Paying for the jail, but not examining the real problem.

Mark brought it up, and there's a lot to talk about in terms of money. The Facebook thread is here.

Floyd County Council, Commissioners at odds over how to pay back jail debt, by Daniel Suddeath (Hanson's Old White Guys Just Like Him Journal)

NEW ALBANY — Floyd County leaders are split on how to spend millions of dollars in interest from hospital sale proceeds, as governing bodies have passed opposing resolutions with repayment of a bond to renovate the jail hanging in the balance.

However, in light of recent weeks, I think our junior editor Bluegill wrote something as or more important.

In previous meetings, the Floyd County Sheriff reported that, like most jails in the country, half or more of the jail population at any given time is there not because they’re particularly violent or dangerous but because they can’t afford bail. Reform of our bail system - something the prosecutor’s office can do - would consistently cut our jail population roughly in half. Any county official willing to spend that much money because a prosecutor won’t reform a corrupt class-based system ought to be run out of office, as should the prosecutor.

And if you look at arrest numbers in New Albany, they tend to skew heavily Black well beyond population percentages. Do you think any politician in this county has the guts to address that publicly and head on?

So, Floyd County clearly has a class-based “criminal justice” system disproportionately aimed at Blacks. And what are we arguing about? Which tax to use to pay for expansion of it.

Wait -- do you mean not one of Bill Hanson's old white male columnists thought to explore this side of the story?

For more: Overcrowded jails, wasted tax dollars: Let's reform cash bail in Kentucky — and the nation, by J. Herbert Nelson.

Go pound sand: Indiana Supreme Court rules against Team Gahan v.v. the frivolous City County Building lawsuit.

The link: City of New Albany v. Board of Commissioners of the County of Floyd

Let's begin with excellent words suitable for you-know-who.

Pounding sand, Shane?

There are two takes on go pound sand. The more recent, seemingly a product of World War II, and often euphemised, is go pound sand up one's (rear end). It is used to dismiss and deride, and is ultimately a vehement way of saying: "go away"...A variant meaning is to suffer or to act in a pointless manner ... the late 19th century phrase "pound sand in a rathole" originated on campus and meant to be reasonably intelligent. It was usually found in the negative phrase, "not enough sense to pound sand in a rat hole."

Pounding sand used to be a good thing -- a sensible task undertaken by a person wise in the ways of rodent control -- until it became a bad thing -- a painful act of self-abasement -- and then morphed into a simple act of futility.

I'm obviously not an attorney, and the joy I'm deriving from this court decision derives from the stinging rebuke to Gahanism.

The lease expired in September 2008, and thereafter, the City and the County continued to occupy the Center, splitting the costs proportionally, based on the amount of space each occupied. In 2015, the County began negotiations with Building Authority for renovations of the Center. In 2018, the County requested that the Building Authority transfer title of the Center to the County pursuant to the Turn-Over Provision in the parties’ lease.

The Building Authority declined to transfer title and the County filed suit in April of 2018, seeking declaratory judgment and specific performance, among other things. At the county’s request, the trial court expedited the proceedings. In May 2018, the trial court granted the City of New Albany’s request to intervene. In June 2018, the trial court entered declaratory judgment in favor of the County, concluding that the Turn-Over Provision in the lease was valid pursuant to Indiana Code section 36-9-13-22(a)(6). It ordered that the title be given to the County and dismissed all other pending claims.

The City appealed arguing that under Indiana Code section 36-9-13, the Turn-Over Provision was not valid. The Court of Appeals agreed and Indiana Supreme Court | Case No. 19S-MI-674 | March 23, 2020 Page 4 of 7 further held, sua sponte, that the County, as a holdover tenant could still exercise the purchase option in the lease. City of New Albany v. Bd. of Comm’rs of Cty. of Floyd, 125 N.E.3d 636, 641 (Ind. Ct. App. 2019), adhered to on reh'g, 130 N.E.3d 660 (Ind. Ct. App. 2019), and trans. granted, opinion vacated, 138 N.E.3d 961 (Ind. 2019). Both parties petitioned for transfer, which we granted. Ind. Appellate Rule 58(A).

