Scott County Inmates Volunteering to Fix Jail

After receiving a bad inspection last year all the work inmates have been doing is helping keep the jail open.

File Photo

(Scott County, Ind.) - Scott County Jail has been getting some much-needed upgrades all thanks to inmates who are volunteering to do the work.

All the work that the inmates have been doing is helping in keeping the jail open, this comes after a bad inspection from the state last year. If it wasn’t fixed then the jail had the possibility of being condemned.

Years ago, a new jail was added to the already existing building but the older part of the jail was still needed, in a report from WRDB they stated that the older part of the jail still contains the sally port, where the prisoners are taken in. It also contains the booking room and holding cells.

The estimated cost of fixing the jail was $5 million, but with the help of the inmates the price has dropped to $600,000 and the construction is just about finished. According to WDRB, the price includes a $200,000 body scanner that will help make sure that nobody is bringing in drugs.

Upgrades include new cell layouts that will increase the capacity, also there are new ceilings, flooring, and paint. The bright orange paint on the walls is there to symbolize the light at the end of the tunnel, and the hope of a brighter future.  

WDRB quoted Sheriff Jerry Goodin saying, “I hope the skills that the inmates learn on the job can be translated into the community when released from jail.”