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Sheriff warns of staffing shortfalls as Warrick County prepares to open new jail facility
Summary
Sheriff Mike Browder told the council the sheriff's office is understaffed ahead of a planned move to a new, roughly 83,000-square-foot facility and reported losing several jailers in recent years and current deputy/jailer vacancies.
Sheriff Mike Browder told the Warrick County Council he is concerned about staffing levels as the sheriff's office prepares to move into a new detention and public-safety complex expected to open in March or April.
"We're going to try to operate this building with 21 jailers," Browder said, noting that the office does not currently have that many available. He told the council the office "lost 7 jailers in 2025, 5 in 2024," and that there are deputy vacancies coming in February. Browder said three jailers on staff are qualified to transfer into deputy roles, which would further reduce jail staffing if hired.
Browder described the new facility as "over 83,000 square feet" on about 18 acres and said the scale changes operational needs: "It's a total different beast than what we're in now." He said training takes time, adding, "It takes about a month and a half to 2 months to train a jailer. It takes about a year for a deputy." Those timelines, he said, complicate staffing as the larger facility comes online.
Browder said he is exploring options to avoid asking the county for additional recurring funds, including reviewing whether unused bond money could be applied to hire employees and proposing a reclassification of a current maintenance position to a facilities manager that would be funded within his existing budget. "I'm not trying to get him a raise," Browder said of the maintenance reclassification; "I believe his job description will match what money that there will be a cost. I wanna eat within my own budget." He also said he will continue coordinating with the county accountant and will provide a standard monthly report soon.
Council members thanked Browder for raising the issues and discussed contingency planning for operations in both the new facility and the vacated building. Browder said he would be on Zoom for the March meeting and would bring further recommendations if staffing shortfalls require formal action by the council.
