Oklahoma County vs. Oklahoma City; where to put a jail
OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) — A lawsuit was filed earlier this week from the Oklahoma County Board of Commissioners claiming sovereignty to the land that was rejected by Oklahoma City recently as a site for the new jail.
“My honest thought was it doesn’t seem to matter what the constituents of Oklahoma County want. They have heavily voiced their preference to keep the jail downtown. The commissioner from District Three is on a mission to make that site at Green Boulevard, the new jail, no matter what everybody else wants, no matter how we protest, no matter how close it is to a mental hospital, daycare center, schools, neighborhoods,” said Del City Mayor Floyd Eason.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Oklahoma County sues City of OKC over land for new county jail site
The Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) for Oklahoma County has filed a lawsuit against the City of Oklahoma City over the sovereignty of the land where they plan to build the new county jail.
The documents detail that the county bought the 70 acres on June 10th.
The lawsuit comes after the OKC City Council voted “no” on the proposed jail site at East Grand and SE 15th Street back in May.
In the suit, the BOCC says while they’ve tried to respect the city’s zoning interests, it falls on the county to make sure the jail is built, so they are now moving forward with claiming sovereignty over the land.
“We don’t have sovereigns, we don’t have kings, we don’t have emperors, we have people that are elected by the people and who respond to the people,” said Representative Andy Fugate, who represents Del City at the State Capitol.
The suit claims that the county can do what it wants with the plot of land if a judge determines they do have sovereignty.
Mayor Eason voiced concern after learning about the lawsuit that Commissioner Carrie Blumert wasn’t doing enough to stop the jail from being placed off East Grand Boulevard.
“She needs to do more,” said Mayor Eason.
“Let me be clear, I don’t want to fight with the city, and that’s why we’ve gone through all these painstaking efforts to avoid that,” County Commissioner Brian Maughan told News 4 in May. “However, if you force us into the corner where we have no choice, I’m not sure we have an option.”
Time is also an issue for the county, since 85% of funds for the new jail have to be spent within the first three years, and the other 15% must be used in the following two years. It has been about 18 months since the bond was first issued.
KFOR reached out to all of the commissioners Friday morning and only heard back from Commissioner Blumert’s office who stated that she would not be commenting on the lawsuit.
Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KFOR.com Oklahoma City.
