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Lincoln County approves purchase of transport van and security insert for jail transports
Summary
The Lincoln County Board of Commissioners approved buying a cargo transport van and a security insert to expand inmate transport capacity; the insert cost is $29,516 and the board capped the vehicle purchase at $60,000.
The Lincoln County Board of Commissioners on June 16 approved buying a transport van and a security “insert” for the county jail to expand prisoner transport capacity.
Captain Dan Newton of the sheriff’s office told the board the county has been transporting more people across the state and needs a vehicle that will fit into receiving facilities’ restricted sally ports and allow sight-and-sound separation for mixed-sex loads. “We’re here asking for approval to purchase a transport van for the jail,” Newton said during his presentation.
The board approved a motion to buy the security insert package for $29,516 and to purchase the underlying cargo vehicle through the Nebraska state net bid process with a cap of $60,000 for the vehicle. The insert is a prefabricated module that will be dismantled for installation and reassembled inside the cargo van; it includes HVAC, lights and camera hookups to allow staff to monitor detainees during long transports.
Newton said the requested van, with the insert, raises capacity from 10 to 12 and reduces the number of round trips required for long-distance transports. He told commissioners that each trip requires two armed staff and that longer trips “really tax” staffing. The sheriff’s office is budgeting the purchase in the current cycle and expects to order the kit and vehicle if the board’s authorization is used.
Commissioners discussed alternatives and vendor sourcing; Newton said Masters Transportation (the vendor that works with the Nebraska state bid) can locate a mid-roof cargo van to meet the county’s height and sally-port constraints and that the insert will be shipped as one kit and assembled by county or contractor personnel.
Roll call on the motion showed the measure passed with affirmative votes from the full board.
The purchase will be charged to the sheriff’s budget and the county will seek to recover some transport costs when state or federal agencies pay mileage and personnel costs for contracted transports.
