healthcare. This could not be accomplished without cost, but could save tons of taxpayer money in helping avoid expensive lawsuits. It has also just received a $536,000 state grant for improving its mental health services, an encouraging development.

Please express your concerns to your City Council members or members of the Board of Supervisors.

Update: Jail Policies Regarding Wearing Masks

MRRJ is having a COVID-19 outbreak, according to a WHSV-TV report.

In a press release issued yesterday, the Middle River Regional Jail reported that 25 staff members and 4 nurses at the facility have tested positive for COVID-19, and that 15 inmates are also infected. That number is almost sure to increase today when testing of all inmates and staff is being carried out.

There is no mention of any of this in today's Daily News-Record, even though Middle River houses many of the incarcerated men and all of the women from our area who are sentenced to time behind bars or who are awaiting trial.

Already three months ago, Tracy Stover, whose son was then an inmate at Middle River, launched a crusade to get MRRJ to fully comply with the Governor Northam’s orders requiring the consistent wearing of masks in all public facilities, including jails.

In a petition Stover circulated in early September, one that got over 500 signatures, she cited multiple documented cases of staff at the jail either not wearing masks or wearing them improperly. Her persistence resulted in what she believed was a retaliatory action by MRRJ which involved having her son moved to the Rockingham/Harrisonburg Regional Jail. There, incidentally, none of the staff members are required to wear masks, based on their attorney advising them they are exempt from the Governor’s order since the jail is the “residence” of the inmates and because their staff members are engaged in law enforcement, an activity for which masks are not mandated.

Meanwhile, Ms. Stover has been untiring in her efforts to see that her son and other inmates are protected from staff members who may expose inmates to the virus. Among her efforts have been to submit both letters to the editor and an Open Forum piece to the Daily News-Record, but to date none of these have been published, and her personal contacts with the sheriff, who is in charge of the local jail, and with the administration at Middle River Jail, have also yielded less than positive results.

But the current number of infections may represent a word to the wise: Sometimes a mother really does know best.

Women At MRRJ Voice Grievances

Middle River Regional Jail

Some inmates at the Middle River Regional Jail in Augusta County are housed in open dorms with over thirty bunks each, with almost no privacy. 

When on lock down those inmates are forced to stay at their beds--without showers and with only occasional bathroom breaks--sometimes for days at a time. Noise is constant and fights break out frequently, according to first hand reports.

 I recently received the following letter dated July 5, signed by twenty women at the Middle River Regional Jail and addressed to the Department of Corrections in Richmond. I submitted a copy, without the names, to MJJR and offered to post any response they might have, as I have no way of confirming the specifics of each of their complaints. The author of the letter, slated to be transferred to a state prison, has been moved. 

 Here are some of their complaints, in their own words:

Department of Corrections
P. O. Box 26963
Richmond, VA 23261-6963
re: Middle River Regional Jail

To whom it may concern:

This letter is in reference to the above jail, Middle River Regional Jail in Staunton, Virginia. DOC really needs to evaluate this facility.

There is an inmate who has been here two weeks. She has lupus and cancer, and still has not received the medications she is required to take. Her family has called and spoken with someone here asking why she has not received it and they were told that she has, but the only thing she has received is Ibuprofin. She is daily in a lot of pain.

Another inmate has broken her hand in two places. X-rays were done showing that. She was given a gauze wrap and told to take Ibuprofin, but they failed to look at her records to see that she was allergic to it, so she is still suffering. She has constantly asked corrections officers and nurses about what is going on, but still no word. This has been since June 7, 2015. This inmate has served our country and she has made mistakes but she deserves to be treated as a human being.

Another inmate was in line to get her meds and was given a pill in an envelope and the inmate stated that this wasn't her pill. The nurse looked at the envelope and stated it was not hers but said if she had taken it that it would have been her fault. How is that the inmate's fault, when the nurse should be qualified to do her job?

Another inmate was waiting to get her meds and the nurse gave her a 300 mg dose of Lamictal when she was only supposed to get a 200 mg dose. Thankfully the inmate saw that and gave back one of the pills. With this medication the dose should be gradually increased because if not it can cause a rash and cause the inmate to die.

