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The goals of the Hillsdale County
Jail are the same as any division within
the Sheriff’s Office: to protect the
citizens of Hillsdale County. We
attain our goals by keeping those
persons who are deemed a threat
separated from society by the lawful
process known as specific deterrent.
The prospect of having to be placed in
Jail for a crime, in theory, works as a
general deterrent to criminal behavior.
Other goals of the jail are to maintain a safe
environment for officers and inmates.
We strive to maintain the highest humane
and sanitary conditions by adhering to
all state and federal standards for
correctional facilities.
The jail physical plant is of the older linear design.
The old part of the jail was built in
1976 and can house 27 inmates lawfully.
The new section built in 1990 is a
dormitory style design and can house 40
inmates lawfully. The total number
of inmates that can be housed in general
population is 67. The holding
cells are not counted as general
population and can accommodate another
13 people for pre-arraignment status.
The jail staff consists of one Administrator/Captain,
one shift sergeant, eight full-time jail
deputies, one full-time cook and several
part time employees.
The Hillsdale County Jail has received the highest
local jail award -- 100% Jail Compliance
-- from the Michigan Department of
Corrections. The Hillsdale County
Jail has remained in full compliance
with state administrative rules for
jails and lockups, including strict adherence to applicable statutes
for housing inmates in county jails.
The award was announced at the
completion of the annual jail inspection
as one of only a handful of counties to
receive such honors. The jail
staff has worked very diligently to
establish and maintain a well operated
jail. The award, presented by the
MDOC, signifies the commitment which
corrections deputies and jail
administration have made to improve the
facility and comply with the
requirements for the jail rules of the
State Of Michigan.
This award in 2008 represents the seventh consecutive
year of jail compliance by Hillsdale
County Sheriff Stan Burchardt and the
Jail Division. While there are
significant challenges regarding the
complex operations of a jail, we have
remained committed to making this
highest award possible while
implementing cost-saving programs to the
jail for mandated services. As a
result of consecutive compliance, the
jail will receive consideration for
future non-inspection options as
determined by the State Of Michigan.
During 2008, the jail placed restrictions on arrests
being lodged six different times for
overcrowded conditions. The jail
population swells on the weekends, and
our highest daily count was 91 inmates.
The administrator declared emergency
overcrowding twice during the year.
If the jail is over rated capacity (67)
for more than ten days, the
administrator must declare an emergency.
After the declaration the population
must be reduced to 80% of its total
rated capacity. The administrator
must call the courts and get persons
released early to decrease the general
population. Giving early releases
to inmates because of overcrowding
greatly reduces our goal of public
safety. Citizens have complained
greatly about persons who have done
criminal acts against them getting out
early, but the direct correlation
between increase in taxes (to add jail
space and hire more officers) and the
services the Sheriff can provide is a
direct cause and effect. It
unfortunately becomes a revolving door
type of justice system, but citizens
must make the choice between public
safety and an increase in taxes for
services. Releasing inmates early
is a public safety threat.
The Hillsdale County Jail offers a wide variety of
services for inmates including (but not
all inclusive) church, pastor
visitations, group meetings for
religious studies, mental health
programs, substance abuse programs,
inmate visitation, medical services,
professional visitations and video
arraignments.
Services for the community include two work programs
for community clean up and volunteer
work for various service events.
Non-funded state mandated services have placed a large
amount of workload on the small staff of
jail deputies. We have increased
the workload five fold and have not
increased manpower at all. Our
jail operation is subjected to the
county-wide budget approvals based on
revenue, state revenue sharing, and
taxes received by the County Treasurer.
When one of these funding areas are
down, the entire budget is crippled,
thus affecting operations.
The corrections division is under the command of Captain Edwin Hodshire.
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IN AN EMERGENCY
DIAL 911
FOR NON-EMERGENCY CALLS
(517) 437-7317
FAX (517) 437-0822
HILLSDALE COUNTY
SHERIFF'S OFFICE
165 W. FAYETTE STREET
HILLSDALE, MI 49242
(800) 437-7317 |
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