THROW AWAY THE KEY

I believe the Independent's assessment of the El Paso County Jail Bond
issues is flawed [Endorsements, Oct. 17].

The short-term fix of sending our prisoners to other county jails compares
very unfavorably with the long-term solution offered by expanding our own
jail. Other counties charge about $55 per day, or $20,000 per year to hold
one inmate.

So if El Paso County were to contract with other counties to hold 250
inmates per year, the annual cost to the County would be $5 million. This
cost appears to be marginally cheaper than the annual cost of the two
ballot issues. However, the sheriff would incur additional costs to
transport these prisoners around the state, assuming that there would be
250 beds available to rent.

More importantly, securing 250 additional beds is not a long-term solution,
while building an 850-bed addition (for about the same annual cost) is
projected to meet the County's needs for 15 to 20 years.

As to your call for "long-term judicial reforms," most sentencing practices
are governed by state laws and not by local policy. The sheriff's office
and other county agencies have vigorously promoted the use of electronic
monitoring, and this option has helped reduce pressure on the jail.

You also refer to sentencing reform for "victimless and drug crimes." On a
typical day, less than 1 percent of the prisoners in our jail are there
strictly for marijuana offenses. The crimes for which most inmates are
being held -- drug manufacture or distribution, robbery, assault, burglary,
and driving under the influence -- are hardly victimless.

-- Henry Sontheimer

Colorado Springs

Editor's note: The author is the criminal justice planner for the El Paso
County government.