State inmates to no longer be sent to Oklahoma County jail

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – The Oklahoma Department of Corrections will stop sending state inmates to the Oklahoma County jail.

DOC director Joe Allbaugh made the decision after Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater asked county commissioners to cancel the county’s contract with the state in order to avoid overcrowding.

Corrections department spokeswoman Terri Watkins told The Journal Record that no decision has been made on where the inmates will be sent. Inmates already at the county jail will not be affected.

Cancelling the contract requires 30 days’ notice.

The state pays the county $32 per day for each inmate, up to a maximum of 196 medium-security males, under a $2.3 million contract.

DOC records show there are 613 state inmates housed at 14 county jails in the state, including the Oklahoma County jail.