March 2023 Grand Jury report

News

Thursday, 16 March 2023 10:07

We, the Grand Jury for Jackson County, Alabama, having completed our work for this session, submit the following report:
We have reviewed 215 cases and return in open court 196 True Bills.

We toured the Jackson County Jail during this session. We found that the jail is severely understaffed resulting in a poor inmate to staff ratio. There is very limited space for housing inmates, especially females. We encourage seeking alternative means to fund a new facility for housing female inmates. We feel that the current conditions are unsafe and unclean for inmates as well as the jail staff. The jail is also in dire need for additional security cameras, body scanners, new heating and cooling systems, generators to be able to power the entirety of the jail, and overall better food quality for the inmates.

We also toured the Courthouse and found it to be clean and well-maintained. As we toured, we noticed some issues that we recommend be addressed: The courthouse is in need of improved elevator shafts. The water fountains that are being operated by extension cords need to be remedied. The foundation outside the courthouse of the Jackson County Commission office needs to be addressed. Should funding become available, any offices that will be moving to the old Jackson County DHR building need allowance to do so.

Additionally, the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office needs additional funding to be able to replace at least four or more patrol cars due to extensive wear and tear of the current ones.

We would like to extend our appreciation to the members of law enforcement who appeared before the Grand Jury for the presentation of their cases, including the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, Scottsboro Police Department, Stevenson Police Department, Bridgeport Police Department, Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office, and Jackson County Community Corrections. We also give special appreciation to the District Attorney, and his staff, for their hospitality and utmost professionalism throughout our juror session.

All indictments are submitted, along with this report, in open court and in the presence of the foreperson and seventeen other members of this Grand Jury, and filed in Court this the 8th day of March, 2023.