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County report: nearly half of Alvin S. Glenn detainees have been in custody more than six months
Summary
Administration reported 1,006 detainees at Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center, with 466 held more than six months and 276 held more than a year; officials said the jail manages in-custody care but not arrests or releases and noted diversion and solicitor staffing issues.
Richland County administrators told the detention ad hoc committee that the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center held 1,006 detainees at the time of the report and that 466 of them have been detained more than six months.
Administrator Brown read key figures from the population report: “466 of the folks that are detained at Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center out of the 1,006 that are there as of this report have been there longer than 6 months,” he said, noting that 276 detainees (27.44%) have been in custody more than a year and that of those 276 people, 209 are charged with violent crimes (75.72% of the >1-year group). Brown also said 565 detainees (56% of the total) are charged with violent crimes overall.
Why it matters: Alvin S. Glenn is designed as a short-term facility to hold people awaiting trial, administrators said, and extended stays can affect staffing needs, housing and operations. Brown emphasized the jail controls in-custody conditions but not who is arrested or released: “The jail does not control who comes to the jail, nor who leaves the jail,” he said.
Brown and the committee noted that some case-processing delays relate to the solicitor’s office; a solicitor present during the report said more staff are needed to move cases faster and that county budget increases have targeted those roles. Brown said the county included additional solicitor-staff funding in this year’s budget and may seek it again.
The committee discussed alternatives such as home electronic incarceration. Brown said the program is paid for by the jail but is administered through the solicitor’s office and commonly functions as a diversionary program that requires court approval.
Committee members also discussed the daily detention billing rate. Brown said the county has not raised the daily rate since 2018 and that a new rate of $110 will be effective July 1 in the next budget cycle. He described inflationary pressures used to justify the change but said implementation details and reception were still emerging.
Next steps: Officials asked staff to gather comparative data on other counties’ classifications and staffing and to return with more detail on recruitment and the operational impact of long stays. No policy decision was made at the meeting.
