County says new jail pod nearly ready; officials report inspections, ICE interest and PREA review

Pod 4 at the Grand Forks County jail is near ready for occupancy and county corrections leaders told the commission they expect to start moving inmates within about two weeks, pending completion of wiring and other contractor work. The county also reported growing demand from federal partners: ICE and the U.S. Marshals have contacted the jail asking when it can accept more detainees.

Why it matters: Opening Pod 4 increases bed capacity and creates an opportunity for maintenance on older pods. It could affect jail staffing, bed-reimbursement contracts and the county’s workload for training and compliance.

Corrections leadership said outside wiring work should be finished on Monday and that the pod would allow the county to move a section of inmates and then undertake maintenance on older pods. The speaker said Pod 4 will be the county’s largest bed-count area and described plans to use inmate trustees and buildings-and-grounds staff to perform painting, cleaning and repairs that cannot be done while units are fully occupied.

Federal housing contracts: Officials said ICE is actively asking for beds and that the current ICE contract pays $100 per bed per day, with a contract expiration date of Dec. 31. Corrections staff said they have submitted paperwork to request a higher rate and are prepared to negotiate; they indicated the rate could be increased but did not provide a finalized figure.

Staffing and training: The jail has openings (the presenter said 13 vacancies) and reported recent recruitment yielded four applicants, two of whom were offered positions; one applicant did not show. The county is emphasizing in-house training to reduce costs and increase retention, sending staff to the Peace Officer Academy and using deputy sheriffs as instructors for taser and firearms training and transport procedures.

Inspections and compliance findings: The county reported a recent Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (DOCR) inspection covering 108 state standards. Officials said the jail met 104 of the applicable standards, one standard was not applicable and three standards were not in compliance at the time of inspection; some deficiencies were addressed while the inspectors were on site. The areas noted as not in compliance included incident reporting, inmate observation practice and inventory of equipment. Officials said incident reporting has increased compared with the previous year and that corrective measures for inmate observation and equipment inventory are already underway.

PREA review: The county also reported a Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) inspection and said that process is time-consuming. The presenter said PREA-related items are being finalized and that the inspection “went very well” overall; the inspector is working with staff on a few wording changes to documentation.

Commissioners asked about standardizing housing fees across jails; staff said differing local needs and staffing levels mean standardization would be difficult and would require negotiation among elected sheriffs and possibly state-level guidance.

The commission asked staff to continue recruitment efforts, to coordinate maintenance scheduling as Pod 4 opens, and to continue work to bring the facility into full compliance for the next inspection.