One more inmate on quite a few meds due to a lot of health issues was told by her CO that she needs to just be put down. A lawsuit waiting to happen.

When we inmates here are having periods we constantly have to ask for pads. We have inmates bleed through their clothes and sheets. Getting  replacements on these items is not a quick process and very unsanitary. Why can't each inmate at the beginning of each month be given enough pads to last for the month? Not each inmate has the same flow, and it's a daily process of going to the call box to get our two pads. Also, some inmates require a shower and if we are on lockdown you can forget that.

As to the food situation, the menu repeats every three days, and frankly we wouldn't feed it to our dogs. On Saturdays and Sundays we receive only two meals a day. As far as getting milk with our meals, we only get 3-4 ounces in the morning. We get a lot of Kool-Aid that causes the UTI's here.

Classes are available but there is a lack of coordination and a long waiting list. We thought classes would be once a week, but we have seen only a few people go. If there were were more for inmates to do there would be fewer fights, etc.

We are thankful to have a TV, but in order to watch it you have to purchase a $33 radio plus batteries. We are charged $3 a day ("rent") to be here and but still have to purchase hygiene supplies, so most who leave are left with a hefty balance not being paid. We're not sure what happens to money once inmates are released, but this money could go to programs to rehabilitate inmates.

Everything involving programs is a waiting game. Some inmates are really trying to do better but don't have the means or resources once they are incarcerated. We have sentencing guidelines but it seems like none are being followed and then you have overcrowded jails.

We are all voices and we will continue our quest until we are heard. You will not be the only ones who receive this letter. We will also be sending it to the Governor, Congressmen and to TV and newspaper outlets.

Something needs to be done. Thank you for your time.

(signed by twenty female inmates)

Guest Post: Look Before You Leap On A Proposed Middle River Regional Jail Expansion

This important piece by Ruth Stoltzfus Jost is to appear in the Daily News-Record this week.

Our jail is full. Again. In 2015 we paid $20 million to join Middle River Regional Jail. Since 1994 when our Harrisonburg jail was built our community population has not quite doubled -- but we are jailing five times as many people.

On February 2 the Middle River Regional Jail Authority, including our city and county officials, will be considering jail upgrades and expansion. Options range from $40 - $68 million for construction, divided among 5 jurisdictions. Add $40,000 per inmate per year ongoing costs. Taxpayers beware!

That’s not counting the real costs to our community. The great majority of persons in jail are charged or convicted of non-violent offenses. Many have been held pretrial for months. Incarceration disrupts tax-generating employment, secure housing, child support payments, and stable family relations.

What can we do instead? Virtually every community in the country is struggling with this dilemma.

There is a roadmap to easier, cheaper, and more just solutions. Prison Policy Initiative has produced a report "Does our County really need a bigger jail? A guide for avoiding unnecessary jail expansion". https://www.prisonpolicy.org/reports/jailexpansion.html

The guide lists basic questions that local decision-makers ask and lays out detailed "best practices" for reducing jail overcrowding. Are we holding too many people in jail pretrial? Are we making arrests when we could issue citations to appear in court? Are we under-utilizing personal recognizance or unsecured bonds to release non-dangerous persons before a court hearing? Are we incarcerating people because they cannot afford to pay fines and fees when we could use community service in lieu of payment or exemption waivers for poor defendants? Do we weigh an individual's ability to pay when imposing fees and fines? Are we over- incarcerating people convicted of misdemeanors and low-level offenses?

These and other questions are followed with details about best practices that work: reforming pretrial detention, changing how we issue fees and fines, ensuring people with mental health and substance use disorders are treated in the community not incarcerated, creating alternatives to incarceration for people convicted of misdemeanors and low-level offenses, ensuring that we don't use jail for technical violations of probation and parole.

With the hiring last year of our Criminal Justice Planner, Harrisonburg and Rockingham are finally poised to gather our data about current practices, develop new strategies, and secure grants (or leverage funds) to:

1. Build on our current investments in comprehensive drug treatment facilities, mental health, employment, and other programs, and use them to a) divert non-violent persons from the criminal justice system before even charging them and b) divert non-violent persons instead of revoking probation and reincarcerating them.

