Jail monitoring system inadequate, sheriff says
HENRIETTA – Ray County Sheriff Scott Childers said the jail needs a new cell-monitoring system.
A new system could cost $50,000. Since November, two inmates have committed suicide in the shed-like jail building, where monitoring equipment is inadequate to see into most cells, also called pods or tanks.
“I have no camera system that shows me anything,” Childers said while looking at a monitor that is smaller than many residential TV screens and displayed 24 postcard-sized pictures of locations within the jail. “There’s only one pod that shows…”
At that moment, Undersheriff Steve Mendoza had something to say about that “one pod,” but got to his point by first talking about other cells.
“These are our main hallways where all the men’s tanks are,” he said, pointing at the screen.
The monitor showed individual cells that might contain several inmates, but few inmates could be seen, even on the larger display screen in the control room.
“This is what you see of the men’s tanks. That’s…