Burnet County Jail raises the bar, but you still don’t want to stay there

EDITOR DANIEL CLIFTON

BURNET — Standing at one end of a long hallway in the Burnet County Jail, Sheriff Calvin Boyd pointed out the obvious: It’s not a warm and welcoming place.

“It’s not supposed to be,” he said. “It’s here for a purpose, and it’s not a place you should want to go.”

But the sheriff takes pride in the jail, and particularly its staff, which he credited with transforming the facility into a hallmark county operation. The turnaround happened in the few years since Burnet County took over full management of the facility then purchased it outright.

A LITTLE JAIL HISTORY

Up until 2008, the Burnet County Jail occupied a space adjacent to the Burnet County Sheriff’s Office, 1601 W. Polk St. in Burnet. For several years prior, county officials wrestled with inmate and staffing numbers. The state sets certain rules pertaining to those numbers, and it can often put smaller counties in a quandary over the number of jailers relative to the number of inmates.

Eventually, through a county-appointed public facilities corporation and using private bond holders, Burnet County built a 587-bed facility at 900 County Lane behind the municipal airport and opened it in 2008. The county didn’t manage the jail’s day-to-day operations. It contracted with LaSalle Southwest Corrections, a private company headquartered in Louisiana with a Texas office in Dripping Springs, to handle jail operations.

Then-Sheriff W.T. Smith had oversight of the facility.

At 587 beds, the jail was much larger than Burnet County’s needs. The idea was the private company would lease out additional space to other counties and even federal agencies.

After managing the jail for about six years, LaSalle Southwest Corrections notified Burnet County officials in 2014 that it wasn’t interested in renewing the contract. The county sought other private partners, but in April 2014, it assumed daily management of the facility. In 2015, the county purchased the facility from bond holders for about $14 million. The private investors originally issued about $38.5 million in bonds to be paid back over 20 years to build and purchase the jail.

Boyd, who was sworn in as sheriff on Jan. 1, 2017, believes the county’s decision to buy the jail was the right one. He pointed out that without a jail, Burnet County would be forced to house inmates in other counties’ facilities. Financially, he said, that just didn’t make sense.

The county couldn’t use the former jail adjacent to the sheriff’s office. The 98-bed facility wasn’t big enough. Currently, Burnet County averages 141 municipal and county inmates per day, well beyond the previous jail’s capacity. Plus, the county had renovated the former jail for additional office space.

If the county were to build a completely new jail, Boyd said the costs would possibly exceed the purchase of the 2008 structure. And contracting 141 inmates per day in out-of-county facilities would be costly considering the daily rate, transporting inmates to and from Burnet County, and other associated costs. Burnet County officials would likely have to seek out several counties for jail space.

BOYD’S YEAR OF PREPARATION

Even before he took office in January, Boyd heard a continuous refrain from others: The jail would be his biggest headache.

He braced himself for what he thought was the inevitable.

But Boyd had an advantage. In 2015, as he prepared to run for the Burnet County Republican Party’s nomination for sheriff, Boyd relinquished his elected office of justice of the peace and took a hired position at the jail as the magistrate.

This allowed him to have day-to-day access to the jail and interaction with the staff.

He could see how things operated.

In March 2016, Boyd won the Republican nomination, and with no opponent in the November general election, he was set to replace Smith, who was retiring. During the time leading up to taking the oath of office, Boyd continued to spend time at the jail.

He worked with the staff, including Matt Kimbler, who would go on to become the jail captain.

“We kind of had a game plan when I took office,” the sheriff noted.

BOYD’S JAIL

Kimbler brought with him years of experience in the corrections profession and an institutional knowledge of the Burnet County Jail. He joined the facility as a compliance officer with LaSalle Southwestern Corrections when the jail opened in 2008. Since that time, Kimbler has served in just about every capacity at the jail.

He knew what worked and what didn’t and the type of person it takes to work inside jail walls.

Kimbler and Boyd, along with other BSCO personnel, formulated a plan for the Burnet County Jail. One of their priorities was staffing.

Staff turnover rates were probably among the highest in all Burnet County departments. Not everyone is cut out to work in a jail.

Kimbler said there’s a big difference between someone who approaches correctional services as a paycheck and someone who sees it as a career. Sometimes, it takes a little time to determine if it is for you, but you often know pretty early on if it’s not for you.

Kimbler began his corrections career in 2001 and was told by a supervisor that if you last two years in the field, you’re probably in it for a career. Now, after 16 years of both state and county jail employment, he’s definitely in it for the long haul.

Since the county took over, Boyd said Burnet County officials renewed their focus on bringing up jail staff pay. While both Kimbler and Boyd describe corrections work as more of a calling than a job, they agreed you have to compensate good people at a level that’s worth their time.

“There was a time when we would lose people to Williamson and Travis counties because they paid better,” Boyd said.

It wasn’t easy hiring someone, training them, then watching them leave for a nearby county.

The county commissioners saw the value in a good jail staff and began increasing the hourly rates. Kimbler said he now can offer a new hire about $16 per hour, while someone with experience can make closer to $20 per hour.

Staffing is critical for a jail to run efficiently and properly. Compensation is only part of the picture.

“I’m big on training,” Boyd said. “Not just in the jail but across the (entire) sheriff’s department.”

While the sheriff could go outside the department to find people to lead training programs, he has a wealth of experience within the BCSO. He and Kimbler are working to identify people with the credentials and knowledge needed to train others.