In short, the Indiana Supreme Court found in favor of the original trial court ruling, and all you really need to know is the defeat constitutes egg on Dear Leader's face.

Actually it isn't the only thing.

How much did this frivolous lawsuit cost city and county? Anyone for an on-line petition demanding the mayor pay court costs?

On Gahan's $10,000,000 City-County Building escape plan as a tactic to disrupt his ancestral enemies in county government.

Team Gahan whiffs on appeal in criminal justice center lawsuit. How much were the legal fees for THIS frivolity?

"Although the city of New Albany argued holdover tenants should not be given “another bite at the apple,” the Indiana Court of Appeals affirmed its original ruling that continued occupancy of the criminal justice center maintains the terms and conditions of the lease even after the agreement as expired."

Beware. Dear Leader lost a match to the despised county government, and in a fit of pique he now might try to TIF Greenland.

COA continues terms of justice center lease in Floyd County (August 15, 2019; Marilyn Odendahl, The Indiana Lawyer)

Although the city of New Albany argued holdover tenants should not be given “another bite at the apple,” the Indiana Court of Appeals affirmed its original ruling that continued occupancy of the criminal justice center maintains the terms and conditions of the lease even after the agreement as expired.

The southern Indiana city raised its holdover arguments in a petition for a rehearing in City of New Albany v. Board of Commissioners of the County of Floyd, New Albany Floyd County Indiana Building Authority, 18A-MI-1627.

A dispute arose between the parties over the criminal justice center. In 1992, the county entered into 15-year lease with the building authority, allowing the county to lease the center while the city sublet space from the county. The lease included a provision that allowed the county to request the title of the property at the conclusion of the agreement.

Ten years after the lease expired, the county demanded the title but the building authority refused. The Court of Appeals, in a May 22 decision, ruled the building authority lacks the statutory authority to agree to such a provision.

However, the appellate panel unanimously agreed the county could still exercise its purchase option contained in the 1992 lease. Because the county continued to occupy the justice center and pay its share of the operational costs under the terms of the lease long after it had expired, the county could still acquire title by buying it from the building authority.

The city asked for a rehearing on that ruling. In part, the city argued the language in the lease limits the purchase option only to the time prior to the expiration of the agreement.

“Holdover tenancy is not intended to give lessees another bite at the apple,” the city asserted in its petition for rehearing. “It is designed to promote stability in tenancies. The policy that purchase options do not survive expiration is consistent with this interest.”

Jail construction, jail taxes and a point usually missed: "Our jail overcrowding issue is largely based on the inability of people to pay bail."

We can trust Jeff Gillenwater always to cut straight to the chase.

Amid bountiful controversy over jail expansion and jail taxes, hardly anyone including the local chain newspaper has asked why we're jailing so many people.

Our jail overcrowding issue is largely based on the inability of people to pay bail. Sheriff Loop recently mentioned that typically over half the Floyd County inmates at any given time are there not because they’ve been convicted but because they are awaiting trial and can’t make bail. That 50-60% statistic holds up nationally. Those with financial means await trial at home while continuing to work jobs, go to school, tend children, or whatever it is they normally do. Those without enough money to pay bail lose jobs, struggle with childcare or have children taken away, etc., often while charged with the same or similar crimes. We have a prosecutorial problem, not a jail problem.

Yep.

In addition, after months of trench warfare, suddenly City Hall has become amenable to the jail project. This might be because the mayor got what he wanted in terms of a new luxury City Hall and can afford to play nice.

It might also be the approach of a 2019 campaign season during which the irrational hostility of ranking municipal Democrats toward Republican-dominated county government is likely to become a campaign issue damaging to the Democrats, hence a low-grade charm offensive to keep us off-balance.

