Marion County sheriff says jails are a dumping ground as incompetent defendants wait four months for Logansport beds
WRTV reported that Marion County's presiding judge and sheriff described a jail crisis caused by the state's failure to treat defendants found incompetent to stand trial. On the day of reporting, 18 people in the Marion County Adult Detention Center were waiting for beds at Logansport State Hospital, Indiana's only inpatient facility for this population. A suit filed by the ACLU of Indiana and Indiana Disability Rights the previous day claimed that incompetent defendants statewide wait an average of 121 days, with three Marion County defendants held more than 200 days.
The county's judges found 97 defendants incompetent in 2021, most facing misdemeanor or lower-level felony charges. The story cited a cost of $800 a day per person at Logansport and noted about 40 percent of the jail's population has some form of mental illness. The sheriff said jails have become dumping grounds for people with mental illness and that sheriffs across the state have asked lawmakers for help.
Source: Jails have become 'dumping grounds' for inmates with mental illness, Marion County sheriff says — WRTV (Indianapolis), by WRTV Staff
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