Bernalillo County’s jail system continues to work out reforms spurred by a long-running lawsuit.
During their Tuesday meeting, Bernalillo County Commissioners approved an intergovernmental agreement with the City of Albuquerque to continue joint operations at the Medical and Mental Health Triage Facility, Prisoner Transport Unit and Resource Reentry Center.
Under the agreement, arrestees will undergo health assessments before being taken to the jail. The arresting agency will transport anyone not medically or psychologically cleared to an appropriate location for treatment.
The Albuquerque Police Department will manage prisoner transport and the county’s behavioral health division will operate the Resource Reentry Center, which provides services for people newly released from jail.
The agreement also calls for the city’s Health, Housing & Homelessness Department to contribute $150,000 a year for temporary lodging vouchers.
The agreement is for five years, and will automatically be renewed for another five years, unless one of the parties terminates it with a 90-day written notice.
“This partnership reflects the shared commitment of Bernalillo County and the City of Albuquerque to enhance community resources and support successful reentry for individuals transitioning back into society,” county spokesperson Estevan Vásquez said.
The partnership builds on the collaboration established in response to the 2018 McClendon v. City of Albuquerque settlement, which established several standards for conditions in the Metropolitan Detention Center.
The case dates back to 1995, when inmates sued over jail conditions, alleging gross overcrowding, racial discrimination and other violations of their constitutional rights.
The judge in the case, Martha Vazquez, made an unannounced visit to the jail, where she observed, among other things, prisoners sleeping on the floor on mattresses and a strong smell of urine coming from some cells, according to the Civil Rights Litigation Clearinghouse at the University of Michigan. She later issued a preliminary injunction requiring the jail to reduce its population.