The Notice of Non-Compliance letter dated August 23, 2022, citing Runnels County Jail in Ballinger, Texas, for alleged non-compliance had one more safety issue similar to those described in the last installment of this series. It had to do with the facility generator not being subjected to full load tests as required. Several more minimum jail standards that Runnels County Jail failed to meet were related to matters that can directly affect inmates individually. Details follow and will continue in this series.

Non-Compliance Under §265.13(c)- Verify Veteran Status

The minimum jail standard in §265.13(c)- Verify Veteran Status is related to the Veterans Reentry Search Service (VRSS), which is operated by a service such as the United States Department of Veteran Affairs. County sheriffs are required to maintain a log of positive VRSS returns in which prisoner numbers are used to identify inmates. Sheriffs are to determine whether a referral card was issued to the identified veteran before or after his or her release. In the event a referral card is not issued, a reason shall be provided on the log.

The TCJS inspector found that for the preceding five months Runnels County Jail failed to meet this standard, as described below:

• For the last five months, a log of positive VRSS returns with identifying prisoner numbers was not maintained. Likewise, there was no indication in documentation as to whether a referral card was issued to the identified veteran prior to his or her release.

Sheriffs or jail operators are supposed to help inmates identified as veterans by assisting them in applying for federal benefits, possible compensation, and other available services.

See Part 1 and Part 2 of this continuing series.

All posts on this website are meant as resources that might benefit Texas inmates detained in local detention facilities such as city and county jails. There is never an intention of intimating that any person or institution has been a participant in misdeeds.

–Guest Contributor