Baton Rouge police officers have found themselves at a dead end when attempting to book criminal suspects because of a lack of vacancies in the East Baton Rouge Parish Prison.
Records from the Baton Rouge Police Department show that at least 332 people arrested for misdemeanors such as DWI or drug counts, from May 2004 to October 2004 never were booked into the prison, and released from custody hours after their arrest. Among these 332 arrestees, six were violent felony suspects with crimes ranging from second-degree kidnapping to attempted first-degree murder.
Overcrowding at the prison is an uphill battle police officials and the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office, which runs the prison, have fought for more than a decade. However, the two agencies always have said the suspects arrested for the most violent crimes never would be released from custody even if the prison is filled to capacity.
“The problem was that they were not accepting people they should have accepted,” said EBRSO Lt. Col. Greg Phares.
Phares said he believes the reason the violent suspects were not booked was either they were never physically brought to the prison or an inexperienced deputy was unaware of the booking policy for violent offenders.
“I don’t want to get into a finger-pointing contest though as to who was at fault,” Phares said.
The Baton Rouge Police Department and the EBRSO both have led an internal investigation attempting to discover the cause of the problem, but their conclusions have left the agencies with different answers and finger-pointing.
Both agencies declined to discuss their internal investigations extensively, but both agreed steps to prevent future miscommunications have been instituted.
Phares said the creation of a document booking officers must fill out and sign will be required for every arrestee who is released because the prison was filled to capacity. He said this process does not cover violent felony suspects, who will be booked into the prison regardless of capacity.
Phares attributed the overcrowding of the prisons to the slow speed in which suspects are brought through the court system. He said suspects wait months for their court dates and spend this time sitting in a jail cell, taking up space.
Phares said it is difficult to justify expanding jail space because the prison capacity is appropriate for the East Baton Rouge Parish population. However, he said he does not want to rule out that option for the future.
Phares said the East Baton Rouge Police Department and EBRSO are working to fix the system, but the six violent felony suspects are a small number of the 10,000 that were sent to prison.
The six offenders that were released may be a small number to the police department and sheriff’s office, but to the victims of the crimes such as these, it can create a great deal of anxiety and concern.
“The time that the woman’s offender is in jail is a time for her to get back on her feet and set things in order,” said Victoria Peay, director of services and programs at the Baton Rouge Battered Women’s Shelter. “When that time is taken away from them it creates a great deal of anxiety for the woman.”
Peay said the number of victims who may have been affected by the overcrowding prisons will take time to gather the results, but the idea of these offenders on the streets hours after their arrest concerns her.
“It is a risky time for a woman,” Peay said. “A feeling of safety is lost when they know their offenders are back on the streets.”
However, Phares said they are working to make sure it is the last time this occurs.
“This [case] is unusual,” Phares said. “We are taking steps to make sure it never happens again.”