Klickitat County Jail Still Open… for now; Christopher calls closure 'rash decision'
Commissioners question Sheriff Bob Songer about jail operations
By Ken Park
Klickitat County Jail remains open as of April 12, but the process has begun to close the jail following accusations of human rights violations.
Commissioner Lori Zoller
“We are working through the fact-finding process to ensure we are covering all items on such a big project,” Board Chair Lori Zoller said in an April 12 email.“We also have many partners to coordinate with, fiscal, legal, human resources, and the unions for jail employees as well as cities, judges, state and federal agencies.”
During its regular meeting on April 9, Klickitat County Commissioners received an update on what is happening in the county jail from Sheriff Bob Songer and the Director of Human Resources for the county Rob Van Cleave.
Van Cleave mentioned that he was adhering to the commissioners' directive to initiate the jail closure process, as highlighted by Zoller, necessitating collaboration with the employee unions.
Director of Human Resources for the county Rob Van Cleave
“We are negotiating with the union on the impact of this decision and that's ongoing since we are in bargaining, I am required to only interact with the bargaining team or the union reps on this issue,” Van Cleave said.
Commissioner Jake Anderson added more information regarding those processes in an April 14 email.
"Our staff is diligently conducting necessary evaluations, including a cost-benefit analysis and the formulation of a transition plan,” Anderson said. Additionally, numerous inquiries have been directed to the sheriff's department by the Board of County Commissioners to aid in our decision-making process."
At the April 9 meeting, the commissioners requested that Sheriff Songer respond to at least four pages of questions regarding the jail.
Commissioner Dan Christopher
Songer has said he will respond to them if given a reasonable amount of time to respond.
These questions are on top of the questions submitted by state and federal agencies regarding conditions at the jail.
Commissioner Dan Christopher said in an April 12 email that there appears to be a level of backpaddling on this decision and called the decision of his seatmates rash.
However, the Board of County Commissioners does possess several options regarding whether to proceed with the jail closure in light of public sentiment and the increasing number of lawsuits.
Commissioner Jake Anderson
"The ultimate resolution regarding the jail has not yet been determined,” Anderson said. “We are considering three options: maintaining the status quo, assuming control of the jail as the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC), or closing the jail and outsourcing services to NORCOR. Our final choice will hinge on financial considerations, operational complexities, and the welfare of inmates and staff alike."
Anderson noted that the County is currently negotiating with NORCCOR and looking at the financial impacts of transferring inmates to the facility should the County move forward with closing the Klickitat County Jail.
"We're currently in negotiations with NORCOR in The Dalles, carefully evaluating the financial implications,” Anderson said. We're also exploring different transportation and staffing options while conducting a thorough comparison to determine the costs of providing equivalent medical and behavioral health services locally compared to NORCOR.”
Timeline
Over the last two years, the Klickitat County jail has come under fire for human rights violations following two incidents involving Native American inmates.
One that occurred in May 2023 and another that occurred in November 2023.
In May of 2023 Ivan Howtopat, 24, ended his life while in the custody of the Klickitat County Jail while in the throws of withdrawals from Fentanyl.
In January of 2024, the Howtopats family filed a $20-million lawsuit against Klickitat County/ Klickitat County jail citing wrongful death.
The suit alleges that the Sheriff’s Department did not read the warning signs that Howtopat was suicidal and even exacerbated his condition by placing him in solitary confinement.
In November 2023, a female inmate was found to have been physically deteriorating so badly that she had bugs crawling all over her, with one deputy allegedly describing her as smelling of rotting flesh, despite showering her.
The female inmate was transported to Klickitat Valley Health Hospital in Goldendale and is no longer incarcerated. The incident, along with Howtopats’ suicide placed the Klickitat County jail in the national spotlight.
Klickitat County Commissioners began receiving calls and emails from the public to do something about the jail soon after but only spoke publicly about the matter in its March 26 meeting when Commissioner Zoller took on the role of investigating what was happening at the jail.
“We have come to a Y in the road and need to have quick and hard conversations about the jail,” Zoller said in response to public comment about the jail on March 26.
At this time, Commissioner Dan Christopher said he was not interested in having a conversation about the jail until the commission had all the facts about what was going on with the two cases.
