The good sheriff follows the law to the letter. He provides food, clothing and shelter to the inmates. Anything beyond that is not required and is not provided.
He has taken away "comforts" that are common in jails and prisons across our nation. For instance, Sheriff Joe has eliminated smoking and porno magazines in all eight County jails. If someone can show him that prisoners have a constitutional right to lung cancer or porn, I am sure he will reinstate these things.
He also took away weight-lifting equipment. Sheriffs and wardens have long complained that prisoners spend hours every day "bulking up" with weights and becoming extraordinarily strong. Jail and prison guards don't have the luxury of hours of weight training every day. And the result has often been that super-strong inmates have attacked and over-powered guards. Instead of complaining about this, Joe did something about it.
He started chain gangs so the inmates could do something useful with their time. They do free work on county and city projects. Then he started the first female chain gangs in the country so he wouldn't get sued for discrimination. He also started the nation's first juvenile chain gang.
He cut off cable TV because all the prisoners watched were R and X-rated movies. Then he found that there was a ridiculous federal law that requires cable TV in jails. So he hooked the cable TV back up, and now only allows the Disney Channel and the Weather Channel. When he was asked why he allowed the Weather Channel he replied, "So they will know how hot it's gonna be while they are working on my chain gangs."
He removed coffee from the jails because it has no nutritional value. When the inmates complained, he told them, "This isn't the Ritz/Carlton. If you don't like it, don't come back." ...
Read the rest at the link. Hat tip: Blanche in SF.