2. Avoid incarcerating persons before trial unless they are an immediate danger to the public.

3. Avoid incarcerating the many non-violent offenders who can safely work and live at home with electronic home monitoring.

Tell your city and county representatives we need to use less expensive, more effective proven alternatives before we spend millions to expand our jail.

Here's a link to a petition to sign urging the cities of Staunton, Waynesboro and Harrisonburg and the Counties of Augusta snd Rockingham to consider alternatives to this proposed multimillion dollar expansion.

A Visit To The Arlington County Jail

I recently had the pleasure of accompanying Lacy Whitmore, Executive Director of the Harrisonburg/Rockingham Community Services Board for a visit to the Arlington County Detention Facility. Our local CSB has a $13,000 annual contract to provide mental health services at the Harrisonburg/Rockingham Regional Jail, and Mr. Whitmore and I share an interest in improved services for that population of up to 400 (45 of these are currently housed in Augusta County's Middle River Jail due to overcrowding--the jail was built to house 208).

When we met Suzanne Somerville, director of ACDF's mental health unit, operated through a contract with Arlington County's CSB, one of the first things we learned was that this 11-year old state-of-the-art facility has been experiencing a gradual drop in numbers. Built for 600 inmates, its present census is just over 500.

Sheriff Beth Arthur

It would seem that Arlington County, with a urban population of over 212,000, would have more offenders than Rockingham,with a population of some 128.000. HRRJ is a regional facility, but well over 90% of our detainees are from our rural and small town area, and we are certainly not experiencing a decrease in our jail population.

As we toured the facility and were in conversation with Somerville and one of her colleagues, psychologist Grace Guerro, I kept asking myself whether there are other factors that might have a bearing on reducing their prison population, starting with their having a new Drug Court in their judicial system. Drug Courts are known to assign more drug offenders (involving an increasingly large percentage of court cases) to treatment programs and other alternative sentences.

Then there is an intake process at ACDF that involves a mental health person and one of the facility's 13 inmate counselors. This team is sometimes able to arrange for alternatives to detention.

Also, an increased number of the staff at ACDF, like ours at HRRJ, are taking, or have taken, "Crisis Intervention Team" training promoted by their respective CSB's. Numerous ACDF deputies proudly wore their CIT pins and spoke highly of the training. Thus jail staff and mental health providers are able to experience a greater sense of collaboration and mutual support in their work. This kind of atmosphere helps reduce the stress experienced by mentally ill persons in a prison environment and can sometimes lead to treatment options rather than incarceration.

Likewise, one wonders how effective the ACDF's intensive treatment focus might be in reducing its recidivism rate and contributing to reduced numbers of re-incarcerations. In the common area in each unit of individual cells we saw numerous therapy groups being held during our visit.

The ACDF also promotes an optimal number of work options for inmates. Many are involved in kitchen and cleaning duties, in the distribution of library books throughout the facility, and in serving as tutors for individuals in literacy and GED classes. Four work crews of five each are involved in work in the area in such roles as trash and snow removal and in the care and maintenance of other Arlington County facilities. Neither they nor HRRJ offer any work release programs, however, such as are available at the Middle River Jail in Augusta County.

The people with whom we spoke clearly believe what they and other staff are doing at ACDF is helping. They admit it may be too early to tell for sure, but they currently estimate that their "graduates" have a return rate of around 50% instead of the typical 80% number of re-offenders nationwide, and that those who do relapse are symptom free longer before returning to jail or to some treatment facility.

The jury is still out on many of the details, but any or all of these factors may be reducing ACDF's jail population. There is increased evidence that investment in prevention and treatment of mentally ill and substance dependent persons results in fewer long term costs for tax payers.

Sheriff Beth Arthur, currently president of the Virginia Sheriff's Association, has been in the forefront of reforms in Arlington's program. While we may not be able to replicate her program here, I believe we may be able to make significant improvements in how we rehabilitate, rather than simply incarcerate, our offenders.