Commissioner Jake Anderson agreed that something needed to be done about the jail and that the board had several options open to them but would like input from Sheriff Songer
“ I don’t want to disagree with you at all, and I agree the board needs to have a position,” Anderson said. “I know that each of us is looking into different possibilities, and we need to have a coming together — but I would hate to have a conversation without Sheriff Songer present.”
Then on March 29, 2024, the vote was cast, 2-1, that the county would close the jail effective April 12.
“As the board chair and lead for this proposal, I put aside most of my work for some time now as has my assisting staff to dedicate time to look at every angle of this multifaceted problem, seeking solid and vetted information and solutions,” Zoller said.
Throughout her investigation process, Zoller engaged with the county’s legal counsel, and state and federal agencies, and enlisted the assistance of the county’s personnel and finance departments.
“Klickitat County has a moral and legal obligation to provide a safe environment for people housed in our jail,” Zoller said.”The public has repeatedly expressed their concerns over the Sheriff's inability to provide a humane and safe environment for inmates, and as a county commissioner I share those concerns and I believe an immediate change must occur.”
Zoller then moved to close the jail, which was seconded by Commissioner Anderson.
“We have all read the newspaper articles; we have all heard from the community, and we are being asked to be decisive,” Anderson said. “ I have been supportive of Commissioner Zoller in taking this project on; I will admit and state publicly that I am in full agreement with Commissioner Zoller's assertion that changes are indeed needed at Klickitat County Jail. These events have underscored the need for urgent reform, and I am fully committed to addressing these issues head-on.”
Zoller also noted that Northern Oregon Regional Correctional Facility (NORCOR) already has a contract with Klickitat County to house juvenile inmates and has said it would be able to house adult inmates as well.
Anderson praised the suggested partnership with NORCOR.
“I want to express my unequivocal support for Commissioner Zoller's discussions with NORCOR. It is clear that partnering with them presents a valuable opportunity to implement the necessary changes and improve conditions without our corrections system,’ Anderson said.
Again Commissioner Christopher was the dissenter, stating that he could not vote or would vote in opposition to the action due to a lack of information.
“I cannot vote in favor of this because I do not have any of the information or any of the data that you (Zoller) have acquired,” Christopher said. “ Without being privy to any information, I cannot make an informed decision.”
Christopher even went as far as to allege accusations at commissioners Zoller and Anderson about leaving him out of the conversations about the jail.
“I had no idea what this discussion was going to be about today,” Christopher said.
Zoller noted that Christopher had previously said he would not talk about the jail when it had previously come up.
In an April 12 email Christopher further explained why he voted against the closing of the jail.
“I voted no for a couple of reasons, while we can all agree the recent issues in the jail are tragic and an investigation needs to be done; I do not make a rush to judgment decisions without facts and financials to back up my decisions,” Christopher said. “ I also do not make decisions in a vacuum of knowledge or for the sake of political pandering. I believe the board needs to know the facts of the two cases; it needs to work with our partners in the cities, the sheriff's office, mental health our public defenders, the prosecutor, the hospitals, the EMS district, the public, and more to get their ideas on potential consequences to changing current services.”
Though Sheriff Songer was present during the March 29 meeting he did not publicly comment on the decision.
However, at the Commissioner's April 2 meeting, the commissioner's meeting room was full to the brim with community members both in support and opposition to the county's decision to close the jail.
The public comment segment dominated much of the meeting, with the majority of remarks expressing opposition to the jail closure.
Mayors from both White Salmon and Bingen weighed in on the situation, via email.
“The County's decision to close the jail affects Bingen because we have an interlocal agreement with Klickitat County for housing inmates,” Bingen Mayor Catherin Kiewitt said in an April 11 email. “I respect the Commissioners' decision to do what is best with the information they have. As a taxpayer, I prefer our dollars be spent on services that directly benefit residents rather than be used for legal defense, so if closing the jail avoids costly lawsuits in the future, then it's beneficial to contract for those services elsewhere.”
