Crowded Orange County Jails Expected to Get Worse

SANTA ANA, Calif. — A grand jury report cited poor planning by the county as the cause of overcrowding in Orange County jails, a condition that is expected to worsen in the next five years.

County jails were over capacity by 1,600 inmates last year, with a daily prison population of 6,100, according to the report.

As a result of overcrowding, the sheriff’s department paid more than $9 million in overtime in 2005 to correctional officers and other employees who staffed the five county jails and two city jails.

Sheriff’s officials estimate that by the year 2010, there will be a need for 2,020 more beds to accommodate the rising inmate population. So far, the county has approved one expansion plan: a $220 million, 3,200 bed expansion of the James A. Musick Branch Jail in Irvine, slated for completion in the next five to seven years.

The sheriff’s department is currently double bunking to maximize jail space and is exploring alternatives to incarceration.