Pasco County Florida Sheriff's Office Detention Bureau

Detention Bureau

The Land O' Lakes Detention Center is the central booking and intake location for all law enforcement agencies operating in Pasco County. The care, custody and control of individuals arrested in Pasco County by the Sheriff's Office and various state and local police agencies is the responsibility of the Detention Bureau. Confined in the two Sheriff's Office Detention Facilities are those individuals who have been arrested and held without bond, been unable to post bail set by the courts, are being transferred from other states or counties while awaiting trail in Pasco County, or those found guilty and sentenced to serve less than one year in county jail.

The Sheriff operates detention facilities in New Port Richey and Land O' Lakes which have a combined authorized capacity of 1,007 inmates. These facilities house males charged or sentenced on misdemeanor and felony crimes. All female offenders and juveniles between the ages of 14 and 17 who have be adjudicated for treatment as adults are housed in the Land O' Lakes facility.

Although the care of inmates is the responsibility of the Sheriff, both the State of Florida and the federal government impose standards to which the Sheriff must comply. These include minimum square foot living space, medical and dental treatment, a complete up-to-date law library and other tax-supported services.

During 2006, 31,935 inmates were booked into the two Pasco detention centers, which had a daily average population of 1,214 inmates. It is important to note that although the Pasco Sheriff's Office operates the detention centers, the county government is responsible for building additional jail space.

A temporary 118 bed structure adjacent to the PSO Land O' Lakes detention facility opened May 1, 2007. The temporary structure was assembled on site. Pasco County Facilities is scheduled to begin construction on a two to three story addition to the LOL facility in 2007, with completion expected in 18 - 20 months.

The Pasco Sheriff's Office has initiated a number of programs designed to save taxpayer's dollars, raise the work ethic of selected inmates and give them a productive way to spend their court-ordered sentences. Being assigned to a work squad allows inmates to earn time to reduce their sentence. This includes an inmate work squad contracted by the state Department of Transportation that provides clean up of major highways throughout Pasco County. During the past year, the DOT inmate work crew cleaned 5,892 acres for a total of $53,028, which provides the necessary funding for a deputy, a vehicle and tools.

Inmates in the Operation Payback program completed 63,000 hours of labor in park facilities and special events throughout Pasco County. As a result, the taxpayers saved more than $500,000 in labor costs. A number of inmate work projects contribute to maintaining low food service costs. In 2004, Detention launched a hydroponics program within a 7,000 square foot greenhouse, which inmates helped to construct. During 2006, our hydroponics farm yielded over 93,000 heads of lettuce.

Inmates from the Land O' Lakes Detention Center harvest a crop of Rex lettuce that was hydroponically-grown in about 30 days. The new inmate program was funded by a federal grant and food grown in the program is incorporated into the food system at the jail. This program joins the inmate garden and the aquaculture program, all designed to both reduce taxpayer's costs of funding the jail and to teach marketable skills to the inmates. (Photo by PIO Doug Tobin)

The agricultural farm harvested 28,302 pounds of cabbage, 4,802 pounds of yellow squash, 5,218 pounds of watermelon, 3,663 pounds of okra and 282 pounds of cucumbers. All produce is utilized in the inmate's detention food service program.

During 2006, Detention enhanced and expanded its swine-breeding program. All labor was completed with inmate workers. This program provided 3,254 pounds of pork to inmate food service for a savings of about $155,077.

The Juvenile Assessment Center (JAC) is located at the LOL Detention Center and is operated by a collaborative effort between Booking staff and the Department of Juvenile Justice. The center provides the services for intake of the juvenile's assessment and case management.

During 2006, the JAC processed 2,009 juveniles. Booking staff supervises the juveniles until they are released to a legal guardian or to the Juvenile Detention Center.

Land O' Lakes Detention Center

The main Pasco County Detention Center, located at 20101 Central Blvd. in Land O' Lakes, was dedicated on March 1, 1991. The detention center, including Sheriff's Office administrative sections, contains 224,330 square feet.

This center is a two-story, reinforced masonry facility consisting of three inmate housing pods and a central administrative and support core. Each housing unit contains a total of 96 cells divided into six 16-cell units, each with a dayroom space. Each pod has one handicap cell, with one pod containing eight cells designated for single occupancy, higher risk inmates. All other cells are equipped with double bunks. The facility has been designed for expansion with the future addition of three housing pods, for an ultimate capacity of about 1,150 inmates.

The support core consists of administrative offices, central kitchen, laundry, intake/release, and inmate program areas. In addition, there is a 55-bed medical/psychiatric unit and outpatient clinic. An arraignment court serves multiple functions, including lineups and various inmate and staff meetings. Expansion areas within the support core have been finished to provide temporary space for sheriff's departments such as warrants, data processing, finance, and accounting and purchasing.

Each inmate housing unit is staffed by a deputy who is responsible for the control of the inmates. This system helps to reduce the number of staff necessary to operate the facility and also reduces inmate violence and vandalism. It also enhances interaction between inmates and staff and reduces the frequent and costly movement of inmates by providing services in the housing areas.

The Land O' Lakes facility was granted its fourth reaccreditation in January 2005 by the Commission on Accreditation for Corrections. This commission sets the highest standards for correction facilities across the nation. The Pasco County Detention Center was evaluated on facility standards such as fire evacuation plans, safety procedures, medical and health requirements, security and control procedures, and firearm practices. Also evaluated were administrative and fiscal procedures, housing conditions, inmate programs, staff training and hiring practices, food service and facility building specifications.

