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Cuyahoga County Jail leaders grilled during tense council meeting

Those in charge of the Cuyahoga County Jail are on the hot seat after seven inmate deaths and a rash of other quality control problems at the facility.

Cleveland – After seven inmates died in three months, the U.S. Marshals Service was asked to examine the Cuyahoga County Correctional Center.

The findings were so bad, there are rumblings the feds are filing a lawsuit to seize operational control of the facility.

Pregnant inmates sleeping on mats, juveniles housed with adults, food stored near animal dropping and some inmates confined to a single cell for 27 hours.

On Tuesday, Cuyahoga County’s Public Safety & Justice Affairs Committee took jail leaders, including Cuyahoga County Sheriff Clifford Pinkney, to task for allowing things to get so badly out of control.

“You are in charge Sheriff,” Councilwoman Sunny Simon said. “You are in charge. It’s not a reflection on someone else’s leadership, it’s your leadership.”

Hers was one of many voices critical of the way the jail is run, but understanding that the person who deserves most of the blame – resigned before the blistering Marshals report was released.

“Who's in charge?,” asked Councilman Dan Brady. “The guy who was in charge is gone. We can’t ask him.”

Sheriff Pinkney said jail leaders have increased training, sped up hiring practices to make up for shortfalls in staff and have reached out to other cities for their best practices. He says longer term plans for improving jail operations should be in front of the County Council in the next week to ten days.

“What is going on in that jail Sheriff,” asked Councilman Michael Gallagher. “You should be blurting out exactly what was going on. It’s time. The time is now.”

Last week, we learned that county leaders are expecting a lawsuit where the federal government will seek control of the jail given the poor report card from the Marshals.

So far, no word on the status of that suit.

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