Nevada's plan to put forensic beds in Las Vegas city jail slips by at least 18 months
Nevada Current reported that the state's plan to turn unused units at the Las Vegas city jail into psychiatric beds for incarcerated people had been delayed by at least 18 months. In October 2022 officials told the Interim Finance Committee the conversion would be ready by July 2023, but the Division of Public and Behavioral Health's updated timeline put the earliest completion at December 2024, contingent on lease negotiations and renovations.
The project would add 44 beds using $55.4 million in American Rescue Plan funds. The city blamed holidays and leave for slow lease confirmations, and the state said the first units proposed did not meet its standards. Meanwhile 102 people in Clark County custody were waiting for forensic beds, and the governor had called more forensic services critical in his State of the State address.
The delay deepened a bottleneck that would soon bring millions of dollars in court-ordered fines.
Source: State, Las Vegas wrangling delays delivery of forensic mental health services — Nevada Current, by Camalot Todd
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