Satellite view of Sheriff's Department and Jail (outlined in red)
The County Jail is tasked with maintaining custody of persons awaiting trial, serving a sentence imposed by a court or inmates that are being held for another agency, as is the case with inmates from Hidalgo County and detainees from the Immigration and Naturalization Service.
Captain Dix/Jail Administrator
Until 1985, there was one jail, the old "high five", located on the fifth floor of the County Courthouse. In December of 1985, after two years of construction, the County Detention Center was opened to alleviate the jail overcrowding that was present in the State. For instance, in 1986, the first year of operations for the two jail facilities, the average daily count for the jail was approximately 100 inmates. The inmate population for the Detention Center was 156 inmates. The average daily count for the fiscal year 1997-98, the average daily count was 622 inmates. On a typical day in May, 1999, the daily count showed 817 inmates in custody.
The Jail is presently supervised by the Jail Adminstrator, the Assistant Jail Administrator, four lieutenants, and eight sergeants. The jail meets the Texas Jail Commission's requirements for one officer for every 48 inmates.
Three meals are prepared daily for the inmate population by the inhouse kitchen, and the average daily cost for feeding those incarcerated is presently fifty five (55) cents per meal. The menu is approved by a dietician to insure that inmates receive their daily food requirements. It is quite common for an inmate to arrive in the county jail, stay for a period of time, and not be able to fit in their clothes upon release due to their gaining so much extra weight.
There is a full time nursing staff on duty at all times to attend to inmate needs and health emergencies, and there are several contracts in place with doctors for physical, mental and dental needs of the inmate population.
Since 1981, the Sheriff's Department has had agreements with local law enforcment agencies to make prisoner pickups for transportation to the county jail. Paddy wagons are sent out each day to make these pickups at the local municipal jails at no cost to the local agencies, even though all arrests by deputies now are brought to the county jail. This has saved the local municipal agencies numerous man hours by not having to transport prisoners to the county jail.
Back More
