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Chester County prison reports lower population, ongoing facility repairs and staff training
Summary
At its March 19 meeting the Chester County Prison Board of Inspectors heard the Warden report a modest drop in average daily population for February 2025, summaries of inmate programs and transports, and updates on facility repairs and security upgrades.
At the March 19 meeting of the Chester County Prison Board of Inspectors, the Warden reported a slight decrease in the jail's average daily population and detailed program, transport and staffing figures for February 2025.
The Warden said the average daily inmate population for February 2025 was 631, down from 635 in February 2024. The report listed 289 commitments and 316 discharges during the month and said the total inmates committed to Chester County Prison was 618; the Warden gave the same 618 figure for the total population on Feb. 28. The Warden said no juveniles were housed during the month.
Central booking processed several hundred people during February; the Warden said 270 were handled in central booking, 138 made bail and 119 were committed, and 37 different agencies were involved in those cases. The daily average population at the county correctional center was 23 in February 2025, compared with 22 in February 2024. The Warden said the Miramar work-release facility remained closed.
The Warden reported three transports to state correctional institutions during the month, moving a total of 19 inmates, and 54 medical transports. The report listed 46 disciplinary hearings for major misconduct and showed 25 inmates housed in the restricted housing unit. The jail conducted 162 video-conferencing hearings in the month, which the Warden said produced approximate savings of $16,400.
On health and programming, the Warden said 66 percent of inmates were on medical medications, 43 percent were on psychotropic medications and 9 percent were on suicide watch. The report listed 55 male and 14 female inmates in the facility's specified serious category, for a total of 69. The Warden said 16 inmates were receiving treatment at state hospitals; one inmate was awaiting a bed.
Institutional programs the Warden listed included alcohol education, anger management, budgeting classes, victim services, volunteer-led programs, substance-use recovery programs, cognitive-behavioral classes and other reentry-focused exercises. The Warden also reported that 11 officers graduated from the training academy on Feb. 10, 2025, and that additional staff attended training in weapons qualification, PREA (Prison Rape Elimination Act) standards, de-escalation, hostage negotiation and other topics.
Separately, the security and facilities update described ongoing construction and repairs at county correctional properties: roof repairs are underway; the county is preparing to reopen the correctional center kitchen; water heaters that required replacement have been replaced; demolition and remodeling of the pump room is in progress; locker-room renovations are underway; and work continues on perimeter intrusion detection systems. The county reported a vendor issue that temporarily affected some touch-screen panels in the security system and said the vendor is addressing those outages.
No formal board action was recorded in the Warden's report portion of the meeting; commissioners asked questions about population trends and facility work during the presentation.
