PSCC Agenda 09/13/2019
Collier County
Public Safety Coordinating Council
County Manager’s Conference Room
September 13, 2019
10 a.m.
I. Introduction
A. Call to Order and Introductions -PSCC Chairman Commissioner Burt Saunders
II. Old Business
A. Approval of meeting minutes from March 29, 2019
B. Continued Discussion: Pros/Cons of establishing an Adult Pre-Arrest Diversion
Program in Collier County. An Adult Pre-Arrest Diversion Program would allow certain
adults who fulfill specified intervention and community service obligations the
opportunity to avoid an arrest record. 901.41. Prearrest diversion programs, FL ST §
901.41
1. Findings from the review of the 240 inmates who were incarcerated in March
2019 for non-violent misdemeanors, to identify how many might have been
eligible for an Adult Pre-arrest Diversion Program. - Chief Chris Roberts and
Katina Bouza
2. Updates on the Pre-Arrest Diversion Program in Pinellas County and the pilot
program in Charlotte County - Chief Chris Roberts, Clerk of Courts Crystal
Kinzel, others.
3. Discussion - Could another potential path to reduce the number of pre-trial
misdemeanants in jail be to issue more notices to appear in lieu of physical
arrest? Agenda packets include the memo titled, “The Changing Geography of Jail
Incarceration in Florida” from the Vera Institute of Justice.
III. New Business
A. Review of the latest jail occupancy snapshot.
IV. Public Comments
V. Member Comments
VI. Adjourn- Next meeting date TBA.
March 29, 2019
1
MINUTES OF THE COLLIER COUNTY PUBLIC SAFETY
COORDINATING COUNCIL MEETING
Naples, Florida, March 29, 2019
LET IT BE REMEMBERED the Public Safety Coordinating Council in and for the
County of Collier, having conducted business herein, met on this date at 10:00 a.m.
in the County Manager’s Office Conference Room, 2nd Floor of Building “F” of
the Collier County Government Complex, Naples, Florida with the following
members present:
Chairman: Burt Saunders, Board of County Commissioners (Excused)
Vice Chairman: Kevin Rambosk, CC Sheriff, Chief Correctional Officer
Michael T. McHugh, Chief Circuit Judge (Excused)
Rob Crown, County Court Judge (Excused)
Kathy Smith, Public Defender
Nicole Mirra, State Attorney’s Office
Terri McCall, State Prob. Circuit Court Administrator
Jeff Nichols, Director, Collier County Probation
Scott Burgess, Executive Director, David Lawrence Center
Joe Paterno, Executive Dir., SW Florida Workforce Dev
(Excused)
Also Present: Mike Sheffield, County Manager’s Office
Crystal Kinzel, Collier County Clerk of Courts
Chief Chris Roberts, Sheriff’s Office
Kevin McGowan, Sheriff’s Office
Dareece Canady, Sheriff’s Office
Katina Bouza, Director, Correctional Support Division-CCSO
Rex Darrow, Public Defender’s Office
March 29, 2019
2
I. Introduction
A. Call to Order – Vice-Chair, Sheriff Kevin Rambosk
Sheriff Rambosk called the meeting to order at 10:00 a.m.
C. Nominations and Selection of a Chair and Vice-Chair for 2019
Sheriff Rambosk moved to nominate Burt Saunders as Chair. Second by Mr. Nichols.
Carried unanimously 6 – 0.
Ms. Smith moved to nominate Sheriff Kevin Rambosk as Vice-Chair. Second by
Mr. Burgess. Carried unanimously 6 – 0.
II. Old Business
A. Review and Approval of Meeting Minutes from December 18, 2018
Mr. Nichols moved to approve the minutes of the December 18, 2018 Meeting as
presented. Second by Mr. Burgess. Carried unanimously 6 – 0.
B. Discussion: Pros/Cons of establishing an Adult Pre-Arrest Diversion Program in
Collier County
An Adult Pre-Arrest Diversion Program would allow certain adults who fulfill specified
intervention and community service obligations the opportunity to avoid an arrest record.
Ms. Smith gave an overview of the Adult Pre-arrest Diversion Program, stating that the
program allows certain adults who meet strict criteria to avoid an arrest record that may
prevent them from obtaining future employment and housing, while at the same time
ensuring that they receive services and fulfill their community service. Ms. Smith stated
the Prearrest Diversion Program is working well in Pinellas County, and a pilot program
will soon begin in Charlotte County.
