Cape Girardeau considering agreement to house federal inmates

Federal prisoners may soon be housed at the Cape Girardeau police station, according to a proposed agreement among the city, the police department and the United States Department of Justice.

Members of Cape Girardeau City Council discussed the proposal and unanimously passed the agreement’s first reading at Monday night’s meeting.

In a report provided to council members, the federal inmates would be housed at a cost of $70 per day, per inmate, which would be reimbursed to the City of Cape Girardeau by the Department of Justice.

The agreement could result in an estimated gross revenue between $255,500 to $383,250 annually, according to the report, and could be performed with the jail’s current staffing levels.

During the meeting, assistant police chief Adam Glueck said the jail can house a capacity of 20 people, but averages four per day.

“We want to have some flexibility there if we do have a busy day or night, so to speak, but right now we’re looking at [housing] 10 a day,” Glueck said. “We can always reduce that number if it starts to fill up faster than we anticipated, but that’s the plan as of now.”

Cape Girardeau city manager Scott Meyer praised the assistant chief’s work on the agreement, and Mayor Bob Fox personally thanked Glueck following the meeting’s conclusion.

Glueck explained the agreement would not only provide a financial benefit to the city, but also provide a logistical benefit to U.S. Marshals working in the area.

“It makes sense for the police department to do it, because the federal courthouse is in Cape Girardeau,” Glueck said after the meeting.