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Heightened caution of an expensive lawsuit that potentially might have stemmed from the Columbia County Jail's antiquated and outdated standards prompted Sheriff Joe Helm to close the facility for the time being, officials announced this week. To the left of this catwalk are the doors to the four five-foot by seven-foot cells, with the two additional fold-up bunks on the wall of the 1874 former ship's brig.
Keys to the 149-year-old former ship's brig, built in St. Louis, Mo., in 1874.
DAYTON–The last few inmates in the Columbia County Jail were moved out about a week ago, most relocated to Walla Walla County, where they'll be housed while the two counties work out a cooperative agreement in place of operating a local jail here.
So ended a 136-year span of Columbia County Sheriff's Office operating a local jail.
Sheriff Joe Helm, in consultation with Prosecuting Attorney C. Dale Slack, made the decision to stop housing inmates in the Columbia County Jail, for the foreseeable future, due to recent lawsuits in other small, rural counties, coupled with long-time concerns with safety and security in the jail and courthouse.
"Due to ongoing issues regarding jail security, employee/public safety and inmate welfare," Sheriff Helm stated in a media release, "it is in the best interest of everyone concerned that the jail be closed until a suitable alternative can be realized."
"It is a difficult decision, but the idea of facing the expense of a lawsuit, a tragedy in our jail, or harm to the public is even more difficult," said Slack.
"No, not here," Slack answered when asked if Columbia County has had a history of lawsuits related to jail conditions. "In Garfield County, a tort claim has been filed, and it opened our eyes to the shortcomings we might have, and a 'there, but for the grace of God go I'" realization."
Slack said there have been "a few close calls" over the years, and those incidents have remained in the Sheriff's Office institutional memory as disasters averted.
Arrangements are presently being made with a neighboring county to house Columbia County and City of Dayton inmates, the release indicated.
The Columbia County Jail was originally manufactured as a ship's brig in 1874 by the Pauly Jail Building and Manufacturing Company of St. Louis, Mo. The brig was transported to the Courthouse building site in 1886, and the courthouse was built around it.
The former ship's brig maintains a number of original, historical features-most of which make it difficult and expensive to update and maintain to modern standards and best practices. Four seven-by-five-foot cells are in the jail, each containing two steel bunks, with two fold-down bunks in the catwalk outside the cell doors, making the jail's capacity 10 inmates.
Slack, Helm, District Court Judge Kim Boggs, Superior Court Clerk Kriston Chapman, and Emergency Manager Tina Bobbitt will host a town-hall presentation on the reasons behind the closure, as well as other issues currently facing the criminal justice system in Columbia County. Town Halls will be held on April 18 and again on April 19, 2023, from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at the Columbia County Fairgrounds Pavilion Building and will be simulcast on Zoom for those who cannot attend in person. Light refreshments will be served. A question-and-answer period will follow a short presentation.
