10. The Sheriff shall provide—upon request by Plaintiffs’ counsel—the daily count of
inmates as well as the daily list of housing assignments of inmates in the Hamilton County
Justice Center.

11. The Sheriff shall provide all Population Inmates entering the Hamilton County Justice
Center a copy of Paragraph 3 of this order and shall provide any grievance filed by an inmate
concerning housing on a Boat to Plaintiffs’ counsel.

12. The Sheriff shall provide to Plaintiffs’ counsel a copy of any report or recommendation
made by the National Commission on Correctional Health Care respecting the Hamilton County
Justice Center, and will further provide any report detailing corrective action taken regarding
health care services as recommended by the National Commission on Correctional Health Care
at the Justice Center.

13. The parties agree that Dr. James Austin shall be appointed as the Court’s expert witness
and shall report to the Court: (a) whether the classification system employed by the Sheriff is
being properly implemented by the Sheriff; (b) to evaluate the current release programs and
protocols set out in this Consent Decree and to determine whether additional release policies
and/or protocols should be ordered by the Court to alleviate overcrowding; and (c) to recommend
any other action which the Sheriff could take to alleviate overcrowding in the jail, including an
assessment of the adequacy of the Justice Center to house the offender population of Hamilton
County that should properly be incarcerated rather than released by the Sheriff. The Sheriff shall
provide the expert with such information as necessary for Dr. Austin to advise the Court on these
subjects. The costs of Dr. Austin’s work shall be borne by the Sheriff in an amount not to

exceed $30,000.00.


a. The number of inmates that may be housed in the available cells as dictated on a
daily basis by the application of the NIC classification system.
b. The number of Boats in use does not exceed 10 in any Unit in the Hamilton
County Justice Center housing Population Inmates. The Boats shall only be used in 16
and 24 cell pods. In each 16 cell pod the limit shall be 4 Boats. In each 24 cell pod, the
limit shall be 6 Boats. Use of Boats in excess of these limitations will trigger the
provisions set forth in paragraphs 9 and 10 below.
4. No inmate remains on a Boat for more than 5 consecutive days in any month.
5. As an additional security measure when Boats are in use, the Sheriff shall assign an
additional deputy to the standard staff of 3 deputies on each floor where such Boats are in use,
thereby bringing the staff in those areas to 4 officers.
6. No inmate who has a physical condition that would prevent sleeping in a Boat shall be
assigned to sleep in a Boat.
7. Boats shall not be utilized in either the psych or medical units.
8. Should the number of Population Inmates exceed the number meeting the conditions set
out in Paragraph 3 of this Order, the Sheriff shall: (a) transfer the excess number of Population
Inmates to another jail facility; (b) ignore the bond cap set out in the Pre-Trial Release policy set
out in Exhibit 1 attached hereto; or (c) do both (a) and (b) of this paragraph.
9. Should application of the remedies set out in Paragraph 8 fail to return the Hamilton
County Justice Center to compliance with this Order, the Sheriff shall cease admitting new
Population Inmates to the Hamilton County Justice Center and seek further direction from this

Court.


14. An exception to these provisions is allowable when “special circumstances” occur [an
identifiable event or occurrence], so long as the inmate population is reduced to the cap level in
Paragraph 3 above within 14 days of the occurrence or event constituting the “special
circumstance.”

15. Either party may seek modification or termination of the injunctive relief granted by this
Order based upon a change in circumstances, such as construction of new jail space used for
housing inmates by the Hamilton County Sheriff or if the relief granted by this Order proves
inadequate to prevent overcrowding as mandated by the Eighth Amendment to the United States
Constitution.

16. This injunction shall be reviewed two (2) years from the day it is adopted by the Court to
determine whether the injunction should be renewed. Either party may, for good cause shown,

request that the injunction be extended for an additional two (2) years.

IT IS SO ORDERED this 1 iy of May, 2018.

Acta 9. pte

Susan J, Dlott, Judg
United States District Court

HAVE SEEN AND AGREE:

/s/ James W. Harper /s/ Robert Brand Newman

James W. Harper Robert Brand Newman

Assistant Hamilton County Prosecuting Newman & Meeks Co LPA
Attorney 215 East 9th St., Suite 650

230 East Ninth Street, Suite 4000 Cincinnati, OH 45202
Cincinnati, OH 45202-2151 513/639-7000

513-946-3159 Fax: 513-639-7000

Email: james.harper@hepros.org Email: robertnewman@newman-

meeks.com


IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF OHIO

WESTERN DIVISION
SAMUEL ROBINSON, et al., on behalf of
themselves and a class of others similarly : Case No. 1:17-cv-652
situated, 3
2 Judge Susan J. Diott
Plaintiffs, :
: Magistrate Judge Karen Litkovitz
v. :
AGREED ORDER SETTLING
COUNT II AND ISSUING
HAMILTON COUNTY SHERIFF JIM NEIL, INJUNCTION

Defendant.

The parties to this litigation agree and the court finds the following facts:

A. The issues in this case began when Sheriff Neil issued a declaration of an emergency due to

overcrowding at the Hamilton County Justice Center as provided by Ohio Law. Following
the Declaration of the Emergency, Sheriff Neil put in place certain changes in the facilities
and operation of the Hamilton County Justice Center to alleviate the issues created by
overcrowding.

