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Cass County approves MOU to house some inmates at Clay County jail to ease overcrowding
Summary
The Cass County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously to approve a memorandum of understanding with Clay County to house an initial 10 inmates, giving local law enforcement more flexibility for medical needs and court appearances as the county jail nears capacity.
The Cass County Board of Commissioners voted to approve a memorandum of understanding with Clay County that will allow Cass County to board an initial group of inmates in Clay County’s correctional facility.
County staff and law enforcement told commissioners the arrangement is intended to ease pressure on the county jail and reduce long transports for inmates who remain pretrial and must return to Cass County for court. “The jail’s full, so anytime that we can squeeze 10, 20 beds anywhere, we want to do that so that we can maintain public safety for our community,” a county law enforcement presenter said during the meeting.
Sheriff Johnner described the operational benefits: the MOU would provide closer housing options for pretrial inmates with court here and for detainees with medical needs when smaller jurisdictions lack hospital or staff capacity. “This gives us another option, a little bit more latitude in housing those types of inmates,” he said.
Commissioners and county officials praised interjurisdictional cooperation. Commissioner comments emphasized cross‑river collaboration and noted past partnerships with neighboring counties and state partners that made the agreement possible. “This is the open‑minded collaboration that we hope for,” one commissioner said.
The board voted in favor of the motion to approve the MOU; the motion was moved by Commissioner Capitan and seconded by Commissioner Bell. Commissioners recorded voice and roll‑call affirmations in support of the agreement.
Implementation details discussed at the meeting said the county would start with about 10 inmates and reassess capacity over time, with the option to increase to 20 beds depending on need. County staff reported coordination with the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and a review by the state’s attorney prior to bringing the MOU forward.
The agreement is intended to be an operational measure rather than a change to county detention policy; county staff said the arrangement will be reassessed as bed need and jail staffing evolve.
Votes at the meeting were taken by voice and roll call; commissioners approved the MOU by affirmative vote as recorded in the meeting minutes.
