Sheriff Coroner Department County of Orange Michael S. Carona Sheriff-coroner California 550 N. Flower*

1 Despite current overcrowding, the full capacity of Theo Lacy is not being utilized. Response: The Sheriff-Coroner agrees with the finding. For over a year, the Sheriff's Department has been phasing-in occupancy of the latest (and final) newly constructed jail housing unit at Theo Lacy (Building "B" with 576 jail beds). At the time the Grand Jury toured the jail facilities, the third floor of Building "B" (192 beds) was not occupied due to issues relating to the installation of an electronic system that controls some of the security features of the building and due to staffing shortages. Since then, the Sheriff's Department has developed procedures to safely occupy that floor until the electronic security system is fully functional. In addition, the Board of Supervisors approved staffing increases for support positions in the FY 2006-07 Budget. The staffing shortage for Deputy positions is still an issue; however, the Department has increased its recruiting efforts and is able to utilize existing Deputy staff on overtime to be able to occupy the third floor of Building "B" until the positions are filled. Currently, all jail housing facilities at Theo Lacy are now being occupied.