Bingen also has an interlocal agreement with the City of White Salmon for Police Services. The two cities are working together with White Salmon Police Chief Mike Hepner to establish agreements directly with an agency for future jail services if the Klickitat jail does officially close,”
“The welfare of the inmates is the primary concern, and the reports of instances in the past year where it seems that has not been prioritized are troubling,” White Salmon Mayor Marla Keethler said. “We have been in contact with our District 1 Commissioner and the County Chair and are aware an internal investigation at the county level was undertaken that led to the decisions now being made. In the near term, we are working in coordination with the county to ensure the safe transfer of our inmates currently being held when the jail closes.”
Sheriffs Accusations
In an April 13 Facebook post to the Klickitat County Sheriff’s Department page, Sheriff Songer claimed that Commissioners Anderson and Zoller lied about their reasons for closing the jail.
In the post, Sheriff Songer, boasting his years of investigative work, states that he conducted his investigation into the Commissioners negotiations with NORCOR before the announcement that they would be closing the jail.
“On April 10, 20204, I contacted two law enforcement board members out of NORCOR. They informed me that the contact from our two commissioners, originating about March 20, was rather casual conversations with no commitment from NORCOR,” Songer said. They further informed me of the expenses which more than evaporate the claims of financial benefits of using NORCOR. Additionally, they gave multiple situations where NORCOR could decline to take certain prisoners, further stating it could easily take 6 months for an agreement to reach a functional level if they chose to contract with Klickitat County,” Songer said.
Songer alleges that these claims contradict with commissioners Zoller and Anderson had previously stated about the contract with NORCOR and went so far as to say that both are either incompetent or intentionally lying to the public.
Commissioner Anderson responded to the Sheriff’s accusations in a letter sent to the Goldendale Sentinel.
"The vote on the 29th was intended to authorize staff to initiate formal negotiations with NORCOR and the Union. Commissioner Zoller appropriately raised the issue for board approval to proceed. I have not personally engaged with any board members from NORCOR,” Anderson said.
“While staff continues to conduct a thorough cost-benefit analysis regarding a potential transfer to NORCOR, it's imperative that the sheriff focuses on finding ways to operate within his budget.”
Songer also made note of Commissioner Dan Christopher being caught off guard by the announcement from his seatmates.
“It was clear during the March 29 meeting that County Commissioner Dan Christopher was also blindsided by his two seatmates,” Songer said. “ Those seatmates have acted in gross disregard for a process which should have included Commissioner Christopher and the Sheriff's Office.
Sheriff Songer alleges that the commissioners have a personal animosity towards him and that they are taking action rather than responding to the incidents that occurred in the jail earlier this year,
“The sudden panic for an emergency shutdown of our jail being based on incidents occurring many months ago leads me to believe the push has more to do with personal animosity Commissioners Zoller and Anderson have towards me.
Anderson responded to this accusation as well.
“The insinuation that the push to address jail issues stems from personal animosity is a clear attempt to deflect responsibility,” Andersons aid.”Our focus remains steadfast on addressing critical concerns surrounding the jail's operations and ensuring the safety and dignity of all involved.”
Anderson concluded by expressing disappointment with the Sheriff’s rhetoric on this issues
"It's disappointing to see such inflammatory rhetoric from the Sheriff's Office. My focus is on serving the community, not engaging in personal attacks,” Anderson said.
Financials
In addition to the $20 million lawsuit the Klickitat County jail owes Klickitat Valley Health $192,000 in medical costs for inmates
Sheriff Songer told the Klickitat County Commissioners that the jail is likely to see its insurance premiums go up this year too, which adds another financial burden to the jail.
Where is Culp?
Klickitat County Sheriff Bob Songer with Loren Culp spring 2024
In these county meetings regarding the jail, one man has been conspicuously absent. Klickitat County Jail Administrator Loren Culp, hired by Songer, has yet to comment or show up.
Culp, the former Chief of Police for the City of Republic and 2020 candidate for Washington Governor was hand-picked by Songer to join the department and has been jail administrator since March 2023, and has also yet to comment on the commissioner's decision to close the jail.
The Washington Association of Sheriffs and Chiefs are looking at revoking Culp’s membership in the association in a vote set for April 29. The possible expulsion was precipitated by Culp’s conduct on social media where he used explicit language to describe two Washington State Congressional representatives.
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