SUNBURY - The drastic decision to release as many inmates as possible onto house arrest in the wake of the Northumberland County Prison fire does not appear to have changed the level of crime committed in the county.
The success of the house arrest program at preventing crime without jail time may signal an increased use of alternative forms of custody after construction is complete on the new jailhouse.
"I absolutely would be in favor of it," Magisterial District Judge John Gembic III said of continuing to refer certain types of lawbreakers to the house arrest program rather than incarcerate them.
Perks
County commissioners, prison board members and judges collectively opted to decrease the number of prisoners in favor of other forms of custody in January after realizing the destruction of the county prison meant paying up to $76 more per day per inmate at a neighboring facility. Had all 208 prisoners in the Northumberland County Prison remained incarcerated after the fire, the prison would have been $2.5 million over budget this year.
Proponents of house arrest have long heralded the benefits of the program, including the low price. Each participant of the house arrest program costs the county just $15 daily, some of which is recouped from the participant. A day in the Northumberland County Prison cost $55 per prisoner.
"People are paying the county to stay at home as opposed to us paying to house them in the facility," said Commissioner and Prison Board Chairman Stephen Bridy. "I have to give credit where credit's due, and (adult probation) has really been doing a good job with that."
Northumberland County Chief Probation Officer Jim Cortelyou estimated the county saved $70,902 in July alone by allowing 47 people to participate in house arrest rather than incarcerate them. In June, the program had the highest number of participants - 79 - since its inception, saving the county an estimated $124,440.
Supporters of the program also point to the benefits to participants.
"Most of those people have jobs, and they keep their jobs," said Gembic. "Obviously, you go to jail for three to six months, nine out of 10 times, you're not going to be employed (when you get out)."
Gembic noted the program worked best for low-level offenders.
"They're not leaving out people that are dangerous to anyone," he said.
Though the benefits for participants on house arrest has been established, residents throughout the county still worry releasing additional people into the program would cause the crime rate to skyrocket.
Gembic said he has seen no signs of house arrest participants re-commiting crimes while in the program.
"Not one single person has come back and been charged while they're out (on house arrest)," he said. In fact, he added, he hasn't had a DUI offender, one of the most common types of people on house arrest, return to his courtroom while in the program in the 15 years he's been on the bench.
"What we've been doing for as long as I've been in is offering house arrest," he said. "I've never in 15 years had one person that's violated that."
Number steady
Northumberland County Prison has held an average of just 176 inmates from January to July this year, a decrease of about 19 percent from the 215 inmates held during the same time period last year.
Despite fewer people in jail, the average number of arrests made by police departments throughout the county has not increased significantly.
Shamokin City Police Department arrested 200 people between Feb. 1 and July 31 this year, or an average of 33.33 per month. For the same time period in 2014 and 2013, the arrest totals were 186 and 189, or and average of 31 and 31.5 per month, respectively.
Gembic, who hears cases from the city, said he had not seen any increase in crime as a result of the increased number of people on house arrest.
"I've noticed a lot of the people are grateful that they have the opportunity to be out," he said. "They seem to be less angry and even more responsible and cautious so they don't end up going back in (jail)."
The Mount Carmel Borough Police Department has also seen the number of arrests remain steady despite the loss of the prison. From February to July, 123 arrests have been made by borough police, or 20.5 per month. In the same time period in 2014 and 2013, the arrest totals were 114 and 128, or 19 and 21.33 per month.
Other changes
Police Chief Todd Owens said the numerous changes within the legal system over the last year, which includes a new district attorney and the incorporation of computers into police cars, leaves him unable to determine the cause of the number of arrests.
"I can't say even with a remote sense of certainty that anything has changed because we don't have a prison," he said. "Our increases are nothing more than just society and changes in demographics. We're seeing our calls increase, and they've been increasing prior to the jail burning down. I don't think its directly proportional."
Owens said the lack of jail space has influenced his officers to rethink arresting suspects, which may have lowered the reported crime rate even though the trend is for increasing calls.
"For a typical street fight where that may rise to a simple assault, instead of taking them into custody and arraigning them, we may file on them or issue a summons for disorderly or harassment and kick them loose," he said. "We have to look at it on a case-by-case basis for what's the in the best interest of the community and the whole picture of the situation with the prison."