Another part of the jail’s success hinges on teamwork. Kimbler pointed out the current leaders and supervisors have raised both standards and morale among the staff.

“We’ve influenced each other over the years,” he said. “Our teams now work seamlessly together because everyone is on the same page. You don’t have one shift doing something one way and another doing it another way. We’re all working together.”

And it shows.

The first big test came in March when the Texas Commission on Jail Standards performed an audit of the Burnet County Jail. Boyd said it’s a complete inspection.

“They look at everything,” he said. “They go to every light switch to make sure it works.”

The auditors also pore over jail records, making sure they’re filled out correctly. A missing or incorrect entry can lead to a jail earning a non-compliant rating.

Along with records, the Texas Commission on Jail Standards reviews a jail’s admission and release policies and procedures; classification and separation of inmates; health services; inmate supervision; clothing, personal hygiene, and bedding; sanitation; food service; discipline and grievances; and recreation. Basically, if it’s in the facility, they look at it.

“Everything has to be right,” Kimbler said. “It’s not like they tell you they’re looking at this or something else. They basically show up and say they’re here for an inspection.”

On top of that, the commission can show up anytime, though they often give a window for the audit. Still, Boyd said, if an inspector arrived today at the jail, everything better be in the right order or the facility could get knocked off the compliant list.

“It’s not like you only have to be ready for this one day; you have to have everything ready every day of the year,” Boyd said. “It’s not easy to pass (a commission audit). That goes back to the staff and the training.”

While Kimbler is the jail captain, he and Boyd said much of the credit goes to the jail supervisors such as Lt. Lou Armbuster and Lt. Grayson Floyd.

“It’s definitely a team effort,” the sheriff added.

PAYING THE BILLS

Jails are the responsibility of counties. If a county doesn’t have its own facility, it has to contract out with another county to provide inmate housing and services.

“It’s a necessary evil,” Kimbler said.

More businesses and corporations are venturing into the prison/jail industry, but critics of a privatized system say economics and profit making shouldn’t be a consideration when it comes to correctional institutions.

Burnet County officials found themselves in an interesting spot when they took over management then ownership of the jail. The facility’s 587 beds are more than what is needed to house the daily average of 141 inmates from Burnet County and its municipalities.

So Kimbler and Boyd took a page out of the LaSalle playbook: contract out to other counties and entities such as the U.S. Marshals Service and Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Burnet County currently has about 33 contracts with other counties and federal agencies to house inmates. It charges outside counties $40 per day per inmate.

That ensures an inmate from another county gets a bed and all the basic necessities. Anything additional such as medical costs or transportation (if Burnet County must make the transfer) gets billed to the inmate’s originating county, Kimbler said.

With federal and outside county contracts, Kimbler said the Burnet County Jail population hovers just below 500 on many days.

Those contracts help cover some of the jail’s annual budget, but Boyd added it’s not a cash cow by any means.

“I don’t know if our jail will make money, but it’s better than it could have been,” the sheriff said. “Plus, it’s not here to make a profit but provide a necessary service.”

The jail will bill out approximately $6 million for contracts in the coming year, officials estimate.

Along with housing inmates, the Burnet County Jail provides jobs. Kimbler said the jail has 85 people on staff, up from 47 when the county took over in 2014.

LIFE OF A JAILER

Those jobs pay decent wages, but it’s not like working as a cashier or waiter.

Jailers are responsible for the lives and well-being of the inmates. A jailer or staff member is typically assigned to a day or night shift. During that shift, jailers make 30-minute rounds checking on each inmate, though some inmates require more frequent checks.

If inmates have visitation with family or legal counsel, the staff help facilitate that as well as get them to medical and dental appointments and court dates. On top of that, the staff oversee meal time and recreation.

“It’s basically being a caretaker,” Kimbler said.

But, he added, it’s not like a typical “caretaker” role.

“If you’re not scared, you’re in the wrong business,” Kimbler said. “You definitely have a heightened sense of awareness. If you get comfortable in the jail then you know it’s time to leave.”

Boyd agreed.

“The thing about a jail is you can never let your guard down,” the sheriff said.

Both men explained that some inmates are always looking to find an “in” or manipulate others, including jailers, so staff must constantly be aware of what’s going on, how inmates are acting toward them and other inmates, and any changes in behavior.

Boyd said it’s difficult to truly explain what a jailer’s life is like, and it’s tough to find a comparable job field.

“These folks, they do an incredible job, and it’s one that the public probably doesn’t understand and doesn’t really appreciate,” the sheriff added.

GOING FORWARD

While the Burnet County Jail staff earned a good report from the Texas Commission on Jail Standards in March, Kimbler said they aren’t relaxing. One reason is simply that, at a jail with 500 inmates, you can’t relax. Plus, the commission can always show up unannounced for another audit.

“There’s no ‘practice day,’” he said. “You always have to be at 100 percent, and that’s hard, but we have some great people in place, and they work hard.”

Boyd said they’ll continue to focus on training and look for ways to improve at every level — in the jail and the sheriff’s office.

As for the jail being his biggest headache as people told him before he took office, Boyd’s experience counters that prediction.

“It’s actually been one of the things I worry about the least,” he said. “I think that comes back to the people out here like Matt and Lou and Grayson, the entire group. Matt has really brought in a structure that has, I think, made a big difference.”

Still, the sheriff pointed out, it is a jail, and as smoothly as it operates, you shouldn’t want a room there.

daniel@thepicayune.com