Marinette County Jail – Correctional officer staffing levels have dropped to “crisis levels”

The Marinette County Jail can hold up to 164 inmates. In the past, the county has occasionally housed some of its inmates in other jails due to overcrowding. As of Aug. 27, there were 131 inmates in the county facility, and none of them are housed elsewhere. Counties recruit correctional officers intensively and often compete for manpower. Marinette County Sheriff Randy Miller says, “Currently, we are eight correctional officers, including the education coordinator position that was supposed to be created this year but we were unable to fill.”

“We are falling behind other county correctional facilities and have recently been losing potential candidates to them,” says Sheriff Miller.

The Marinette County Board voted for a competitive pay increase during its regular meeting yesterday. Currently, a correctional officer's pay is $22.19. The Board has approved another pay increase of up to $6.00 per hour. The Marinette County Sheriff's Office has increased its recruitment efforts for correctional officers, promoting the job as an honorable, important profession that is essential to the community. If you are interested in serving your community, visit marinettecountywi.gov for more information.