Vigo County Jail Project Begins
(File photo courtesy of Pixabay/Erika Wittlieb)
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowThe first signs of a new jail in Vigo County are visible. Our partners at WTHI-TV report crews have started to build a new road, which will lead to the jail site.
The current jail is at the center of a federal lawsuit. A judge said its conditions are unconstitutional.
Last fall, county officials unveiled plans for the new jail. The new lockup will have space for 500 beds.
The plans show two, two-story cell blocks. The sheriff says the layout is more streamlined.
“The last jail and the two additions we’ve done, we’ve not done right and we’re paying the price for that still. We have a federal lawsuit saying it’s not constitutional,” Sheriff John Plasse told WTHI.
Plasse says Vigo County currently has about 400 inmates spread around the state, meaning the new jail would already at 80% capacity. Plasse says that’s why it’s important the new jail has room to grow.
“We don’t want to make the same mistake we made in the past…instead of being the model of what not to do, I want to be the model for what to do,” said Plasse.
Click here to read WTHI’s coverage.