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DeWitt County Jail Eyeing Upgrades For Jail

Despite being less than 20 years old, a local facility is needing some renovations.

The DeWitt County Jail is one of the few buildings in the city that is in use 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and is continuously occupied with a significant amount of people. DeWitt County Sheriff Jered Shofner explains if the jail is going to continue to be an asset to the community, there are going to be some needed maintenance items given attention over the next few years on things that are beginning to wear out.

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Among some of the wear and tear items, a few months ago the jail experienced a water pipe break which forced the evacuation of part of the jail. The Sheriff says in that instance, they were fortunate they did not have to evacuate the whole jail, however, it is things like that that Sheriff Shofner says need attention around the facility.

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The jail is currently home to Cook County and federal inmates their facilities do not have the room for. Sheriff Shofner hopes to continue that program, and he says if this program and housing at a 90% rate are going to continue, these maintenance items are going to need attention sooner rather than later.

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According to the Sheriff, the agreement with Cook County to house their inmates is going to generate about $700-thousand in revenues. Sheriff Shofner says this is important because the County Jail is going always be there, he says that revenue can help offset the cost of their expenses, and help the taxpayers of the county.

The average population since the beginning of the agreement has been around 77 inmates.

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