Chief Roberts stated that there are mixed reviews about the program in Pinellas County.
The statewide tracking systems currently in place may not accurately identify and track
those that are perhaps slipping through the cracks. Chief Roberts stated that there are 240
inmates currently incarcerated in the jail for non-violent misdemeanors.
Sheriff Rambosk stated the Chief Roberts and Ms. Bouza will need to do a complete
evaluation of those 240 inmates, and identify how many would even be eligible for an
Adult Pre-arrest Diversion Program. If there are too few, there may be no point in
initiating such a program in Collier County.
Ms. Smith stated that such a program in Collier County may benefit those in jail who are
there because they cannot make bond.
Ms. Mirra expressed concern about the inability to properly track people who are diverted
into the program because there is no record to track, as the offender stays out of the
criminal justice system. She also questioned how the program deals with Marcy’s Law,
which involves victims’ rights.
March 29, 2019
3
Mr. Nichols stated that county probation could increase caseloads in order to provide
diversion supervision to more people.
Ms. Kinzel stated that Clerk’s budget is already stretched, and fees would be an important
component to the success of the Clerk’s involvement in the diversion program. Ms.
Kinzel will find out how the clerk in Pinellas County manages.
Mr. Burgess noted that much of the incarcerated population, who may be eligible for the
program, involve possession of marijuana, and the David Lawrence Center can assist in
treatment.
Sheriff Rambosk stated that the plan going forward at this time should be to observe the
pilot program in Charlotte County to determine how well they progress, to review current
inmates in Collier County to determine how many might be eligible, and obtain more
information from Pinellas County.
The consensus of the Council is to observe the pilot program in Charlotte County, to determine
how well they are succeeding and what their problem areas are, review current inmates in
Collier to determine how many might have been eligible for a diversion program, and obtain
information and statistics from Pinellas County.
C. Review of the Jail Occupancy Snapshot taken 3/25/19, Katina Bouza, Director,
Corrections Support Division - CCSO
Chief Roberts and Ms. Bouza distributed and reviewed a handout of a Jail Occupancy
Snapshot taken 3/25/19.
Ms. Bouza stated that there are currently 813 inmates in the jail, 240 of whom are
currently incarcerated for non-violent misdemeanors.
Ms. Smith and Chief Roberts submitted that within this snapshot, 200 of that population
mostly likely could not make bond.
Ms. Smith stated that she would like to see non-convicted inmates go to trial sooner.
III. New Business
None
VI. Public Comments
None
VI. Member Comments
March 29, 2019
4
Mr. Sheffield informed the group that in 2009 the Collier PSCC held a joint meeting with
the Lee County PSCC. He asked the council to consider holding another joint county
meeting with Lee County, if members think such a meeting would be beneficial.
Sheriff Rambosk stated that the council should look to those Florida counties that are
innovative and progressive in their thinking, to learn what things those counties may be
doing differently that might be effective in Collier County.
Adjournment – Next Meeting date TBA - Remember to send Agenda topic ideas to
Mike Sheffield.
There being no further business for the good of the County, the meeting was adjourned by
order of the Vice-Chair at 10:45 a.m.
COLLIER COUNTY PUBLIC SAFETY
COORDINATING COUNCIL
_______________________________________
Vice-Chair, Sheriff Kevin Rambosk
These minutes approved by the Board/Committee on _________________ as
presented____________ or as amended ______________
COLLIER COUNTY
PUBLIC SAFETY COORDINATING COUNCIL
ROSTER OF MEMBERS
(As of July 2019)
Membership
Type
Name Title
1. Statutory Member Commissioner
Burt Saunders
Commissioner, Board of County
Commissioners and PSCC Chairman
2. Statutory Member Sheriff
Kevin Rambosk
Sheriff, Chief Correctional Officer
Sheriff ‘s designee if unable
to attend
Chief Chris Roberts Sheriff’s Office – Jail Administrator
3. Statutory Member Chief Judge
Michael T. McHugh
Chief Circuit Judge
4. Statutory Member Judge Rob Crown
County Court Judge
5. Statutory Member Amira Fox State Attorney, 20th Judicial Circuit
State Attorney’s designee if
unable to attend
Nicole Mirra State Attorney’s Office-Collier
County
6. Statutory Member Kathy A. Smith
Public Defender, 20th Judicial Circuit
Public Defender’s designee
if unable to attend
Rex Darrow Supervising Assistant Public
Defender
7. Statutory Member
Terri McCall
State Prob. Circuit Administrator
State Probation
Administrator’s designee if
unable to attend
Robin Kelly Senior Supervisor
State Probation
8. Statutory Member Jeff Nichols Director of County Probation
County Probation Director’s
designee if unable to attend
Juan Ramos Collier Probation
9. Statutory Member Scott Burgess Executive Director, David Lawrence
Center
DLC Executive Director’s
designee if unable to attend
Nancy Dauphinais David Lawrence Center, Chief
Operating Officer
10. Statutory Member
Joe Paterno Executive Director-Southwest
Florida Workforce Dev.