On September 28, 2017, Plaintiff Samuel Robinson filed a suit alleging that the changes
made by Sheriff Neil were inadequate to relieve overcrowding and that the Hamilton
County Justice Center continues to be overcrowded as prohibited by the Eighth Amendment
to the United States Constitution. Sheriff Neil denies the claims of Plaintiff Robinson and
the additional Plaintiffs who have been added to the litigation by two Amended Complaints.
The Hamilton County Justice Center was subject to a prior consent decree that expired a
decade before this litigation began. Among other things, the prior Consent Decree resulted

in the use by Sheriff Neil of the National Institute of Corrections (NIC) classification system


532082

/s/ Pamela J. Sears

Pamela J Sears

Assistant Hamilton County Prosecutor
230 East Ninth Street, Suite 4000
Cincinnati, OH 45202

513/946-3082

Fax: 946-3018

Email: pam.sears@hcpros.org

/s/Christina J, Schaefer

Christian J. Schaefer

Assistant Hamilton County Prosecutor
230 E Ninth Street, Suite 4000
Cincinnati, OH 45202-2151
513-946-3041

Fax: 513-946-3044

/s/ Jerome A. Kunkel

Jerome A Kunkel

Assistant Hamilton County Prosecutor's
Office

230 East 9th Street, Suite 4000
Cincinnati, OH 45202

513-946-3103

Email: jerry.kunkel@hepros.org

/s/ Jay R. Wampler
Jay R. Wampler

Assistant Hamilton County Prosecutor's
Office

230 E. Ninth Street

Cincinnati, OH 45202

513-946-3169

Fax: 513-946-3018

Email: jay.wampler@hcpros.org

COUNSEL FOR DEFENDANT

/s/ Michael Jay O’Hara
Michael Jay O'Hara

O'Hara, Taylor, Sloan & Cassidy
PO Box 17411

25 Crestview Hills Mall Road
Suite 201

Crestview Hills, KY 41017
859-331-2000

Email: mohara@oharataylor.com

/s/ Mare David Mezibov__
Marc David Mezibov

Mezibov Butler

615 Elsinore Place

Suite 105

Cincinnati, OH 45202
513/621-8800

Fax: 513/621-8833

Email: mmezibov@mezibov.com

COUNSEL FOR PLAINTIFF


and various early release policies to prevent constitutionally prohibited overcrowding at the
Hamilton County Justice Center.

As a result of the 2008 recession, an additional jail facility in Hamilton County was closed
and additional early release policies were established to prevent constitutionally deficient
overcrowding at the Hamilton County Justice Center.

All of these early release policies are attached hereto as Exhibits 1 through 7.

While most of these early release policies have been authorized by Ohio courts, others were
not. Recently the Ohio First District Court of Appeals held that one of these early release
policies violated Ohio law. The most effective of these early release policies employed by
Sheriff Neil, “Pre-trial Release,” appears to violate Ohio Law. Essentially, this program
releases inmates for whom bonds are set by Judges of the Hamilton County Courts who
have not, or are unable, to post those bonds.

. There are two populations housed in the Hamilton County Justice Center. “Detention
Inmates” are inmates who have been arrested, delivered to the Intake area of the Hamilton
County Justice Center, and held pending the Initial Appearance before a Judge of the
Hamilton County Municipal Court. The Initial Appearance occurs within two days of the
inmate’s arrest. “Population Inmates” are inmates serving a sentence or held in lieu of a
bond being posted for their release. Population Inmates are held for longer periods of time,
generally until their sentences expire or the trial court proceedings are completed.

Sheriff Neil has used temporary beds, called “Boats,” which sit on the floor in common
areas of the Hamilton County Justice Center when the number of inmates exceeds the
number of available beds in cells as determined by application of the NIC classification

system to the current population. The Parties’ expectation is that the use of Boats, other


than use associated with unusual circumstances such as an arrest occasioned by a mass civil
unrest scenario, would be reduced or eliminated from the day to day operations of the
Justice Center given plans to expand the physical capacity of the Justice Center over the
next two-year period. The Parties agree that the use of Boats in the day to day operation of
the Justice Center will be reconsidered in light of any change of circumstances occurring
over the next two years following the effective date of this Consent Agreement.

Sheriff Neil has discussed with the Hamilton County Commissioners the creation of an
additional facility to be constructed that would increase treatment and housing space for
Hamilton County’s inmate population. Additionally, Hamilton County has just received a
capital grant from the State of Ohio for the build out of existing space in the Hamilton
County Justice Center to increase treatment and housing space for Hamilton County
inmates. This project is spearheaded by the Hamilton County Commissioners with the
cooperation of the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office. The current projected completion date
for this project is July 2020.

Based upon these facts which are agreed to by the parties and found by the Court, certain
orders are required to prevent any future overcrowding at the Hamilton County Justice

Center as prohibited by the Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution.

THEREFORE, IT IS ORDER OF THIS COURT THAT:

1.

Plaintiffs’ claims against Sheriff Neil in his individual capacity are dismissed.

2. Sheriff Neil is enjoined from terminating any of the release programs set out in Exhibits 1
through 7.
3. Sheriff Neil is enjoined from allowing the number of Population Inmates that exceed all

of the following: