UPDATED:Lexington jail director to retire amid long-standing staffing shortages
The director of the beleaguered Fayette County Detention Center has announced she will retire, Lexington city officials confirmed this week.
Lisa Farmer, who has worked for more than 20 years at the jail, was named executive director in October 2020.
Farmer recently said she will retire by the end of the year, said Susan Straub, a spokeswoman for the city.
In an email to detention center staff, Farmer said she will retire Oct. 1. Farmer said rumors that she was asked to step down were not true. She had previously made the decision to retire sometime this year but had not decided on an exact date.
“This job has gave me a lot of opportunities that I would not have been able to do in a lot of other fields and I am very grateful for my time,” Farmer wrote. “I’ve probably had to deal with more than any other director but that is just a small part of my time here and I will always speak positive of FCDC due to everything I was able to do in my personal life because of this job.”
The detention center has struggled to keep and retain staff for years. At one point, the jail was down more than 100 officers. The Fraternal Order of Police Town Branch Lodge 83 took a “no confidence” vote against Farmer and Public Safety Commissioner Ken Armstrong earlier this year in part due to excessive overtime and other issues related to the lack of staff at the jail.
The FOP also took a “no confidence” vote against Farmer’s predecessor Steve Haney, for similar reasons. The city and the union agreed to a new collective bargaining agreement in February that included increases in starting pay and across-the-board raises. However, vacancies at the jail persist.
Jails and prisons across the country are also struggling to attract and retain employees. Louisville Metro Correction has similar staffing woes.
In her email, Farmer also encouraged staff to seek out the truth before believing rumors.
“My last advice I would pass along to everyone is to not rely upon what you hear, get the information or research for yourself. The one thing I got to see in my position in meetings that were held were some people in those meetings come back and tell the exact opposite to staff downstairs to what was said or talked about,” Farmer wrote. “ In short, don’t believe everything that is being told to you is true and think for yourselves. Be your own voice.”
LAWYERS WAIT TO SEE INMATES
The lack of staff also means lawyers are having to wait longer to meet with clients at the jail. Chris Tracy, regional manager for the Department of Public Advocacy, which represents poor defendants who can’t afford a lawyer, said it can take hours or longer for lawyers to see clients because there are too few staff at the jail.
“It has been going on for many months now, well into last year I believe,” Tracy said. “I do believe it’s gotten progressively worse. “ Staffing is particularly short on the weekends or after business hours. That’s when lawyers have to wait or in very few cases can’t see clients, Tracy said. “Typically now, if it’s the weekend, most mornings, and sometimes after business hours during the week, there is no one stationed at the desk in the lobby,” Tracy said.
In those cases, Tracy said lawyers have to call “master control” via a button on the wall. Someone will come let them in but it could take minutes or an hour.
“Other times, like one Sunday afternoon before a trial I had recently, it can take an hour or more. We didn’t have the luxury of leaving because we had our client’s clothes for trial and had to drop them off,” Tracy said. “That day we were told there was no one who could help us meet with the client, but they did take the clothes. “ Tracy said the officers who work at the detention center are trying their best to meet all the demands of the job.
It’s not their fault, he said. “It’s the lack of workers that’s causing the problem,” Tracy said.
Dan Carman, a Fayette County defense lawyer, said he has had to wait to meet with clients at the jail due to lack of staff. However, Carman said he has always been able to see clients and those delays haven’t substantially delayed cases.
“They are doing the best they can with the staff they have,” Carman said.
Straub said coronavirus protocols, not lack of staffing, may be behind some of the delays.
“There have been times when waiting has happened, but we think the real cause of it is COVID protocol,” Straub said. “COVID numbers are rising again and in a setting like the jail e have to be especially careful. They can still have face to face meetings in attorney booths, but when we’re in ‘red’ and ‘yellow’ we can’t bring inmates out in the open to sit face to face.”
Carman and Tracy also said in-person visitation has been suspended since March 2020, first due to COVID and now due to staffing issues.
The jail offers video visitation and phone access to inmates but not all inmates can afford those services, Tracy said.
“This has added immeasurable strain on the incarcerated folks and a financial burden on families as they’re only left with secures calls and video meetings, at considerable price,” Tracy said of lack of in-person visitation.
This story was originally published July 21, 2022 at 3:37 PM.