Pro tip: keep your eye on the anchor, and never stop following the money.

Agreement reached on jail construction permits in Floyd County, by Chris Morris (That Tom May Show)

MEW ALBANY — The city of New Albany and Floyd County government have reached an agreement for the $15 million jail renovation project to move forward.

There had been some disagreement as to which entity had control over permitting for the work. However, city attorney Shane Gibson said Friday the city had issued work permits for the contractor. The city will also inspect the work once it is completed.

Floyd County attorney Rick Fox said both sides got together with "all the players" and went through the process. Now the project can move forward.

Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to rant in a unique way about the jail tax.

No one from the public attended the second reading and final vote for the tax Wednesday, although (county council president Brad) Striegel said he heard from some constituents who are against it.
-- from the article in the newspaper

For me, it comes down to this: if the primary aim of the criminal justice system is to incarcerate -- and America tends to incarcerate an absurd percentage of its own people -- then it's going to be necessary to constantly build and rebuild jails.

Personally, I find it revolting. So much of this has to do with drug abuse, which is an illness, and we're perpetually unwilling as a nation to examine the fundamentals of addiction and treat the disease rather than its symptoms.

Kindly note that as I'm writing these words, the 1% has amassed a few trillion dollars more, none of which is being tithed toward jails, disease or much of anything else apart from greed.

Sounds like a disease to me. Is there a vaccine?

In terms of coping with reality in the way we as a people seem to favor it, then yes, Sheriff Loop's plan for jail renovation is far less expensive then building fresh, and the tax enacted this week is relatively low.

Those county council members carrying the ball were doing so pragmatically. No one ever said it was going to be easy trying to square diametrically opposed conditions, and my guess is they understand the electoral implications, although to repeat, not one member of the public bothered to show up and speak.

Politics is about power, and in political terms, Adam Dickey predictably has released his bots-by-DNC-template attacks, with Republicans being savaged for raising taxes. Seems there might be as many fault lines in the local GOP as among Squire Adam's DemoDisneyDixiecrats, as some Republicans are joining in this fusillade on social media.

Others expressing support for the jail tax have written that they predicated their approval on efforts to cut fat before approving the tax, with these not being considered.

Just a thought, but all these Republicans might also be asking urban Democrats to explain a municipal budget that has doubled since Jeff Gahan took office, or helping to unravel the vast extent of mayoral influence peddling, or even taking to the airwaves to question the Gahan ruling clique's cozy arrangement to procure a job for councilman Matt Nash.

It would be mighty helpful in explicating Gahan's myriad ethical shortcomings if the occasional sign of a pulse dimly emanated from the right, and not only the left, where as the rare social democrat (lower case, please) in the room, I tire of waging a one-front war against Team Gahan's larcenous stupidity.

Here's the script. No charge; you can buy me a beer some time. Instructions for use: launch an offensive against Democratic Party corruption first, illustrating that Gahan's homegrown Anchor Nostra is costing each of us quite a lot more than $100 each year, and then take your chances with the jail tax response.

A purely sadistic week in New Gahania, and even more tales from Corruption Junction.

Alas, as one Republican sadly explained to me:

It's because our presumptive mayoral candidate is low energy and is surrounded by a bunch of low-lifes who can’t call the Democrats out because they do exactly the same thing.

Can't we all just get along and agree to topple the despot?

But I digress. As it pertains to the jail tax, what just about everyone on both sides of the aisle misses is the basic first-causes point, this being whether we need to incarcerate so many persons when numerous other strategies to address such behavior exist.

We're accepting the grassroots muck, then arguing about how best to keep the slime off our clothing. Down here in the mud flats by the river, it's quite likely a futile strategy.

Floyd County Council approves new jail tax, by Chris Morris

Move will generate $4.5 million a year

NEW ALBANY — The Floyd County Council raised taxes in 1992 to pay for a new jail. On Wednesday night, a different council voted to raise taxes to renovate that same jail.

