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State’s Attorney, public defender say fuller staffing and pretrial services could cut jail population
Summary
State’s Attorney Laura Retzel and Public Defender Eric Witcher told commissioners that understaffing in prosecution and defense, and a lack of pretrial services, are major drivers of the county jail population and urged investment in case processing and diversion as alternatives to building more beds.
Officials from Pennington County’s criminal justice system told the Board of Commissioners on July 23 that staffing shortages in both the State’s Attorney’s Office and the public defender’s office, delayed case processing and the absence of pretrial services are contributing to a large county jail population.
“Fully staffing the State’s Attorney's Office is going to positively impact your jail population,” State’s Attorney Laura Retzel told commissioners. Retzel said many inmates are housed while awaiting progress through the judicial process and cited paperwork and scheduling delays that extend stays. She described an example of an arrested veteran whose court‑appointed attorney paperwork was delayed, prolonging his time in…
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