MCSD Inmate Profit Account - very profitable

If nothing else, the Inmate Profit Account of the McHenry County Sheriff's Department jail is aptly named. It's an account that profits off the incarceration of prisoners, persons charged and awaiting trial or legal outcome, and immigration detainees.

Six months of entries in the Disbursements Journal are being examined. During that time, the balance in the Inmate Profit Account increased by over $9,400 from a starting balance on 11/6/09 of $73,399 to an ending balance on 5/25/10 of $82,862.

First, what's the source of revenues for the Account? Generally speaking, the "income" to the Account comes from the sale of phone cards to inmates and from the profit on their purchases from the jail commissary. You can examine the list of items an inmate can purchase by visiting www.mycarepack.com/

What does the Account spend money on? It is to spend money on services to inmates and equipment and supplies. An examination of the expenditures is being made but, at first glance, spending $760/month on a subscription legal service that is probably the envy of small law firms caught my eye. Also, the purchase of two television sets and mounting brackets for over $1,400 and the purchase of laptop computers and hard drive for over $14,000.

Notice that MyCarePack.com is the only vendor of prison commissary services in Illinois. How did they get selected? Were they the "lowest bidder" and no other jail or prison in the State of Illinois wanted such a good deal for its inmates? Look at the price of a plain Hershey bar: $1.45. You decide. (You can't even determine the size of the Hershey; ounces should be listed on the price list.)

The Auditor General of the State of Illinois took a good look at prison financial records at Stateville (Joliet) in 2000 and stated, "Profits for the inmate commissary should be reasonable and consistent".

The Auditor General also said, "Unified Code of Corrections 730 ILCS 5/3-7-2a requires a correctional center commissary to establish a selling price based on cost with an additional charge of 3% to 10%. The Stateville Inmate Commissary profits should fall within a reasonable and consistent range." Do these same rules apply to the McHenry County Jail?

Phone cards here carry the equivalent of a 100% mark-up. That's because 50% of the Phone Card price goes into the Inmate Profit Account. This and other categories will be carefully examined in the days ahead.