'They wrote us up anyway:' State Department of Health says Rogers County Jail not in compliance; Sheriff's Office shares their side

The Oklahoma Department of Health says the Rogers County Jail was not in compliance during its annual inspection last month. 

The Rogers County Sheriff's office says most of the violations have already been resolved. 

The undersheriff says citizens can feel confident in their jail.

Why did the Sheriff's office want to talk about the report? 

Undersheriff Jon Sappington says the report is a public record, and he wants people to hear their side of the story. 

"I think for us, we want to own when we've messed up and we've done wrong, and we want to be transparent in that," said Sappington. 

What is RCSO's goal for its jail?

The Rogers County Sheriff's Office says its jail is safe and that it strives to run an operation that meets the standards for inmates as well as its employees.

"You want to be the best. You want to be the first in everything, and you want to set the standard. Detention is no different. You also want to ensure a safe environment," said Sappington. 

What is the status of the Rogers County Jail?

The Sheriff's office recently got a letter from the state Department of Health saying their jail was out of compliance.

What is RCSO's reaction?

"We've been having a conversation with them, with the jail Inspection Division for probably four years, where we've been receiving write-ups for things that I don't believe are accurate," said Sappington. 

What were some of the violations? 

Sappington said the latest inspection had a write-up for a shower that was leaking, but the sheriff's office sent a video showing there was no leak, and we looked at it ourselves.

"They said, hey, you have a leaking shower. And they said that the shower is not leaking, it's the shower curtain. And he pushed the shower curtain in, and then the water quit coming out. And they wrote us up anyway," Sappington said. 

There was also a write-up because there were three inmates to a cell, but the sheriff's office says that's allowed under Oklahoma law, but the inspector was using standards from the American Correctional Association. 

"So he's reducing the bed space and the toilet space and saying there's not enough square footage, that's not what the statute says," said Sappington.

How can a non-compliant inspection hurt a sheriff's office?

"So, number one, it hurts morale. Number two, there's some liability concerns, because there's an attorney who's going to go find some documents and try to use them against you in a civil case that are going to be, in fact, untrue, and now you have to spend your time showing that's an untrue document," said Sappington.

State Department of Health statement:

"The OSDH aims to ensure compliance of city and county jail facilities across the state with the applicable jail standards through the inspection process. This process encompasses observation, interview, and record review.

Inspections take place on-site and in person without advanced notice. During an active inspection, facilities have the opportunity to show and provide evidence to support their compliance with the standards. This procedure holds facilities accountable for daily operations and conditions, prevents facilities from staging an inspection or investigation in any way and ensures the OSDH is accurately and transparently documenting any noncompliance. All the while providing facilities, the opportunity to demonstrate compliance.

 It is vitally important to ensure standards are being met for the health and safety of the individuals working at and housed in these facilities."