Under Sheriff Hutcheson's administration we have already seen the following changes:

1. Inmates again have three meals a day on weekends, rather than only two as has been the case for many years. This helps boost morale in a crowded and stressful jail environment.

2. A safety blanket and smock (instead of only a paper gown) is now provided for persons confined to the isolated padded cell.

3. Ongoing Crisis Intervention Team training is being provided for jail personnel and deputies.

4. A reentry class led is being led by a team of local volunteers.

I hope we can have an ongoing conversation on how to reduce our jail population and provide better mental health services to those who need it.

More Readers Air Opinions About MRRJ

Middle River Regional Jail

The comments in this post were submitted online by readers of the Staunton News-Leader's August 2 editorial, one which called for an independent investigation into alleged problems at the Middle River Regional Jail. This facility currently houses 150 inmates from our area as well as from Augusta and Page Counties. 

Please note that the treatment of inmates at Middle River Jail may not be significantly different from many other facilities. Certainly not every inmate will have the kinds of negative experiences described below, and most members of the MRRJ staff are undoubtedly dedicated and good people. It should also be noted that inmates do not receive free medical care and meds, as one comment suggests, but must pay for it.

I print the following responses (with editing only for brevity and clarity) without names, although all signed their online posts, :

"I'm so glad somebody is finally speaking out about this. I couldn't have said it better myself. So for those who say "So what, they are inmates,"  etc... first and foremost they are humans, and don't deserve to be treated they way they are. Not all inmates are murders or rapists, most at MRRJ are small time petty offenders. I have heard way to many stories about how they are talked to and treated. I don't care if it's a 90 year old man or 19 year boy, a life is a life and they deserve better."

"Why should inmates receive free medical care and meds? How does one break a hand in jail? If you have a heart problem or any other medical problems, don't do crimes. It's that simple!"

"And if you do a crime then you should be allowed to die?? If you have asthma and you have a prescription that is paid for and can be delivered you get denied. And they charge the inmates $3 dollars a day to stay, and to see the nurse it's $10.00."

"$3 daily rent? Whew, look out. And pay copays? Wow, I pay copays and I also have to pay for the insurance and a deductible before my insurance pays at all so yeah it's pretty good. And yeah if you are sick and you need meds and you know the jails don't provide them why are you committing crimes? Why should tax payers have to pay for people who are breaking the law?"

"I'm an ex resident of MRRJ and something very inhumane, adn downright disgusting was done to me but Ive got way more to deal with in my life than to complain about insensitive C.Os but it really is unjustified the way thy treat people."

"Reading certain posts here have actually gotten me pretty dismayed. How does one break their hand in jail? How does it happen anywhere? Many ppl are completely naive to situations that eventually land them in jail. I suppose not everyone had the good fortune of being brought up with the cynical hearts that prepare you for the predators out there. "

"$3 dollars a day, hmm. Seemingly dirt cheap, yes? To whom? The inmates can't pay it. It's families and friends that take on that burden and then still try to send commissary and phone money.  Fine, let's call it what it is. A money racket.... a business. Only problem is, inmates are getting low quality everything for the money they are required to pay. Should they have caviar? Obviously not. Should they be given respect and just adequate care. Yes. Pretty simple. "

"RIP Steve Rawley... Cancer unchecked after much complaining at MRRJ until he fell out and died two days later at AMC. Serving a year for habitual offender. Thats a driving charge. A DRIVING CHARGE. OUTRAGEOUS. "

"I have two brothers there....they are being mistreated and hit by guards and nothing is being done about it. they have filed grievance and no one looks at it, or it will take over a month to receive anything back. Some of the guards there think they can get away with everything. Its not fair. they may have broken the law and been sentenced to jail, but they are still human and dnt deserve how they are being treated. thrown into the hole with no mattress pad so they are sleeping on cold concert floors. than when they get sick they don't want to provide any health care. they withhold visitations and mail from family from them and that's not right to the family who is concerned about them, and have no way to know how they are. Seriously hope this is investigated more deeply as to not only my brothers well being but to the other inmates as well. Yes, they made mistakes and choice to be punished for these mistakes and I agree but to be inhumane and treat human beings like dirt under our feet just cuz they made bad or worthless choices in life isn't right nor is it fair......I wish and hope and pray this is investigated and the true justice is served!"