The Booking Section During 2006, booking processed a total of 31,935 inmates into the system. Booking staff provided transportation on 517 occasions to local hospitals, the Juvenile Detention Center, courtrooms, and the Harbors Behavioral Center.

The Pasco Juvenile Assessment Center (JAC) is a stand-alone juvenile intake center that is located at the Land O' Lakes Detention Center. The center is operated by a collaborative effort between booking staff and the Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ). The program was designed to enhance the existing services for delinquent youth in our county and decrease the amount of down time for the arresting officer. During 2006, the JAC processed 2,009 juveniles, which diverted them from being processed in Central Booking. Booking staff supervises the juvenile(s) until they are released to a legal guardian or to the Juvenile Detention Center. In 2005, the PSO received $239,413 from DJJ to defray a portion of the operating expenditures.

The Culinary Section provides meals to all incarcerated inmates and for all staff at PSO detention facilities. The 2006 budget year has seen an increase of services provided from the facility kitchens with a total of 1,448,886 meals served. Our modern day inmate population and regulations require a lot of input from the Culinary Section to provide the many medical and religious diets the inmate population requires. The Culinary Section works closely with other sections. The agriculture, hydroponics and aquaculture products grown by inmates at the jail are utilized in our menus. These programs are excellent resources to reduce food costs.

In addition to their day-to-day responsibilities of providing inmate meals, this section is also responsible for providing food for the seven staging areas and the Emergency Operation Center during countywide emergencies, and supplies food and water to Sheriff's Office personnel during prolonged operations.

The Medical Unit provides medical, dental, and mental health services to inmates incarcerated in the Pasco Detention facilities pursuant to requirements of the American Corrections Association, Florida Corrections Accreditation Commissions, and Florida Model Jail Standards, as well as prevailing community standards. Inmates' health complaints are solicited daily and followed by appropriate triage and treatment by qualified health professionals.

During 2006 there were 61,106 health care contacts by the Sheriff's Office medical unit, including 5,706 health appraisals that must be done within 14 days of a prisoner's incarceration. In addition 5,024 lab tests, 814 x-rays, 91 ultra sounds, and 174 electro-cardiograms were performed at the Detention Central Facility.

In 1993, the Pasco Sheriff's Office developed a comprehensive Inmate Medical Fee Program that has become a prototype for other facilities. During fiscal year 2006, more than $98,950 was collected from inmates for service rendered and returned to the county.

The Judicial Services Section is composed of three units: Transport, Warrants and Court Security Unit. The Judicial Services Section is commanded by a lieutenant, who reports to the Administrative captain in the Detention Bureau.

The Transport Unit is responsible for the transport of all inmates detained in the Detention Center. They transport inmates to their court appearances, medical appointments, and from facility to facility. In 2006, the Unit transported 15,156 inmates. This unit is supervised by a sergeant and includes a corporal and 11 deputies.

The Court Security Unit is composed of three sergeants, three corporals, 21 deputies and one part time deputy. This unit is responsible for the security of the judges and the Judicial Centers. They are responsible for security at all county commission meetings, and any hearing assigned by the Office of Court Administration. The unit is responsible for all inmates appearing before the courts. Bailiffs are responsible for taking into custody persons appearing before the court that have been found guilty, sentenced to jail, or are found to have active warrants. In 2006, the Court Security Unit stopped 9,023 pieces of contraband from entering the courthouse, and presented a total of 12,064 inmates in court.

The Warrants Unit serves criminal arrest warrants, capias, child support writs and arrest orders. The unit is responsible for maintaining warrant files and making warrant entries in the FCIC/NCIC and in-house computer system as warrants are received. In 2006 the Warrants Unit received 15,070 new warrants and served 4,020 warrants. Warrants deputies also conducted 30 extraditions to return defendants to Pasco County for prosecution.

Detention West Facility, New Port Richey

The Detention West Facility is a single story, reinforced masonry structure consisting of four special management housing units, and eleven units for general population. It was originally designed and constructed in 1981 to house 106 inmates. In 1985, due to overcrowding, an additional wing was built, increasing the capacity to 163 inmates.

This facility is considered a "special management" housing jail. It houses disciplinary segregated, administrative segregated and protective custody inmates. These inmates pose many special risks to the staff who supervise them and other inmates.

Administrative segregated inmates are those who present a serious threat to life, property, self, staff, other inmates, or to the security or orderly operation of the facility. Disciplinary inmates are those who have been found guilty of violating rules or regulations that govern their behavior while incarcerated. The protective custody unit houses inmates who cannot be placed in the inmate general population. These inmates are usually charged with a crime against children, women or the elderly and have received threats from other inmates.

Minimum Security Annex, Land O' Lakes Detention Center

The Minimum Security Annex is a reduced-cost solution for Pasco County's ever-increasing inmate population problem. The building is a tensioned-membrane structure that is designed to withstand 110 mile per hour winds. It can house up to 96 inmates who are either awaiting trial or serving minor sentences for non-violent, misdemeanor crimes. The building is a state-of-the-art facility that has its own showers, bathrooms and recreational area which are separate from the main detention center structure. It can be disassembled and moved to a new site in the future if needed. More than $18,000 worth of inmate labor was used in the construction of peripheral elements of the MSA. The MSA facility has passed a state-mandated review by Florida Model Jail Standards inspectors.