Clarification
Sheriff Jack Rodgers clarified today (Thursday, Jan. 15) that the Cleveland County Jail located inside the Joe Paul King Law Enforcement Center at the courthouse complex in Rison is certified by the state.
Rodgers said he received some phone calls about the status of the jail after some people read an article in this week’s issue of the Herald about a conversation that sheriff candidate Keden Shrum had on the Herald’s Free Range Conversation podcast. The Herald will be interviewing all the candidates for sheriff and county judge on the podcast.
During the podcast, Shrum referenced another jail in the state that was on the verge of losing its insurance due to the conditions there, not the Cleveland County Jail. Shrum said he wanted to prevent that from happening here.
The Arkansas Department of Public Safety’s Criminal Detention Facilities Review Committee inspects jail facilities at least once a year. The Cleveland County Jail was last inspected on July 3 and passed certification (a copy of the certification is attached).
The Cleveland County Jail can hold up to 10 males charged with felonies. According to the report, the jail has an average daily population of 6 inmates. It underwent a major renovation in 2024 that included new jail doors and some other improvements.
The following is a transcript of Shrum’s remarks regarding the county jail:
“Another big issue is our jail. That’s something that’s going to have to be addressed. I can’t remember the county it was that I saw just a couple weeks ago, there was a county that actually lost their insurance on their jail because of the condition it was in.
“Well, that that could happen here. So eventually that’s going to have to be dealt with.
“And so at some point that’s going to have to be dealt with. And there’s a few ways you can handle that. You know, I don’t know that its anything that we need to get into now, but you know, there are some budgeting ideas there that that could help with that. But that is something that, you know, someone’s going to have to tackle sooner or later.”
To listen to the entire podcast follow this link: https://www.clevelandcountyherald.com/news-free-range-conversations/shrum-prefers-community-policing-sheriffs-office
Podcast interviews with sheriff candidates Lee Freeman and Brad Young will follow.