Non-voting participant Crystal K. Kinzel Clerk of the Circuit Court &
Comptroller for Collier County.
Non-voting participant Mike Sheffield Director, Collier Communications
Non-voting participant Katina Bouza
Director,
Corrections Support Division- CCSO
Non-voting participant Judge Janeice Martin
County Court Judge
233 Broadway, 12th Fl. New York, NY 10279 t 212 334 1300 f 212 941 9407 vera.org
Date: March 26, 2019
To: Interested Parties
Subject: The changing geography of jail incarceration in Florida
From: Christian Henrichson, Research Director; Jasmine Heiss, Director of Outreach
This memorandum provides analysis of Florida’s jails that draws on data collected by the U.S.
Bureau of Justice Statistics, for the period 1970-2013, and the Florida Department of
Corrections, for the period 2014-2018.1 Urban-rural classification is based on the National
Center for Health Statistics Urban-Rural Classification Scheme for Counties.2 Florida’s regions
are defined by collapsing the Florida Department of Children and Families regions from six to
three.3 See Appendix Table 1, on page 10, for detail on the classifications, and key statistics, for
each county. See Vera’s dashboard (tinyurl.com/florida-jails) for complete county-level detail
since 1990.
After decades of continuous growth, the Florida jail population peaked in 2007 and then began
to decline. By 2018, the jail incarceration rate had declined 22 percent. But this aggregate trend
has not been uniform across the state. Instead, decreasing incarceration in urban counties has
driven a statewide decline that hides rising incarceration in rural counties. Since 2007, the jail
incarceration rate has declined 35 percent in large urban counties and 24 percent in the state’s
suburban counties, but has only declined 9 percent in small and mid-sized metropolitan
counties, and has increased 5 percent in the state’s rural counties, where jail incarceration has
long been most prevalent (See Chart 1, on the following page). As a result, nearly half (49
percent) the state’s jail population is now in small / mid-sized metropolitan counties and rural
counties, compared to only 37 percent in 1990.
Furthermore, despite the recent variation in jail trends in each region of the state and across the
urban-rural continuum—there is one commonality: a notable uptick in the the jail population in
all regions of the state between 2017 and 2018 when the state jail population increased 5
percent, from 52,404 to 54,954. While the variation in incarceration rates between Florida
counties and judicial circuits reflects discrete sets of policies, practices, and broader
socioeconomic contexts, it is clear that the state as a whole has seen a recent increase in reliance
on jails.
1 For information on the Bureau of Justice Statistics Data, see trends.vera.org/about. For information on the FDC
data, see Florida County Detention Facilities' Average Inmate Population.
2 See Jacob Kang-Brown and Ram Subramanian. Out of Sight: The Growth of Jails in Rural America. New York:
Vera Institute of Justice, 2017. Page 8.
3 See DCF Media Guide for a map, http://www.dcf.state.fl.us/newsroom/media-guide/circuit-regions.shtml
2
Chart 1. Florida Jail Incarceration Rate per 100,000 age 15-64, by Urbanicity (1990-2018)
Jail Incarceration by Region
The trajectory of Florida’s jail incarceration rate over the past decade has also varied by region.
The steepest decline has been in South Florida, where the rate has dropped 38 percent since
2007. In contrast, the jail incarceration rate has declined 19 percent in Central/Suncoast
Florida, and only 4 percent in Northern Florida (See Chart 2).
