Letter: Jail change too rushed

Published 3:30 pm Thursday, December 26, 2024

How is it that such an enormous change to the PCSO can be mentioned on Dec. 18 with a vote scheduled Dec. 26?

I have looked at the county meeting page and the meeting document pages and do not see any information about Paul Plankinger’s proposed resolution that will remove the jail from PCSO and place it under the control of the county.

This feels like a planned rush job — planned that the timing comes when taxpayers and residents of Pacific County are otherwise occupied with holiday celebrations and travel and rushed so that questions from the public can be bypassed.

I do not support this change. It is not beneficial to the people of Pacific County. I do not approve of the way the rush to a vote is being “managed” with such a short turn around that the public is kept in the dark and out of the conversation. Removing the jail from the jurisdiction of the Sheriff’s office makes no sense to me. If this rash change was made in any way to accommodate the deadline for the final approval of the 2025 budget, there are even bigger problems in your administration.

What Sheriff Garcia and the PCSO have accomplished in two years has the gratitude of most Pacific County residents. There is hard work still to be done but what has been accomplished is appreciated.

Why the rush? Where is the feasibility study for such a change? Who came up with this idea — only the county administrator and if not only he, how long has it been worked on in what appears to be out of the public’s view? What is the reason for this change?

CHARLIE and BONNIE COZBY

Ocean Park

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