EKB News

In an effort to cut jail costs, the Cabell County Commission has approved funding for a pilot program, established by the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals, which would release non-violent offenders before trial. The program would require a full-time person to interview and perform background checks on all those arrested in Cabell County before trial. The individual would then be required to report back to a committee made up of representatives from law enforcement and court officials who would meet at least once a week. The committee would determine whether the offender would be placed on home confinement, work with the Western Regional Day Report Center or be housed at the Western Regional Jail in Barboursville. The committee would make recommendations to designated circuit court and magistrate judges who would decide if the offender should remain jailed or be released while awaiting trial. Presently, the county spends about $245,000 a month, about $2.9 million a year, on jail costs, but the program, which takes $32,000 to fund, is expected to save the county between $147,000 and $588,000 a year.