By Marcia Moore
SUNBURY — Northumberland County President Judge Robert B. Sacavage wants to know why an inmate sentenced nearly two months ago to state prison remains locked up in the county jail.
“I only learned today that she’s still there, and we’re paying for it,” Sacavage said of the delay in transferring inmate Christeen M. Smith to the state prison in Muncy.
Smith pleaded guilty to aggravated assault for trying to hire an undercover state trooper to kill Donald Ellis, of 147 Clay Pond Road, in April 2008.
She was sentenced on Jan. 22, but has lingered in the county jail in Sunbury since.
It usually takes about two weeks from formal sentencing to gather the required paperwork and records needed to transfer an inmate from the county jail to state prison.
Warden Roy Johnson attributed the delay to Smith having scheduled appearances in county court.
But Sacavage said a pending hearing shouldn’t have a bearing on inmate transfers now that the courts and prisons are equipped with video capabilities.
“We can do everything by video conferencing,” he said, adding that he’ll raise the issue of state-sentenced inmates lingering in the county jail at the next monthly criminal management meeting.
Two other county jails aren’t experiencing the same lag in transferring inmates to state prison.
At the Union and Snyder county jails, sentenced inmates are regularly moved within 10 days to two weeks to the diagnostic centers in Camp Hill or Muncy.
“I get the paperwork done, and the sheriff’s office is quite efficient,” Union County Prison Warden Doug Shaffer said.
Quick transfers are important to small facilities like Union County’s 35-bed jail, where space is limited, he said.
Johnson said he’ll be checking Smith’s records to make sure they’re in order, and she’ll be transferred as soon as possible.
“We don’t want to keep them any longer than we have to,” said Johnson, adding that a prompt transfer to a state facility benefits inmates and county residents alike. “Inmates in state get the services they need (such as counseling), and it saves taxpayer money.”
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