By a 4-3 vote the council approved a new Correctional Rehabilitation Facilities ordinance that calls for a .002 percent payroll tax on Floyd County residents. The new tax will generate around $4.5 million a year to be used on jail expenses including staffing and construction costs associated with the $15 million renovation plan that was recently approved.

"It's hard to do, but it's the right thing to do," council Vice President Denise Konkle said after the vote. Konkle, Lana Aebersold, Dale Bagshaw and Leslie Knable voted in favor of the tax, while Brad Striegel, Tom Pickett and Cam Wright voted against ...

... Bagshaw said the costs to run government have increased like everything else over the past two decades, and while school taxes have increased during that time, county taxes have not.

"This can help pay the bond and other costs for the jail," he said. "That is why we did it."

And a day earlier:

Jail tax ordinance moves forward in Floyd County, by Chris Morris

NEW ALBANY — The Floyd County Council moved one step closer to creating a new jail tax Tuesday night.

By a 5-2 vote, an ordinance to create a .002 jail tax rate passed on first reading. The final vote will take place Wednesday at 6 p.m. at the Pine View Government Center since the vote did not pass by unanimous consent on first reading.

The new tax will generate around $4.5 million a year to be used on jail expenses including construction costs associated with the $15 million renovation plan that was recently approved. For residents making $50,000 a year, the new jail payroll tax will amount to around $100 a year, according to Auditor Scott Clark. The tax would kick in Oct. 1, 2018.

Lana Aebersold, Dale Bagshaw, Cam Wright, Leslie Knable and Denise Konkle voted in favor of the jail tax in the first reading, while Brad Striegel and Tom Pickett voted against. Only a majority vote of the council is needed Wednesday night for the tax to be approved.

"I've been struggling with this," Bagshaw said. "But I looked at this [needs] through the prism of public safety and infrastructure. This meets both in my opinion."

While no one wants to see a tax increase, Konkle said residents will be getting "a bang for their buck," with this ordinance. She said for just a minimal amount the jail will be renovated and be able to hold 100 more inmates, which will keep the county in compliance. She said it is also needed to shore up the budget.

"It may upset some people but the levy has not increased significantly enough to keep up with the growth in the community," Konkle said.

On Gahan's $10,000,000 City-County Building escape plan as a tactic to disrupt his ancestral enemies in county government.

The middle medallion is the Building Authority.

The New Albany-Floyd County Building Authority might just be the least transparent governmental organization in Floyd County.

It's almost impossible to find any information about the NA-FC Building Authority, on-line or otherwise.

However, this description of the Indianapolis-Marion County Building Authority conveys a sense of the beast in question -- and the era 1959-1962 is a close match for the construction of our building, which was the first such composite office to open in the state.

The Building Authority is an independent municipal corporation whose purpose is to serve the needs of local government in acquiring, financing, constructing, and managing building projects of a substantial nature. The Indianapolis-Marion County Building Authority is an independent body corporate and politic organized under Chapter 54 of the Acts of the Indiana General Assembly for 1953, now cited as Indiana Code §36-9-13-1, et. seq.

In the early 1950’s, various civic and governmental leaders in Marion County determined that an independent municipal corporation was needed to finance and construct a new city-county building to replace the then-obsolete and deteriorating Marion County Court House and the old City Hall on Alabama Street. The new structure would house City and County government, the police department and the Marion County courts. Previous experience had indicated that an independent, professionally-managed entity would best serve the long-term needs of local government for a first-class government office building.

Utilizing the 1953 legislation, the then-Marion County Board of Commissioners, the Marion County Council and the Common Council of Indianapolis in joint action in May, 1953, organized the Indianapolis-Marion County Building Authority (“Building Authority”). The Building Authority has the statutory power to construct, acquire, finance, operate and maintain land and government buildings for the use of eligible government entities in Marion County.