"That is right . They still need medical help. They need to go to the hospital and be seen. Where is that $3.00 a day going? Just because some of them made bad mistakes doesn't mean you do not help them. They are just like us out here. Some thing needs to be done. Some of them are in there for child support when they should be out here working to be able to pay it. God bless all."

"Well again last night my family member was taken the wrong meds, the medical staff was questioned and they insisted they were her meds. So therefore she would have gone without meds last night. Like I said I take her meds there every month so we know what they look like. I called immediately and spoke with a Cpl, Within an hour he took her the correct meds and signed off on them also, and he he did return my call and let me know he had taken care of. it I really appreciated it. But what happens to the inmates that don't have anyone on the outside to do this for them, do they just die from a medication error? Maybe it's time the medical board is contacted. I am not going to let this go, I wlll take it as far as I need to. She has filed at least six grievances in less than 30 days and nothing has been done."

"My son is in MRRJ and got a boil on his stomach from the unsanitary conditions. When he asked to see the nurse it took four days and a phone call from me complaining and telling them that I will harass them till he was seen. Then he was given a bandage and ibuprofen. Then he had an asthma attack and had to use someone else's inhaler bc they wouldn't let me bring his in even though he had a prescription for it."

"Just on 7/27/15 I called and spoke with a lady in the medical department about my family member that had received the wrong meds the night before and that morning, even described her the capsule, she said it sounded like an antibiotic, which is bad because she is allergic to sulfa,. She said she would look into it. It took until that Thursday, 7/30/15 for her to get the correct meds, which by that time she had withdrawal from her antidepressant and was in a bad state. The sad thing is I purchase her meds myself and take there, so they do not have to give her anything for FREE."

"I was at MRRJ for about 5 days and during those 5 days I was denied my heart medication and other meds that I need for congestive heart failure and copd.. I was in holding and told that the nurse was too busy making her rounds with the inmates to make it up to the holding cells for me to receive my meds. I wanted to file a complaint and was told there was nothing I could do since I was considered property of the state while I was in there and they basically could do what they want."

I will be glad to post any official response or rebuttal provided by MRRJ.

Here's a link to other posts on this topic: http://harvyoder.blogspot.com/search?q=mrrj

Middle River Jail Deal: Good News And Bad News

Middle River Regional Jail, Verona, Virginia

Our local politicians are negotiating a $21.5 million deal with the Middle River Regional Jail for 150 of their inmate beds as an alternative to our building a second $63 million jail near the County landfill. As a part of the deal, within a ten year period that number could increase to 250 beds.

The Good News

This does save a fair amount of taxpayer money (though less than that reported in Friday's DNR editorial), and could free more local resources for programs that better prevent problems associated with a 500% increase in our jail numbers over the pat two decades (in spite of our having only a 25% increase in population). There may also be some opportunity to work with MRRJ for better mental health and rehabilitation services there than we have been able to come up with in our local facility, along with the possibility of an active work release program we haven't seemed to be able to offer.

The Bad News

This plan assumes an ever increasing need for more incarceration space. If we were to rigorously pursue proven programs (actually outlined in the Moseley report), like Drug and Mental Health Courts, Day Reporting, a bail bond release rate that is more consistent with national numbers, and/or the use of ankle bracelet technology for home incarcerations, our numbers could and should drop, as they have in Arlington County, for example, rather than inevitably increase.

My fear is that our community will now declare any need for more jail bed space to be resolved and that our pattern of over-incarceration will remain unchanged. To me, that would be a lamentable outcome indeed.

Please Support Next Monday's Public Screenings Of TV-29's Investigation Of Middle River Jail

Jennifer Smith died unattended in a segregated cell at the Middle River Jail in October, 2013

The following is an excerpt of an op ed piece submitted to the DNR by Laura Crites, used with her permission:

What do we do with this moment when Channel 29 has surfaced reason for concern about the safety and well being of our friends, family members and neighbors incarcerated at the Middle River Regional Jail?

