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How should Johnson County proceed on justice center?
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A rendering looking northwest shows a draft design for a proposed criminal justice center in Johnson County. The facility would include a new jail and court space, built behind the existing courthouse. The county has placed a bond issue on the November ballot to pay for the center. (Neumann Monson Architects)
The Johnson County justice center bond referendum failed by fewer than 3,000 votes Tuesday.
A total of 63,605 votes were cast on the measure – 35,403 in favor and 28,202 against. That’s 56 percent for and 44 percent opposed, but a supermajority of 60 percent was needed to pass.
Sixty percent would have been 38,163 votes.
County officials said they were happy getting support from a majority of voters and said they may seek another election on the justice center.
How do you think the county should handle the situation? Should supporters bring back the same that failed to win 60 percent approval Tuesday, or give up or develop a scaled-back version for consideration?
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Johnson County should go with the plan as is. The people who opposed the new Justice Center will continue to oppose it even if it were downsized and cheaper.
Conservatives don’t care that the jail is overcrowded, understaffed, and inadequate. They don’t care that the Court House is so outdated as to be dangerous. They just do not care. They see the Justice Center as spending their money on coddling criminals. End of discussion
The justification for opposing the Justice Center from conservatives is predictable. The justification from liberals is bizarre. The Justice Center is part of the Prison Industrial Complex enabling the County to arrest even more innocent students and black people for petty crimes that shouldn’t be crimes because people should be free to do as they please and the Sheriff doesn’t like black people.
Normally it’s Johnson County conservatives out there in la la land. On this issue it’s liberals.
I think the message was clear. NO
Obviously law enforcement in this county has abused the discretion we allow them. The citizen have told them to fix that problem first–and there wont be an over-crowding problem.
The only three groups of people who benefit from this project, are the same three groups who decide who stays and goes to jail, The sheriff, the judges and the county attorney. All are vested in the new project and are spending millions of our money just justify their demand for new digs.
If the city and U of I want to arrest everybody – let them build, fund, staff and keep their own jail. Otherwise knock it off already.
Just to be clear– Iowa law gives the Sheriff the power to refuse any inmate– he can turn away everyone if he wanted. Same with judges–they don’t have to hold anyone in jail. Same with the county attorney- stop demanding bond on misdemeanors.
Rather than use the discretion given to them by law, our Sheriff chooses not to use this authority– our judges and county attorney choose to abuse theirs. We just sit back and pay the bill as punishment for denying them their castle and puffy chairs.
Mr Roman,
Something tells me I really shouldn’t be taking your word for it on anything you say.
If you would, could you let the rest of know where you got all this information about what judges and sheriffs and the county attorney can and cannot do.