Fights have been breaking out during visits between inmates and family members at the Montgomery County Correctional Facility after officials cut visitation in half and scrapped funding to cover the security detail, according to high-ranking leaders in the Washington suburb. Whether it is prisoners’ family members fighting one another or directing their rage at corrections officers, there have been “dozens of incidents” since the new rules limiting jail visits went into effect, according to Art Wallenstein, director of the Correction and Rehabilitation Department.
“Our correctional officers have been challenged verbally and with threats and felt it necessary to call the police on a few occasions to avoid any physical altercation,” he said. “Family members are very angry because they can only visit once. That creates many scheduling problems for families who are generally not wealthy and counted on both day and evening visits.”
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Family visits were chopped from twice to once per week so the county could cut corrections staff positions — costing $185,000 — devoted to monitoring the meetings. Visiting hours are now six days a week from 6 to 9 p.m.
The problem? Visitors are now waiting in lines with an abundance of people frustrated by the new cost-cutting measures — and eager to showcase their displeasure in a newly cramped room.
There also have been several acts of vandalism, two arrests and one injury to a staff member, Wallenstein confirmed.
Nearly all of the visits are held at the county’s correctional facility off Interstate 270 in Boyds, where inmates speak to visitors by telephone behind a glass window. There is no such barrier between staff and the visiting families.
Though lawmakers originally welcomed the savings, some now want to restore the funding. They point to the saga as just another example of unintended consequences in the tension between austerity and providing services in the wealthy Maryland jurisdiction.
“It’s been a real, real problem,” said County Councilman Phil Andrews, D-Gaithersburg/Rockville. “More people want to visit at the same time and it’s leading to issues. We can’t have that.”
Added Councilman Marc Elrich, D-at large, “We need to put the money back. It’s worth the investment.”
And further problems have arisen beyond those during visiting hours. Wallenstein said inmates have less incentive to follow the rules because one of their primary motivations for behaving has been slashed in half, leading to a flurry of outbursts.
“We abolished a time-tested program,” he mused. “Clearly, it has diminished one of the best tools we have to operate a safe and efficient jail.”
