Northwest Indiana county seeks to ease jail overcrowding

VALPARAISO, Ind. — The Porter County Commissioners are supporting spending $148,000 to help ease jail overcrowding by hiring one full-time and two part-time people.

The (Munster) Times reports the three people would select inmates who could be supervised outside of jail while their cases proceed. The proposal discussed Tuesday also calls for $53,000 for electronic monitoring services and $3,000 for drug testing.

Porter Circuit Judge Mary Harper says the effort would target pretrial detainees because the county receives no reimbursement from the Indiana Department of Correction for them.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana has told the county that the overcrowding at the county jail is “inexcusable” and places the county at risk for litigation.