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	The Manchester Enterprise A Heritage Newspaper Weekly Publication

Sheriff drops lawsuit against county

Minzey cites improved communication with County Board

By Austen Smith, Heritage Newspapers

PUBLISHED: March 22, 2007

A six-month legal battle between Sheriff Dan Minzey and Washtenaw County officials has seemingly ended.

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After talks between Minzey and county officials markedly improved over the past several weeks, the sheriff last week decided to drop a lawsuit against the county over the handling of jail overcrowding issues.

Minzey credits the change of events with the County Board's "newfound determination" to resolve jail overcrowding and develop a "sound policy" for boarding out inmates.

"It's a dramatic change, I personally feel it," he said. "When you take out stuff like the finger-pointing and finally sit down and talk with all parties involved, you're able to say, 'OK, let's figure out where we're at.'"

A combined effort from Minzey and Board Chairman Jeff Irwin has improved communications between the two sides, which were, fewer than six months ago, not speaking.

"I have seen a dramatic change since the first of the year in the chairman. He has really made himself available," Minzey said.

Irwin said he is pleased Minzey has dropped the lawsuit and is committed to making progress.

"(The board) tries very hard to work on communicating with the sheriff, and all of county departments, as we try to evaluate (the sheriff's) needs against ours and others," he said.

"It's always good to hear (Minzey) say that we are working better together and moving forward. I would definitely say that the board has gotten better at communicating with the sheriff and our relationships are improving, which just helps us provide better service to county residents."

Last week, Minzey called a meeting with county officials. After some discussion, he said he realized that he and Irwin shared a lot of the same concerns and goals.

"What happened was that I already was having talks with the chairman. I called together a meeting that brought together both sides and asked, 'Is there any middle ground where we might be able to go from here?'

"So, because communication was better at the present time, I told them that I would agree, at the time, to ask the judge to dismiss the lawsuit without prejudice," Minzey said.

Irwin said they share the same concerns concerning jail overcrowding and will try to hammer out a solution.

"We both realized that if we if we just focus on these issues, rather than wading through lawsuits, that's a better strategy as far as moving forward, and I certainly share that sentiment," Irwin said.

Washtenaw County Administrator Bob Guenzel said he is pleased with Minzey's decision. He said that both sides have a renewed commitment to put the past behind them.

"It was good step forward; it's a good sign," Guenzel said. "I think the time was right to begin discussions again. (Irwin) has been very much hands-on with the jail, and that's good."

Boarding out policy

County officials and sheriff's department representatives are hopeful they will have a new boarding out policy to present to the board within several months.

County commissioners ended the practice of boarding out inmates to neighboring facilities after they discovered the sheriff had sent inmates to jails that did not have a contract with the county. Boarding out inmates is a common practice that mitigates overcrowding situations.

The new working relationship between Minzey and Irwin has catapulted talks about boarding out inmates. Minzey said he and his staff are gathering information from all facets of the criminal justice system from the jail administrators to the public defenders.

"We're in a process right now where we are trying to find a policy that both sides can live with," he said. "We're trying to talk to all the stakeholders involved as we go along. That will help us put together a better framework."

While sending inmates to other facilities is a valuable tool for easing overcrowding, Minzey said, it's just temporary and they need to find a permanent solution for the chronic overcrowding problems facing the jail.

Last month, Washtenaw County Judge Melinda Morris ordered the sheriff to employ a section of the state jail overcrowding law that allows the sheriff to reduce inmates' sentences by up to 30 percent. Inmates who fall under the statute cannot be felons, violent criminal offenders or convicted of a sexual crime.

Minzey recently released 54 inmates from the jail. The action ended another struggle between the county and the sheriff as county officials had urged Minzey to employ the statute after he had declared an overcrowding emergency in December 2006. Despite honoring the court order, Minzey said he still believes that releasing inmates into the community early is wrong.

Austen Smith is an editor for Heritage Newspapers. He can be reached at asmith@heritage.com.