By Stephen Witt
It may not be Club Med, but the LA County hoosegow conditions are improving.
That after the County announced it reached a 6-month compliance milestone in the ACLU lawsuit settlement case, Rutherford v. Luna, that addresses, in part, the County’s need to improve conditions and reduce wait times for housing for inmates passing through the Inmate Reception Center (IRC) upon entry to the Los Angeles County Jail system.
“I am incredibly proud of the hardworking and dedicated custody staff at the IRC who have helped us reach six months of sustained compliance with the Rutherford settlement agreement,” said Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert G. Luna. “This milestone represents a significant step forward in improving conditions at the IRC and protecting the rights and well-being of those in our custody.
The improvements come as County departments are working on multiple fronts to improve conditions in the jails and fully comply with settlement agreements with the United States Department of Justice and Rutherford court orders.
County departments have achieved the following improvements:
Developed technological solutions to better track wait times
- Implemented a new Shared Intake Management System that uses wristband scanner technology integrated with the Sheriff’s Department systems to track, monitor, and implement the timely movement of people through the intake process to reduce wait times.
Amplified training
- Retrained staff on legal requirements for IRC conditions and wait times.
Increased and maintained critical staffing
- Expanded the number of Correctional Health Services staff providing mental health services in the IRC, including embedding additional psychiatric staff;
- Prioritized LASD staffing for Rutherford compliance, notwithstanding significant department-wide staffing shortages that increased the challenge of achieving this significant accomplishment.
- Added a 24/7 compliance sergeant in the IRC;
- Expanded the number of cleaning crews and sanitation checks in the IRC; and
- Offered bonuses of up to 20% for more than 1,900 Correctional Health Services employees working in the jails to help retain and recruit staff in key jail-based clinical, case management, technical, and administrative positions.
Expedited the movement of people out of County jails
- LASD actively engaged state agencies to expedite the transfer of individuals ordered to their facilities. From February 2023 through April 2025, the County achieved a 61% decline in the population waiting for transfer to state prison, and an 80% decline in the population waiting for transfer to state hospitals; and
- The County has also aggressively expanded the network of community treatment beds for those who can be safely released from jail and treated in the community, surpassing the Rutherford goals set by the Department of Health Services Office of Diversion and Reentry (ODR) and the Department of Mental Health (DMH). For Fiscal Year 2024-25, the County set a goal of achieving a total of 4,668 treatment placements. ODR has surpassed that goal and reached 4,697 total placements across its three programs. DMH also surpassed its goal of 164 new beds for FY2023-2024 and FY2024-2025, adding a total of 168 beds over the course of the past two fiscal years.
In hailing the hoosegow improvements, Luna cautioned this is the beginning and more needs to be done.
“While we celebrate this progress, we must remain focused on the persistent challenges within our jail system. The lack of sufficient specialty housing for those who enter the jail system with significant medical conditions, substance use disorders, and mental health needs continues to be a growing concern and a serious threat to our compliance efforts,” Luna said.
