Sanders County Ledger - Your Best Source For Sanders County News

40 YEARS AGO • OCTOBER 11, 1979

PRISONERS TO OCCUPY NEW QUARTERS SOON

Unlike the concern voiced by Warden Roger Crist about moving the Montana State Prison at Deer Lodge, Sanders County Sheriff Harvey Schultz doesn’t anticipate any prisoner problem when he gets the signal in the next two or three weeks to move into the new Sanders County jail. The move to the new jail, which has been built to handle up to 29 prisoners, likely will involve only two or three county “boarders.”

And they should be so pleased to get into their new quarters that they’ll be willing to help the sheriff’s staff accomplish the move.

The cellblock area will be monitored by closed circuit television at the dispatcher’s desk. All cells in the jail are also wired for intercom communications.

Sheriff Schultz said all cell doors can be closed or opened both electrically and manually.

The interior of the jail is a myriad of offices to be used by Sheriff Shultz and his staff at the front of the building and by the prisoner’s cellblock area, which comprises about two-thirds of the building space.

A partial basement is located under the offices. The basement also houses the heating and air conditioning equipment, which includes a heat pump operated by electricity. The basement can be used also for storage of records, exhibits and equipment.

In addition to the cellblock area, the office portion of the jail includes individual offices for both Sheriff Shultz and Undersheriff Jack Wakefield, booking room, a dispatcher’s office, a room to house the jail copy machine and teletype, a lobby with restroom facilities for use by jail visitors, a multi-purpose room for use by the officers, janitors room, linen room and storage closet. A visitors room will permit visitors to talk to prisoners by intercom while a glass panel separates them.

All three outside entrances to the building are equipped with an intercom and can be locked electronically by the dispatcher. Sheriff Shultz explained that the outside doors will be locked at night, and that anybody desiring to get into the jail at night will have to identify him or herself to dispatcher first. The exterior doors to the office portion of the jail will remain open during daylight hours when officers in addition to the dispatcher are on duty.

The cellblock includes a day room with cells and will hold 16 prisoners. A trustee cell will hold four prisoners. Juvenile cells are provided for both boys and girls and a woman’s cell is also included.

The juvenile and female cells all have windows and are located on the north side of the building. A single window allows natural light for the dayroom section of the main cell block.

In the rear of the jail is a kitchen, which Shultz said they hope to equip with a range, refrigerator and freezer.

Shultz said the jail staff or trustee prisoners for the most part will prepare prisoner meals once the move to the new jail is completed.

Now meals are catered and brought to the jail for the prisoners twice a day.

A storage room in the cellblock area will be used for storing prisoner clothing and bedding. Shultz said mattresses, bedding and clothing must be cleaned and fumigated after each use before being issued to a new “boarder.”

Sheriff Shultz said the new visitor room set-up will eliminate the possibility of visitors passing objects to prisoners, since the glass panel will prevent physical contact between visitors and prisoners.

The new jail replaces the county’s oldest structure, a 75-year-old brick two-story jail that has been condemned by state officials as a potential fire trap.