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Lackawanna County warden reports inmate death, staffing pressures and steady jail population
Summary
At a county prison board meeting, the warden reported an average daily population of 628, two August incidents requiring emergency restraints, an inmate found unconscious Sept. 9 who later died, two unfounded PREA complaints, and staffing and overtime pressures; the board voted to accept the report.
The warden of the Lackawanna County Prison reported at a county prison board meeting that the facility’s average daily population for August was 628 inmates and that an inmate found unconscious on Sept. 9 was later declared deceased.
The report said 478 of the August average were county inmates, with 573 adult males, 2 juvenile males and 53 adult females. The warden also reported an average daily population of 144 U.S. Marshals Service detainees and six Susquehanna County detainees.
The warden described three extraordinary occurrences: on Aug. 16 and Aug. 23 staff placed two aggressive detainees in an emergency restraint chair for safety; on Sept. 9 staff found an individual unconscious in a cell, performed CPR, summoned emergency medical services and the person was transported to a regional hospital and later declared deceased. The district attorney’s office and Pennsylvania State Police have been notified and an investigation is ongoing, the warden said.
The warden reported two PREA (Prison Rape Elimination Act) investigations completed in August; both were ruled unfounded and the completed investigations were forwarded to the district attorney’s office for possible further action.
The report gave a staffing and operations update: the facility’s correctional-officer complement was reported as 182 full-time officers overall, with 175 on staff, five on workers’ compensation, one on administrative leave and one full‑time vacancy; 74 staff were on intermittent FMLA. The prison’s operating budget figures were presented separately: as of Aug. 31 prison revenue was at 52% of year‑to‑date projections, expenses were at 66% and overtime was 46%, according to the warden’s summary.
The warden also described institutional job assignments and pay rates. He said there are 11 institutional jobs available for women, generally block-worker or reception/administrative positions; female offenders employed in these roles are paid $5 per day. Male institutional jobs include kitchen, laundry and maintenance assignments and generally pay $3 to $10 per day depending on duties and double shifts, the warden said.
The warden described the prison laundry process: clothing is laundered in mesh bags labeled with the inmate’s name and returned; staff acknowledged that items sometimes are lost when bags come apart in washers or dryers. The warden also said facility televisions have closed‑captioning capability and can be enabled on request.
Board members asked for additional reporting. One board member requested a two‑year monthly breakdown of the female population; the warden agreed to provide the reports.
After the presentation a motion to accept the warden’s report was moved, seconded and approved by voice vote. All voting members present responded “aye,” and the motion carried.
The board’s acceptance of the report was procedural and did not enact new policy; board discussion and public questions about medical and mental‑health staffing, medication use and inmate services were raised during public comment and addressed separately by staff and board members.