The first project of the Building Authority was to finance and construct the City-County Building on the site of the old County Court House. Construction was started in 1959 and completed in 1962. The City-County Building, under the management of the Building Authority, has provided space for the joint use of the City and the County since 1962. All bonds issued by the Authority for the construction of the City-County Building have been repaid. There is no outstanding debt on the building.

Since the construction of the City-County Building, the Building Authority has built and/or managed many properties for the City of Indianapolis and Marion County. The Building Authority has maintained a non-political operation since its inception in 1953.

Lately the NA-FC Building Authority is back in the news.

Judge's ruling may pave way for Floyd County jail renovations, by Chris Morris (All Tom May, All of the Time)

NEW ALBANY — Special Judge Vicki Carmichael's ruling late Tuesday may have opened the door for the proposed renovation to the Floyd County Jail to move forward.

The New Albany-Floyd County Building Authority and City of New Albany disputed the agreement signed in 1992 calling for the county to receive ownership of the jail once bonding was paid off. But Carmichael ruled the lease giving Floyd County deed to the property was valid.

With the deed, Floyd County can now bond the jail renovation, which with soft costs will be around $15 million. The plan is to add 110 beds to the current facility along with other renovations. Instead of having to pay $10 million in construction costs up front with funds from hospital sale proceeds, the Floyd County Council can now finance the project for up to 20 years.

The majority of the council has been reluctant to move forward with the plan due to concerns over costs and what it will do to the county's cash flow. "Can the county afford the project," is the question most asked by council members. Floyd County is staring at a $4.9 million budget deficit in 2018. By a 4-3 vote, the council rejected a recent proposal to fund the renovations with hospital proceeds.

But one of those members who voted no, Denise Konkle, said she would be prepared to move forward with the plan now if it can be bonded.

"Absolutely. It definitely changes my ability to move forward," Konkle said after hearing of Carmichael's ruling. "Now we have the ability to bond and not put such a strain on the county's cash flow."

This situation may or may not be settled.

Observing the situation from afar, it seems obvious that the city has joined with the Building Authority in pushing back against Floyd County government in the matter of jail improvements, by feeding the following conditions into the whirling maw of the Jeff M. Gahan Random Chaos Generator and Campaign Finance Divining Rod.

• Maggie Ridge, Myron Huth, Victor Megenity and Steve Bonifer are the four current Building Authority board members. A fifth one recently quit.
• Bonifer is Jeff Gahan's brother-in law, and the father of our local Democratic Party's vice president.
• At the council meeting of June 21, municipal corporate attorney Shane Gibson twice mentioned the figure of $9,000,000 as the city's investment in the current jail, which dates from 1992.
• The county says no, this isn't correct, and it owns the jail outright because Indiana statute says so. 
• The jail is completely separate from the City-County Building.
• The New Albany Police Department shares space with the Sheriff's Department, and would be staying put if the city departs for the Reisz Elephant panacea.
• In a 40-year contract dating to 1959, which since 2001 apparently is "year by year," the city agrees to pay the Building Authority not exactly rent as such, but half the yearly expenses and upkeep for the City-County Building. Currently the city's share comes to around $190K per annum.   
• Gibson believes the county would be happy to use the vacated space, but at present the city won't negotiate with the county about anything.
• The city says it needs more space, but has not considered options like remodeling the space it has. 
• The county says the city owns half the building, and would continue to owe for half the yearly expenses and upkeep even if Gahan evacuates for a new city hall at Reisz.
• The city says no, but reiterates that it owns half the jail.  
• County replies no ... and so on. 

Then there's this one:

• At a time when Sheriff Frank Loop's proposal for jail improvements is being hashed out by Floyd County's commissioners and county council, former sheriff Darrell Mills (D) is staging an electoral comeback in November.

I've probably left a few points out, but the gist should be clear.

All these feints, jabs, maneuverings and lawsuits are politically-motivated delaying tactics. The chess board might look different in January, allowing Gahan an advantage in negotiations with incoming sheriff Mills for the NAPD's co-habitation arrangement.

