NCJ Number
130321
Journal
Law Enforcement Technology Volume: 18 Issue: 6 Dated: (June 1991) Pages: 22-23,56
Date Published
1991
Length
3 pages
Annotation
Brief interviews with four sheriffs representing urban and rural, large and small jurisdictions provide insights into some of the major management problems in law enforcement today.
Abstract
The sheriff of San Diego County (California) explains that the biggest problem for his district's criminal justice system is prison overcrowding, as the system has been unable to keep pace with capital improvements and the population increase. He describes the range of incarceration alternatives available in the county as well as some of the solutions to overcrowding being implemented. The sheriff of Yazoo County (Mississippi) cites drugs, particularly crack cocaine, as his biggest law enforcement challenge. His contribution to the sheriff's department has been largely administrative; he initiated comprehensive record-keeping procedures and paved the way for interagency cooperation. In Licking County, Ohio, correctional authorities have a good relationship with the judiciary. There is a self-imposed 80 percent capacity limit set on facilities and several alternatives to institutionalization are available. Drug use is the biggest crime problem in that area. Jail overcrowding was noted as a problem by the sheriff of Lancaster County (Pennsylvania), whose office acts solely as the law enforcement arm of the courts. In addition, because there are no continuous criminal trials, the courts are overloaded.