Trinity Co. Commissioners table agenda item addressing inmate housing concerns

GROVETON, Texas (KTRE) - Today in Trinity County commissioners’ court, commissioners voted to table an agenda item that would’ve allowed the Trinity County Jail to house inmates in Angelina County for a contracted fee.

It was tabled due to budget concerns.

“I did expect questions, but I did expect we’d get to a better resolution, or a better solution today about what we are going to do with our inmates,” Sheriff Woody Wallace said.

Currently, Trinity County sends its inmates to several jails throughout the state, some of which are located around 3 hours away.

Though Sheriff Woody Wallace says he understands the decision, he expresses concern that the offer Angelina County put on the table could be withdrawn, as other jails are also exploring bed renting.

“So, our options are not great. We either have to look at this seriously and make a decision now before he takes his business somewhere else, which is what will end up happening if we wait around too long,” he explained.

This comes after the Trinity County jail bond failed in November, preventing the county from building a new jail.

Now, Wallace says they need to find solutions for their overflow inmate problem quickly — currently, Wallace says they have 35–45 inmates a day.

“Crimes not going down, I mean, with population increasing, crime is going to increase. And when you stop putting people in jail, it’s going to increase even faster.”

According to the contract, the Trinity County Jail would have to rent 40 beds minimum under the contract, and it would cost 75 dollars a bed every month, pushing them over budget.

But Wallace says that they spent over 80,000 dollars this month alone transporting inmates from different counties and says that they’ll likely be over budget either way, and they may have to seek help from a higher place.

“Little counties like us, who didn’t build a jail 20–30 years ago, now can’t afford a jail. And we can’t afford to keep our inmates at other jails because we’re basically paying for their jails. So it’s a problem, and it’s going to be a problem if I think the state comes in and says, ‘We’re going to build you a jail.’”

Trinity County commissioners will revisit the jail contract at their next meeting on January 13.