First, we need to be aware that the Harrisonburg and Rockingham communities contribute their population and their funds to incarcerating our citizens at MRRJ.

Second, we need to know that we have six governing representatives on the oversight board of MRRJ. As our representatives they are responsible for the welfare of our friends and family members incarcerated there.

Finally, as community members, we need to recognize that we are the second major force in a democratic society that has the power to protect our fellow citizens from becoming abused by those in power.  We can exercise that power by becoming an informed and engaged citizenry.

On February 1, concerned members of the community are offering members of the public an opportunity to become informed and engaged in responding to the outcome of the investigation by Channel 29.  Citizens can attend a Channel 29 public screening of the investigation by reporter Tara Todd and participate in a community discussion.

A focus is on inviting the community to join in encouraging and supporting our  representatives on the governing board of MRRJ in addressing the problems and seeking solutions to issues exposed by the Channel 29 report.

The chair of the Board of Authority, Mike Hamp, of Waynesboro, told reporter Tara Todd that he would welcome information on problems at the jail and solutions that might be implemented.

This is an important moment in the life of our community.  Family members of those incarcerated at MRRJ are especially welcome.  Those hosting the event are also extending a special invitation to our 6 representatives on the MRRJ governing board as well as officials at MRRJ.  There is a commitment to working together with MRRJ leadership and oversight board members to create a working environment, programs and philosophy that respects both guards and those incarcerated there.

Please accept the invitation to become part of the solution.  Attend one of the  two meetings to be held Monday,  February 1 (noon to 1:30) and (6:30 – 8:00pm) at the County Building, 20 East Gay Street, Harrisonburg.  Look for the Fire and Rescue Room for each meeting.

Here's a link to more information on the TV-29 series: 

http://harvyoder.blogspot.com/2015/12/channel-29-deserves-praise-for-mrrj.html

Some Serious Problems At Our Middle River Jail

I recently presented the following to our Community Criminal Justice Board, then submitted it as an op ed piece which appeared in today's Daily News-Record:

Three years have passed since our City and County negotiated a buy-in with Middle River Regional Jail due to a 600% increase in the number of people incarcerated in our local facility since it was built in 1885. Meanwhile our population had grown by only 25%.

At any rate, it would seem appropriate to now have a committee or commission be appointed to review how our arrangement with them could be improved. 

At the time, many of wished the long standing lease option we already had with MRRJ could have simply continued until we were able to implement many of the Mosley Architects’ recommendations and get our incarceration rates down to a more reasonable number or until we could build something like a proposed “Judge John Paul Honor Camp” as a rehabilitation, treatment and work release center for non-violent inmates. 

In the meantime, here are some of the concerns about Middle River many of us keep hearing and that we believe call for such a review:

1. When inmates from here are transferred to MRRJ, their families immediately have to pay three times as much for their “keep fee”, to the tune of over $1000 a year. This a burdensome and arbitrary charge that innocent family members from our area should not be required to pay just because, through no fault of their own, their loved ones are moved to another location.

2. When that transfer is made, whatever commissary or clothing items (food, hygiene products, socks, underwear, etc.) an inmate has acquired are not allowed to be transferred, so again it is family members who need to pay for new and high priced items to replace them, another hardship.

3. MRRJ has inmates on lockdown for 18 hours a day, not for disciplinary reasons but simply because that requires fewer staff members. This is inhumane and contrary to standard jail practice.

4. Complaints about medical care have long been a matter of concern. I understand we have never done an independent investigation into some of the inmate deaths documented in the NBC 29 documentary two years ago, or the quality and adequacy of medical care in general, issues over which we could face liability. Meanwhile, over the past decades MRRJ has consistently underspent its medical budgets by thousands of dollars.

5. All inmates complain about jail food, but there is a clear difference between the quality and quantity of food served at MRRJ (reports of moldy bread, stone bits in lentils. etc.), compared to the quality of meals served at our local jail. As long as we share ownership of MRRJ, we should be able to expect comparable levels of care and service.

Who in the combined authority of city and county could look into these issues on behalf of concerned citizens in our community?