Costs of Jailing Arrested Drywall Workers Approaching $50,000

Since last week, when 153 drywall strikers were arrested after storming a construction site in Mission Viejo, the cost of processing them through the county’s criminal justice system has reached nearly $50,000.

Even though 42 cases have been dismissed because of a lack of evidence, trying the remaining 111 defendants, all of whom are charged with misdemeanor trespassing, could cost an additional $177,500, according to county officials.

Prosecutors said justice has no price, but some defense attorneys countered that the price tag is too high.

“It’s ridiculous to prosecute all of these people because the district attorney’s office clearly does not have a strong case against every one of these defendants,” said Chief Deputy Public Defender Carl C. Holmes.

“If they have to go to trial, it will just be a waste of taxpayers’ money because they’re being tried for protesting for the rights for better pay.”

Deputy Dist. Atty. Marc Kelly said it’s still too early in the court process to discuss costs. “Nobody knows what will happen, and it’s impossible to tell who will finally get to be tried,” he said. “But, we’ll do whatever we have to do, and our main concern is that justice be served.”

In Mission Viejo, where the strikers were arrested July 2, city officials said they are expecting a bill from the county for $24,174 for the cost of booking the 153 drywall strikers in Orange County Jail. It costs a city $158 for each suspect booked into the county jail.

City Manager Fred Sorsabal said the city has the option of appealing the bill, but that decision still has not been discussed.

The county, meanwhile, has spent more than $24,000 to jail the strikers. It costs $27.56 a day to house one inmate at the Theo Lacy Branch Jail in Orange, where the strikers were being held.

The 153 arrested strikers spent four nights in jail, costing taxpayers $16,860. Fifty-three of them were released on their own recognizance Monday. At least 90 of the remaining 100 spent an additional three nights in jail, costing $7,440, before they were released on their own recognizance Thursday night and Friday.

There remains the question of court costs. Court officials said a jury trial costs about $7,100 a day. If the 111 defendants are prosecuted in 15 groups, it will cost about $177,500, assuming each trial lasts five days. A few defense attorneys have estimated that their trials could take as long as two weeks.

Attorneys for both sides said that additional cases could be dismissed or plea-bargained.