State grants extension for Hennepin County to reduce its jail population

The Minnesota Department of Corrections has given the Hennepin County Jail another three weeks to reduce its population to 600 inmates. As of Thursday morning, the facility still had 123 people that needed to be transferred to other jails.

In an Oct. 31 report, the DOC says the jail has too few staff for the number of people housed there and blamed the poor staffing levels for a spate of recent inmate deaths.

Over the last two years, seven inmates have either died in the jail or after being transported to HCMC. Most of the deaths followed medical emergencies. The DOC says in its report that in all of these cases, jail staff had failed to conduct well-being checks every 30 minutes as required by law. 

State inspectors said jail staff sometimes logged checks that they never performed, or they conducted only perfunctory checks that were done in a manner “that would not actually ensure the health and safety of inmates.” They also failed to put special-needs inmates on more frequent observation schedules, the report says.

Sheriff Dawanna Witt said last week that she disagrees with the state’s assessment but is working to comply with it, adding that the timeframe “is not realistic when it comes to adhering to the order in the safest and most responsible manner.”

She said the inmates need to be moved to other jails, and it takes time to work out agreements with other sheriffs.

Witt requested two extensions to the state’s initial deadline of noon on Thursday. The first was denied; the second was granted Thursday after the deadline.

In terms of staffing, Witt said she’s working to recruit new jail deputies and is also paying overtime to employees. 

State law mandates that any Minnesota jail with 60 or more beds must have one guard for every 25 inmates in parts of the jails where there are rows of cells. Fewer staff are required in pod areas and dormitories.

The DOC’s report noted that the older section of the jail that’s in City Hall has poor sightlines, which make it difficult to conduct well-being checks. Staff try to observe inmates through windows inside a long, narrow pipe chase that runs behind the cells. But in many cases guards aren’t able to see the inmates unless they’re right in front of the windows.

In addition to the order from state regulators, Hennepin County has faced legal action over its jail conditions.

This week, it reached a $3.4 million settlement with the family of 41-year-old Lucas Bellamy.The son of Penumbra Theater founder Lou Bellamy had been in jail for three days in July of 2022 when he died of an infection after suffering a perforated intestine. Lou Bellamy said jail staff were deliberately indifferent to his son's obviously worsening symptoms.

The jail now has until Dec. 5 to comply with the state order.

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