San Diego
The San Diego City Council Monday authorized City Manager John Lockwood to apply for money to build and operate a temporary pre-arraignment jail that could hold as many as 200 arrestees.
The council agreed to apply for funds from the $1.6 billion in revenue that will be generated over the next decade by voter approval last June of a half-cent increase in the county sales tax. The money, however, is tied up by a lawsuit filed by taxpayers opposed to the tax increase.
The jail, envisioned as a privately constructed, privately operated facility, would house some of the more than 100 misdemeanor arrestees released before arraignments from county jails daily because of crowding.
Their crimes include assault and battery and carrying a concealed, loaded firearm.
No site has been chosen for the jail, which Assistant City Manager Jack McGrory has estimated will cost $3 million to $4 million to build and operate for three years. The city would close the facility as more jails are built under the countywide construction program.
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