County jail conditions — ‘hazardous even to a dog’ — spur calls for independent oversight

That’s especially concerning considering more people cycle in and out of county jails than state prisons — and most are pre-trial detainees who are legally presumed innocent, said Michele Deitch, director of the Prison and Jail Innovation Lab and the National Resource Center for Correctional Oversight at the University of Texas at Austin. About 73% of those incarcerated in Mercer’s jail in 2022 were pre-trial, according to its 2023 inspection report.

“Conditions inside these facilities are, in many places, very, very problematic,” Deitch said. “These are places that have total control over the lives and wellbeing of people inside. You need transparency and routine monitoring of conditions, in order to ensure people’s safety.”