Jasper Co. Sheriff’s Office’s plan for detention center after taking control

RIDGELAND, S.C. (WTOC) - A 90-day plan is in place to create a safer environment at the Jasper County Detention Center for employees and inmates after the sheriff’s office took control of it on Monday.

Sheriff Chris Malphrus says that he decided after seeing employees leave the jail, the need for added security measures, and maintenance issues that were not getting fixed.

“There were just not enough people on staff, and I even had one of the staff members tell me that we know we are not running the jail. The inmates are,” Sheriff Malphrus said. “That’s alarming because it’s a volatile situation that I don’t want my employees to be in.”

Over 100 inmates reside at the Jasper County Detention Center regularly.

To manage them, 52 employees are supposed to be in place, but before Monday, only 15 were on staff.

“I think the staff was probably overwhelmed, and the mountain appeared to be too tall, and it was a hard battle to fight.”

With the sheriff’s office in charge, 70 deputies are now cross-training to work the streets and in the jail until the positions are officially filled.

“We can utilize our deputies for transports and all the things that we need to do to help alleviate some of the stress of the staff over there,” Sheriff Malphrus said.

They are also receiving help from a security company, but it’s a pricey band-aid that the sheriff says he eventually wants to do away with.

Another thing that the county is looking at is fixing immediate safety concerns, like fixing lights in the parking lot of the Jasper County Law Enforcement Center, where the jail is, and adding gates around the property.

“People can just walk up the back fence and just throw contraband over. We’re immediately addressing these issues.”

And utilize funding to repair maintenance issues that have piled up at the jail.

“There’s money there now that can be used to fix it, but hadn’t been.”

Sheriff Malphrus says that he hopes to be able to hire ten employees for the detention center by the end of the week.

He also says he plans on giving the County Council an update on this situation in about six weeks.