District Attorney John Sarsfield’s desire to investigate the San
Benito County Jail based on a couple of inmates’ complaints leaves
one burning question: Since when is jail supposed to be a nice
place to live?
District Attorney John Sarsfield’s desire to investigate the San Benito County Jail based on a couple of inmates’ complaints leaves one burning question: Since when is jail supposed to be a nice place to live? Sarsfield has said he will seek another $50,000 of taxpayer money to look into inmate complaints about the living conditions at the clink. It’s very noble to stand up for the locked up – except the county jail is already reviewed at least every other year by the Corrections Standards Authority anyway. The CSA’s last review found nothing of concern at our county jail. In fact, the Free Lance Editorial Board toured the jail recently and found the facility to be clean, organized and well-run.
Of course, inmates have the same basic rights as every other U.S. citizen and deserve to live in a humane environment while incarcerated, but Sarsfield needs to consider the source before spending more tax dollars on another expensive investigation.
If the DA’s office is anything like the Free Lance, he probably receives letters from distraught inmates claiming their rights are trampled upon almost every week – sometimes every day. In fact, one letter writer that sent his plea to the Free Lance and the DA claimed his cell was so cold that a cup of water had frozen over night. We don’t remember any days or nights when temperatures dipped below 32 degrees.
Another common complaint comes from the inmates of Cell Block D, who claim they are unfairly classified as Norteño gang members and kept on lock-down 23-hours a day. Classifying inmates as gang members is a tricky situation considering only the most hardcore gangsters openly claim their affiliation in jail. We trust the Sheriff’s expertise in these cases. Look at what happened in Santa Clara County Jail when two rival gang members were put in the same cell – one is now the only suspect in the other’s murder. Interestingly enough, the suspected killer was classified as a Norteño while he served time in SBC – he even has a tattoo above his eye that reads “Norte.”
We suspect Sarsfield’s interest in investigating the jail has more to do with politics than justice, though Sheriff Curtis Hill wouldn’t comment on the DA’s motives. The sheriff usually endorses candidates for various public offices and everyone knows of the conflict between the two lawmen over the last few years. Considering voters probably won’t see Hill support Sarsfield this election, will the DA use this “investigation” as a reason why sheriff will likely endorse one of his opponents?