Chart 2. Florida Jail Incarceration Rate per 100,000 age 15-64, by Region (1990-2018)
3
As a result, today there is considerable regional variation in the prevalence of incarceration. The
jail incarceration rate is 570.9 per 100,000 residents aged 15-64 in Northern Florida (33 percent
above the Florida average and 75 percent above the national average), 293.6 per 100,000 aged
15-64 in Southern Florida (32 percent below the Florida average and 10 percent below the
national average), and 468.0 in Central Florida (9 percent above the state average and 44
percent above the national average).4
Furthermore, the urbanicity of incarceration varies across regions of the state. In every region,
rural counties have, by far, the highest rates of incarceration, but the degree to which urban and
rural counties are saturated by incarceration varies widely in different regions of the state. The
highest urban and suburban incarceration rates are in Northern Florida, while Southern
Florida’s rural counties and small to mid-sized metros have notably higher incarceration rates
than similar communities in other regions of the state. However, because of the sheer size of
Southern Florida’s lower-incarceration urban and suburban counties, high rates of incarceration
in the region’s small and midsized metros and rural counties do not significantly affect the
incarceration rate for the region as a whole (See Table 1, and Appendix Chart 1, on page 9).
Table 1. Jail Incarceration Rate per 100,000 aged 15-64,
by Region and Urbanicity (2018)
Region/
Urbanicity Rural Small-
/MidMetro
Large Metro
(Suburb)
Large Metro
(Urban) Total
Northern Florida 740.4 591.3 465.9 496.4 570.9
Central/Suncoast 789.5 565.9 462.6 370.0 468.0
Southern Florida 1,079.0 654.7 266.8 223.4 293.6
Total 805.2 582.8 346.2 330.5 430.4
Source: FDC. Florida County Detention Facilities' Average Inmate Population.
Jail Incarceration by Judicial Circuit
Notably, there is also substantial variation within each region, as an analysis of incarceration
rates by judicial circuit illuminates. The ten judicial circuits with the highest jail incarceration
rates span the Northern, Central/Suncoast, and Southern regions of Florida (See Table 2, on the
following page). Furthermore, there is broad variation across all twenty judicial circuits—the jail
incarceration rates range from a low of 223 per 100,000 aged 15-64 in the Eleventh Circuit, to a
high of 1,102 per 100,000 aged 15-64 in the Sixteenth Circuit. The dramatic variation in
incarceration rates across the state’s judicial circuits reflects an uneven administration of
justice, in which Floridians might have vastly different trajectories through the justice system
depending upon where they live or are arrested.
Table 2. Jail Incarceration Rate, by Judicial Circuit (2018)
4 Vera calculates incarceration rates using the county population collected by the U.S. Census Bureau. To get a
more accurate picture of incarceration rates, people under the age of 15 and over 64 were removed from the general
population since these groups are at very low risk of jail incarceration. Also, because the proportion of these groups
varies greatly by county, keeping them in would skew rates and distort comparisons.
4
Jail Incarceration by County
Likewise, there is also wide variation among counties. The places with the highest incarceration
rates are rural counties in all regions of the state: Dixie, Holmes, Hendry, Monroe, Franklin,
Okeechobee, and Bradford Counties (see Table 3, on the following page). The highest overall jail
incarceration rate is in Baker County, but the jail population in this county is skewed upward
because the jail rents the majority of its beds to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
(ICE).5 This extreme example also reflects variation in the way that counties use their jails: for
example, in some Florida counties, more than 80 percent of the people in the jail are being
detained before trial, elsewhere that number is closer to 50 percent. The state’s jails also house
people who have been sentenced to serve time locally for misdemeanor or felony convictions,
who have violated the terms of probation or parole supervision, who are being held for the
Florida Department of Corrections, other counties or the federal government, or people who have
been temporarily taken into custody in response to mental health or substance use concerns.
Table 3. Ten Highest County Jail Incarceration Rates (2018)
5 For more on ICE detainees in Baker County, see Jack Norton and Jacob Kang-Brown, Farm Aid for the Big
House, Vera Institute of Justice, October, 2018.
5
Pretrial Detention
In 2018, 64 percent of Florida’s jail population was comprised of pretrial detainees, people who
have been charged with a crime and are behind bars awaiting trial—often because they cannot
afford a monetary bail.6 Of Florida’s 2018 pretrial population, 87 percent were held on felony
charges and 13 percent were held on misdemeanor charges. Statewide, there were an average of
4,234 people (8 percent of the total state jail population) detained before trial who had been
charged with but not yet convicted of a misdemeanor. Many Florida counties, however, have a
significantly higher proportion of people in jail who have been charged with misdemeanor
offenses. There are at least seventeen counties where more than 10 percent of the jail population
is comprised of people being held pretrial on misdemeanor charges (see Table 4, on the
following page).7
6 This estimate, and all pretrial statistics in this memo, excludes eight counties with missing or incomplete pretrial
population data in 2018: DeSoto, Duval, Holmes, Lafayette, Lake, Levy, Liberty, and Taylor.