It also appears that Team Gahan might be building a case, in effect, that City Hall would owe nothing toward the City-County Building upon fleeing to Reisz, but rather the county would owe the city a buyout for the city's share.

You know, maybe $9 million or so.

It's perfectly clear that one of Gahan's chief goals with the Reisz Elephant office transfer is to disrupt city-county relations, both as prelude to this year's county elections and next year's city elections, when a centerpiece of his re-election campaign will be to depict county government as the "enemy" and himself as the only one who can save the city from dastardly uni-gov.

Most ranking Democrats already have consumed copious amounts of this Kool-Aid. It's impossible to have a chat with a single one of them without perfidious county government entering the conversation.

I'll describe Gahan's corruption: "Well, Seabrook's worse." 

I'll explain the idiotic Reisz expenditure: "Well, the county's worse."

I'll suggest that negotiations are a good thing: "Not with county. I'd trust a North Korean first."

It's amazing.

Surely the 800-lb gorilla perched nearby is the City-County Building's future disposition. Insiders have told me to expect lawsuits, and I see no reason to doubt this; Gahan's theory of disruption might well result in considerable acrimony and expense.

Politics in any size of pond is about power, and power is money, and so I submit that we're seeing a similar strategy of disruption in New Albany, as directed by Gahan. He intends to disrupt county government, but also New Albany's city council.

It doesn't require a PhD to see that since taking office, Gahan has seized every available opportunity to sever ties with county government. That's because Democrats are toast in the county, and at best, capable only of rearguard actions. To preserve the party's municipal system of patronage and keep the money flowing, the city power base must be fortified and walled off.

Let's summarize.

Moving city hall to a renovated 19th-century warehouse is about Gahan's colossal ego, first and foremost.

Next comes Reisz's unique utility to disrupt county governance.

Dead last is historic preservation, about which Gahan cares not one jot -- but the backroom Reisz deal yields Dear Leader permanent control of David Barksdale, who hasn't even put up a fight about it. If you're a sincere historic preservationist, there's nothing in any of this for you apart from being manipulated, and when it's over, discarded.

Meanwhile, speaking of historic preservation, here's an interesting article about the origins of the City-County Building, from which this post's introductory photo is drawn.

All of these elements, including columns from the old courthouse, combined to create a building that was respected enough to be listed among Indiana’s best new building architecture in 1963 ... the courthouse is undoubtedly modern, but at 57 years old it’s actually eligible to be listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Keeping it local: "U.S. Jails Are Killing People Going Through Opioid Withdrawals."

This:

Inmate found dead in Floyd County Jail (Taste of Clark County)

Floyd County Sheriff Frank Loop said 23-year-old Hanna Robb, Jeffersonville, was found unresponsive by a corrections officer around 8:15 a.m. Robb was in a holding cell with about nine other inmates near the booking area. Loop said the corrections officer was doing a regular cell check when Robb was discovered.

And this:

U.S. Jails Are Killing People Going Through Opioid Withdrawals, by Jeremy Galloway (Huff Post)

The overdose crisis has touched almost every corner of the United States. According to the CDC over 47,000 people died from overdoses in 2014, most from opioids like heroin, hydrocodone, OxyContin, morphine and fentanyl.

These deaths can be preventable with access to naloxone and education about overdose prevention and harm reduction. Most states have passed naloxone access and 911 medical amnesty (or “Good Samaritan”) laws in recent years. But that’s only the first step, and there are critical gaps in implementing those laws on the ground.

One of the widest gaps is in our corrections system. People are dying from overdoses in significant numbers shortly after they’re released, we know that. But they’re also dying within weeks of being arrested.

And finally, this:

Hanna's life ended tragically at twenty-three years old, while she lay on the cold holding cell floor (for six days) in the Floyd County Detention Center (Indiana). After appearing before a judge (for a misdemeanor charge), she was abused, neglected, and in desperate need of medical treatment, which was not afforded to her. This tragedy could and should have been prevented.