[Southsider2k12]

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Alevizos Challenges Corrections
Judge claims one official has taken 57 days off this year

Laurie Wink
The News-Dispatch

LA PORTE - La Porte County Circuit Court Judge Tom Alevizos, who heads the Community Corrections Advisory Board, on Monday challenged Executive Director Eric Yandt to explain personnel leave practices in his department.

At the board's meeting, Alevizos wanted to know who makes decisions about personnel leaves, saying county policies don't seem to be followed.

According to Alevizos, one employee was reportedly given a leave to attend his ex-mother-in-law's funeral and another administrator has taken 57 days off this year.

Yandt told Alevizos he makes the decisions. After the meeting, he said he didn't know what Alevizos was talking about and "off the top of my head" could not say who had taken 57 leave days.

Also after the meeting, Alevizos said he is concerned about personnel policies at the Community Corrections Center, 500 Monroe St.

"The county commissioners have asked for all staff members to start clocking in," Alevizos said. "My understanding is he is not forcing employees to clock in. I will give the director (Yandt) my concerns and find out what I get (back)."

Alevizos also said he's concerned about comments from inmates who say there's a "tremendous problem with trafficking in contraband."

The building housing the Community Corrections Center is 35 years old and in poor condition, and, said Alevizos, action needs to be taken. But, he said, county officials don't want to spend money on a new facility if it isn't run properly. The judge said he believes the center should be a place for people who need a transition period before returning to society.

"It should be for non-violent people ... ," he said. "It's for local people, low-level felons who committed non-violent crimes."

Initially, the facility was to house offenders with Class A and B felonies who were eligible for work release and short-term rehabilitation. Now, the center houses offenders with C and D felonies, including child molesters, sex offenders and former drug dealers. They're being sent from all parts of the state, Alevizos said.

"With the Indiana State Prison, Lakeside, Summit Farm and the Westville Correctional Facility, the county has 40 percent of all the state's prisoners," Alevizos said.

The Community Corrections Center is at full capacity, with a waiting list of offenders. By housing violent criminals, Alevizos said, the administrator is preventing more suitable offenders from entering. He said he wants the Correctional Center moved to the county complex building as part of the Sheriff's Department.

"It should be administered by people who have had corrections administrative experience," Alevizos said.

Four years ago, former Circuit Court Judge Robert Gilmore appointed Yandt to administer both the Community Corrections Center and the Juvenile Services Center. The Community Corrections Advisory Board ratified the decision six months later.

Since Alevizos became judge in January, he has relieved Yandt of responsibility for the Juvenile Services Center. Yandt's contract with the county expires in mid-2008.

Alevizos said it is up to the County Commissioners and Council to make changes in the Corrections Center. Commissioner Bill Hager said the issues are on the commissioners' radar screen.

"We need to set up a meeting to discuss whether the sheriff would take it on," Hager said. Building a new center would involve adding a complete kitchen for inmate food service, which the county jail already has, Hager said, so it appears to be more cost-efficient to put the two facilities together.



Contact Laurie Wink at lwink@thenewsdispatch.com.

[Roger Kaputnik]

I am a big supporter of Tom's, and I am glad to see he is taking his job seriously enough to identify problems and make moves to correct them.