Cass County Sheriff Jesse Jahner
(FARGO) – Cass County Sheriff Jesse Jahner said legislative action may result in the county having to cover more of the cost of the 24-7 program.
Jahner said people in the program, which requires alcohol and drug testing, have been paying the fees since the state-mandated program began in 2008. Jahner said that changed when East Central District Judge Cherie Clark of Fargo started to waive the fees in some cases. Other judges have not waived the fees according to Jahner.
“The 24-7 program was a program that was started back in 2008 in the State of North Dakota by the attorney general’s office, it was modeled after a very similar program in South Dakota and basically individuals who are convicted of a DUI offense, different types of narcotics offenses can go onto this program and they’re required then to come to the jail on a daily basis or a weekly basis depending on what part of the program they participate in,” Jahner explained.
Jahner said the bill, which would have stopped judges from waiving program fees, was defeated in the House on a 49 to 42 vote. It passed the Senate earlier on a unanimous vote.
Jahner said the total cost of the participate-funded program is more than $300,000. He said it’s unclear how the change will affect his budget.
“We’ll have to figure out how we can make up those fees, but of course my concern is that we’re building this new jail pod, I have to hire additional staff for the jail pod and we want to be fiscally responsible with taxpayer dollars and be able to staff the new pod and if these fees from a state-funded program, we’re going to have to figure out where to pull those additional funds,” Jahner added.
In a statement released to KFGO News, Judge CIark said “I have nothing but respect for Sheriff Jahner and his concern for his budget. I handle each case based on the facts that are presented to me, with a full understanding of the context. We are currently facing a significant chemical dependency and mental health crisis in North Dakota.”
“The 24-7 program serves as a vital tool for the court to address public safety concerns in pretrial situations. Importantly, the constitutionality of the program allows for the waiver of fees for defendants who are unable to afford the costs associated with it. This is in recognition of the fact that at this stage, the defendant is innocent of all charges, however, concerns about their chemical dependency, as raised by both the prosecution and, at times, the defendant themselves, have been acknowledged on the record. This raises valid concerns about potential danger to themselves or others, which the 24-7 program helps mitigate. Rather than house a pretrial defendant in jail who cannot afford the cost of the program, courts are allowed to waive the cost of the program. This waiver has been in place since the inception of the program. I have simply followed the law as written,” Clark concluded.
24-7 in Cass County has about 200 participants now, but has had as many as 340.
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