Fairborn Jail saving PD time and money

FAIRBORN, Ohio (WDTN) - There's a point when saving money, means sacrificing service.
 
"It got to the point where our agency, like everything other agency around here, was told we had to cut, cut, cut. Well, you can only cut so much fat before you start to get to the bone. The bone was personnel," said Sgt. Paul Hicks, Public Information Officer for the Fairborn Police Department.  

In 2010, the Police Department was facing deep budget cuts and decided closing the city jail was the best option, with a cost savings of $154,000.

That meant when officers made an arrest they had to first go to the Fairborn facility to fingerprint the suspect, then load the person back into the cruiser and make the twenty minute drive to the Greene County Jail in Xenia. After completing the sometimes hour long book-in process, the officer was finally back on the road to Fairborn.

Sgt. Hicks called it not only a time consuming, but also costly process.  "The pay for that officer is not doing the work, because they are transporting prisoners. On top of that, fuel going back and forth to Xenia. It really is a savings for us to have it open".

After looking at the numbers Fairborn decided to re-open it's 19-inmate facility last summer.

In the first seven months alone, Sgt. Hicks said they've already seen the benefits. From June to December 2011, Fairborn Police spent 336 hours transporting inmates to the Greene County Jail. Since the city jail reopened, that number dropped to 232 hours.
    
Sgt. Hicks said that basically translates into another full-time officer on the streets, which he believes is the best showing of savings you can ask for.