Allen County’s understaffed jail is getting more officers.
Allen County Sheriff Troy Hershberger said he has 18 applicants ready to be hired but does not have the openings for them.
The Allen County Council granted him funding for five new confinement officer positions at the jail. Hershberger said once he fills those positions, the jail would have 154 confinement officers. It has 149 working right now.
Part of the federal court order directing the Allen County Government to improve conditions at the Allen County Jail includes increasing staff at the jail.
Hershberger said there is a new system in place to attract new staff that has taken some time to get working.
In the last three months, Allen County has added 10 new confinement officers to the jail staff and kept the inmate population close to the threshold the federal judge ordered as the short-term solution.
The long-term solution proposed by the Allen County Commissioners, a new jail, remains on hold after the Allen County Council voted down the funding proposal to build the new facility in July.
Allen County Commissioner Nelson Peters (R-1st) asked the county council to entertain another public hearing on how to fund building the new jail at Thursday morning’s county council meeting.
Peters said that hearing will likely be in September.