Northwest Indiana Discussion

Businessman about to win contract cancels council campaign

Agreement would mean 125 GPS bracelets available for offenders at a cost

By Bill Dolan - bill.dolan@nwi.com, (219) 662-5328 | Posted: Thursday, April 22, 2010 12:05 am

CROWN POINT | A Gary businessman who appears to have won a lucrative contract from Lake County government Wednesday to provide inmate surveillance equipment to local courts said he has suspended his campaign to unseat County Councilman Jerome Prince.

County commissioners voted Wednesday to award Herbert Smith, president of ICU Court Monitoring LLC, of Gary, the right to sell global positioning system bracelets to people charged with minor nonviolent crimes who don't want to be incarcerated in the Lake County Jail. It's part of a program to reduce jail overcrowding. County Attorney John Dull said the contract won't be final until the sheriff and county judges sign it.

Smith said after the commissioners vote that he has inactivated his campaign for the 3rd District County Council seat now held by Jerome Prince.

The Indiana secretary of state's corporation records indicate Smith created ICU in October as Sheriff Rogelio "Roy" Dominguez began talking about saving tax dollars used to run the county jail by initiating a book-and-release program that would release inmates if they wear the bracelets until their trial.

Smith filed his candidacy for County Council in late January. County officials voted a month later to begin negotiations with Smith's firm for bracelets. Smith filed a campaign finance report recently indicating he hasn't raised or spent any money to advance his campaign.

Commissioner Fran DuPey questioned whether -- if Smith is elected -- it would be a conflict of interest for Smith to profit from county government business at the same time he is serving as a county official. Dull said state conflict laws would only forbid Smith from profiting if he were an unelected county employee.

The contract requires Smith to provide the county 125 bracelets, which Smith can charge offenders $13.50 a day to wear. The offenders would be taken off the program and subject to reincarceration if they fail to keep up their payments. The GPS chips in the bracelets would help authorities locate delinquent offenders.

Commissioners also voted to spend $565,000 to upgrade showers within the lockup that have become moldy and buy an electronic health records system as the county committed to do earlier this month to resolve civil rights complaints investigated by the U.S. Department of Justice.

I'm glad you posted that. I started to but the liar poster would just dismiss it with some off the wall comment.

So what's the problem? Paranoid conspiracy theorists can opt to just sit their ass in jail.

We knew you wouldn't comprehend the real point.