7 We say “at least” seventeen because pretrial detention data is missing for eight counties.
6
Table 4. Counties Where Greatest Proportion of Jail Population are People Held on Pretrial
Misdemeanor Charges (2018)
Jail Incarceration by Gender
While Florida’s jail population is predominantly male, with men comprising 84 percent of the
average daily population (ADP) in 2018, the growth of women’s jail incarceration has outpaced
men’s in recent years. The number of men in Florida’s jails was 1.5 times higher in 2015 than in
1990, while the number of women in jail was 2.4 times higher.8 And while the majority of men
and women in Florida’s jails are being held before trial on felony charges, a larger proportion of
the women’s jail population is detained before trial on misdemeanors (12 percent, versus 9
percent among men), incarcerated for alleged violations of probation and other forms of
supervision (12 percent, versus 8 percent among men), and serving time for a felony conviction
(22 percent, versus 18 percent among men).
While more detailed data about the impact of Florida’s pretrial and probation practices on
women is not available, national research shows that pretrial and supervision practices can often
have disparate effects on women. Women generally receive greater leniency than men in pretrial
custody and release decisions, but women are less likely to be able to afford a monetary bail
amount when it is set, or the fines and fees associated with supervision. Moreover, supervision
conditions often fail to accommodate women’s specific risk factors or treatment needs, or reflect
the incompatibility of supervision requirements with the responsibilities of primary caregivers
of dependent children.9
8 Data from 2015 is the most recently available comprehensive information for jail populations by gender.
9 Most women in jail are mothers—an estimated 79 percent have young children and approximately five percent are
pregnant when they are incarcerated. For more on women and jails, see Elizabeth Swavola, Kristine Riley, and Ram
Subramanian, Overlooked: Women and Jails in an Era of Reform (New York: Vera Institute of Justice, 2016).
7
While a more complete analysis of Florida’s jail data would include both race and gender,
counties are not currently mandated to collect and submit data on race and ethnicity to the
Florida Department of Corrections.
Chart 3. Florida’s Female Jail Population (2018)
Chart 4. Florida’s Male Jail Population (2018)
Conclusion
The overall trend in Florida’s jail population since 2007 has been one of decline. However, the
overall numbers also hide pronounced variations between the state’s counties, regions, and
judicial circuits. There was a notable uptick in Florida’s jail population between 2017 and 2018
across Florida’s major urban areas, suburbs, small and midsized metropolitan areas, and rural
counties. But in rural Florida, that is only a continuation of virtually unchecked growth. In fact,
mass incarceration never meaningfully declined in the state’s rural communities, rising to all-
time highs in 2018. The decrease in jail incarceration in the state’s small and mid-sized
metropolitan counties, on the other hand, has been modest, while incarceration rates have
declined dramatically in urban counties, and remained comparatively low in the suburbs. This
8
echoes a national trend in politically diverse states in which statewide reductions in jail
incarceration are driven almost entirely by the biggest cities, hiding high and rising
incarceration in the smallest communities.
And while rural communities in South Florida have the highest rates of incarceration, North
Florida is the region with the highest overall rates of incarceration. Jail incarceration in both
rural counties and small to midsized metropolitan areas has risen above the incarceration rates
of Duval County, the region’s major urban area--which, has not reduced the use of jails as
dramatically as Miami-Dade County in South Florida, or the urban counties in Central Florida
(Hillsborough, Orange, and Pinellas). The broad variation in incarceration rates is echoed in the
state’s twenty judicial circuits and at the individual county level. The judicial circuits with the
highest rates of incarceration are comprised of rural counties and small to midsized
metropolitan areas, but span all regions of the state.
Ultimately, jail incarceration is shaped both by sets of decision points in local justice systems
and how counties choose to use their jails--including whether to inboard people from other
counties, state prison systems, or federal authorities like ICE and the United States Marshals
Service. As county-level variations between who is detained before trial and differences between
the state’s male and female jail populations underscore, meaningfully reducing Florida’s jail
population depends on crafting policies and practices that address uneven experiences of the
justice system and reflect a data-driven understanding of who is in Florida’s jails.
9
Appendix
Appendix Chart 1. Jail Incarceration Rate, by Region and Urbanicity (2018)
10
Appendix Table 1. Florida Counties, Geographical Definitions, and Key Statistics
11