Board to Study Transforming South County Camp Into Jail

Desperate to halt the early release of jail inmates, the Board of Supervisors said Tuesday it will consider transforming a South County minimum-security detention camp into a full-fledged jail that would house some maximum-security inmates.

The prospect of a new role for the James A. Musick Branch Jail near Irvine drew immediate protests from community leaders and residents, who are already at odds with the county over a plan to build a commercial airport at the nearby El Toro Marine Corps Air Station.

Supervisors will decide next month whether to conduct an environmental impact report on the project, though officials said they haven’t secured funding to build it.

The Musick expansion study was one of several recommendations Sheriff Brad Gates made Tuesday for reducing jail overcrowding that has resulted in the early release of thousands of inmates over the past year.

Gates also wants the county to begin planning for a jail at the El Toro base, which is slated for closure at the end of the decade.

Though most of county government remains on a bankruptcy-imposed austerity program, some supervisors said they also hope to secure the $2 million needed to operate an 166-bed closed wing at the Theo Lacy Branch Jail in Orange. The money would pay for 30 guards whose positions were cut because of the bankruptcy.

The county has been grappling with jail overcrowding for more than 20 years, but supervisors said now is the time to seriously address it.

“We can’t just keep dilly-dallying around on it. It’s gut-check time in Orange County,” Supervisor Don Saltarelli said. “We can’t just keep releasing criminals from jail before their sentences are up. It encourages them to do it again.”

But leaders in Lake Forest and Irvine question the wisdom of housing dangerous inmates at the Musick location, which is close to several housing tracts.

“It sounds like a really, really bad idea,” Lake Forest Councilman Richard T. Dixon said. “I cannot imagine the city of Lake Forest sitting still and allowing that to happen.”

Some residents who live near the jail have complained about inmates from the facility roaming through their neighborhoods.

The county last year installed more gates at the 100-acre site, which includes a farm where inmates harvest vegetables and where they sleep in tents.

But Dixon said the escapes pale in comparison to the potential problems of maximum-security offenders at an upgraded Musick facility.

“Nobody wants it in their backyard. But I would be less concerned with a minimum-security facility than a maximum-security facility,” Dixon said. “As an individual council member, I would do everything in my power to prevent that.”

Irvine City Manager Paul Brady called on county officials to meet with neighboring cities.

“We’ve had some [jail] breaks out there and, yes, that does concern us,” Brady said. “They should consult with Irvine and Lake Forest and thoroughly go through this issue before they move on.”

But as the early releases continue, county officials said residents need to reexamine their attitudes about where jails are located.

City of Orange officials fought for years against a county plan to expand the Theo Lacy Branch Jail, saying they didn’t want dangerous inmates in their city. But last year, Supervisor William G. Steiner helped broker a compromise that allows for a 1,400-bed expansion.

Orange officials “came to the conclusion that it is better to lock criminals up even if that means locking them up in their backyard,” Steiner said. “I think the 4th District has done its part. It’s now time for others to step up to the plate.”

Funding remains a key challenge, however.

The county still doesn’t have the money to build the approved Theo Lacy expansion.

Gates said the county could receive $60 million to $70 million if a statewide jail construction bond measure is placed on the November ballot and voters approve it. Such a windfall would pay for much of the Theo Lacy construction and part of the Musick expansion.

The county made more than 13,000 early releases last year because of overcrowding. About 880 of those inmates were soon rearrested for other offenses, according to a sheriff’s report.

The county’s average daily jail population was about 5,100 last year, even though the various facilities combined are designed to hold only 3,600 inmates.

Gates estimated that the county will need as many as 7,000 new jail beds by 2000 to make a significant dent in the overcrowding problem. With the Theo Lacy expansion expected to yield 1,400 beds, he said the Musick and El Toro facilities could house the remainder.

The Probation Department has also been forced to release some juvenile inmates early because of overcrowding at its facilities. Steiner said any jail funding plan should also take into account the needs of the Probation Department.

“As we look for solutions, we should not forget their needs as well,” Steiner said.