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Oklahoma County detention official reports inspection deficiencies, population pressures and re‑entry partnerships
Summary
Mark Opran, presenting for the Oklahoma County Detention Center, told county oversight members that a recent health inspection found recordkeeping and kitchen‑floor deficiencies; the jail reported about 1,461 people on May 8, staffing shortfalls and expanded re‑entry placements with community partners.
Mark Opran, presenting on behalf of the Oklahoma County Detention Center, briefed county oversight members on facility operations, inspection findings and programs to reduce returns to custody. “Today's population was 1,461,” Opran said, adding the facility’s average daily population for the month was about 1,462 and the year‑to‑date average roughly 1,450.
Opran told the board the county jail received its yearly health department inspection — the first full inspection since December 2024 — and that inspectors identified several deficiencies, chiefly incomplete safety‑check logs and a cracked area of kitchen flooring that requires repair planning. “Some of the issues have to do with safety checks,” he said, and described the kitchen floor problem as longstanding and difficult to fix without disrupting meal service.
Opran said 130 people were classified as JNS — awaiting transfer to the Department of Corrections — and that recent limits in DOC bed space have delayed some female transfers. He warned that transfer holds can keep people in county custody longer: “We are totally dependent on DOC and the bed space,” he said.
On staffing, Opran reported about 343–344 employees, including 54 medical staff, and said an active academy is training 32 recruits. He recalled the budget request sought 111 full‑time detention officers and said staff levels remain below targets; the next academy later this summer is intended to reduce vacancies.
Opran highlighted several operational metrics: 19,604 bookings so far this fiscal year, numerous contraband sweeps (including meth detected at intake), nine Narcan administrations in April (a correction to a slide that listed six), 3,000+ mental‑health contacts in April, and 123 dental procedures performed on 106 patients.
He also described re‑entry work with community partners and programs — First Step Recovery, Metro Alliance, Hope Is Alive, Dragonfly, Magdalene House and others — noting the jail had helped place some patients into community programs to support treatment and reduce recidivism.
Board members asked for follow‑up data Opran did not have on hand, including exact counts of people currently serving county sentences, the number of pregnant people in custody, and clarifications about whether re‑entry placements were pre‑ or post‑adjudication; Opran offered to provide those details after consulting medical staff and DOC records.
The board did not take formal action on Opran’s report; members requested staff follow up on inspection repair options, staffing plans tied to upcoming academies, and specific counts requested during the question period.
