More Efforts to Fight Jail Expansion Urged

Four Los Angeles City Council members on Tuesday proposed asking the city attorney’s office to explore ways to oppose the planned expansion of the downtown Men’s Central Jail.

The county Board of Supervisors, on a 3-1 vote Aug. 29, approved the 2,408-bed expansion increasing the facility’s capacity to 9,000 inmates. The plan was opposed by Asian and Hispanic area residents, who said the neighborhoods from Chinatown to East Los Angeles are already overloaded with jail facilities.

Councilman Richard Alatorre, who represents the Eastside 14th District, proposed asking the city attorney to investigate what legal options are open to the city.

Council members Gloria Molina, Michael Woo and Gilbert Lindsay, who all represent areas near the jail, seconded the motion. The motion will be considered by the council Sept. 13.

The proposed expansion includes plans to build a two-story inmate reception center sided by two concrete towers, seven and eight stories high. There will also be a five-story tower at the back of the complex, which will house a jail hospital.