Harlan Kirgan
The cost of housing of parish prisoners outside St. Landry Parish once again drew the attention of the Parish Council.
Councilmen Ken Marks and Harold Taylor reported on their study of the prisoner problem at a meeting Wednesday in Opelousas.
The Parish Council has revisited the prisoner issue several times since the city of Opelousas closed its jail in May.
Taylor questioned why the city of Opelousas does not share in the parish’s cost of housing city prisoners since it uses some of the inmates for trusty work.
“It would seem if you are going to use them to work they ought to pay some of the expenses of feeding and housing and medicating,” he said.
The budget-buster currently for the Parish Council are 55 parish prisoners housed outside the parish at a cost of $24.39 each a day.
Taylor said about $50,000 was budgeted this year for housing prisoners outside the 232-inmate parish jail.
The current out-of-parish prisoners may end up costing $550,00 if it continues, he said.
“So, we are upside down about a half million dollars if this is the way it is going to go,” he said.
Taylor said he Marks are trying to get Sheriff Bobby Guidroz to provide a daily report on the number of parish prisoners housed outside the parish.
“This problem is a lot greater than our problem. This is a problem with the sheriff, district attorney, the court system, the indigent defender attorneys. They have to come to the table and quit thinking in silos and start thinking in multiples of we are all in this thing together. How do we do this more efficiently?” Taylor said.
There about 10 state inmates in the parish jail and the sheriff reimburses the parish for the cost of housing them, he said.
Eunice has a city jail and has a cost-sharing agreement with the parish as does Port Barre, he said.
With some on the Council asking that the city of Opelousas come to a cost-sharing agreement, Marks said it is too soon to recommend anything.
Councilman Jerry Red suggested the Parish Council revisit the division of money from Evangeline Downs.
The current split is:
— Parish government, 55 percent;
— St. Landry Parish Airport, 1.5 percent;
— Coroner, 1.5 percent;
— Economic development, 5 percent;
— District attorney, 3.5 percent;
— Registrar of voters, 1.5 percent;
— Opelousas City Police Department, 6 percent;
— St. Landry Parish Municipal Association, 21 percent;
— St. Landry Parish Judicial System, 2 percent;
— St. Landry Parish Clerk of Court, 1.5 percent; and
— St. Landry Parish Assessor’s Office, 1.5 percent.
The parish receives about $3 million from Evangeline Downs and takes about 4 percent for an administrative fee. The remainder is to be divided as set out by the ordinance. The council receives about $1.6 million of the racino money.