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Jail reports 10 juveniles, seeks more county contracts and touts revenue gains
Summary
Jail officials told the Lawrence County Prison Board the facility houses 10 juveniles under contracts with six counties, is expanding educational and counseling programming, and has collected roughly $106,700 in revenue so far this year; board members discussed marketing capacity to surrounding counties and the state amid prison closures.
Deputy Spillbo told the Lawrence County Prison Board the jail currently houses 10 juveniles in its unit and maintains contracts with six neighboring counties, and staff are pursuing additional contracts and programming to support the unit.
"We currently have 10 juveniles in the unit. We currently have contracts with 6 surrounding counties," Deputy Spillbo said. He said two of the juveniles were from Mercer County and eight from Westmoreland County; some cases involve other jurisdictions and child‑welfare (CYS) matters. He described court and review hearings, mandated 30‑day IMJ hearings and the logistical requirement that moving a juvenile requires temporarily halting other inmate movement so juveniles remain sight‑and‑sound separated from adults.
The unit provides an educational component through the New Castle Area School District and counseling and crisis‑shelter programming from Arise; staff said they coordinate weekly court‑ordered therapy and video hearings and are meeting with the Children's Advocacy Center to expand services.
Board members discussed actively marketing the county's juvenile unit to other counties and to state officials. One board member noted the state is closing two facilities, creating potential demand: "The overall state population is now approximately anywhere from 13 to 15,000 inmates right now. 2 jails that they're gonna close is is gonna need housing for about 2,500 inmates," a jail administrator said; board members said they would tell state contacts that Lawrence County is available to accept placements if needed.
On finances, Deputy Simmons presented revenue figures: "So far this year, we've had a revenue collected of $106,700. We still have about $8,100 outstanding from last year. The expected revenue for February from January build is $155,550," he said, adding an outstanding total figure that combined current and prior outstanding amounts.
Board members praised staff work running the juvenile unit and discussed capacity goals; one member said the "ultimate goal is to get 30" juveniles, though officials cautioned counts can fluctuate based on court placements. No formal changes to contracts or budget allocations were approved at the meeting.
The discussion highlighted the unit's operational demands — specialized hearings, video conferencing, staff training and scheduling — and officials said they would continue meetings with surrounding counties and state contacts to promote the facility.
