From Many Local Officials Now Make Inmates Pay Their Own Way
The jail for Lexington, Ky., and surrounding Fayette County charges a $20 booking and administrative fee but not a daily fee, said Donald Leach, the senior administrative officer for the jail. "It's a great platform issue for people running for sheriff to impose these fees," Mr. Leach said. "But it's my experience that very few jails that charge a per diem make any money."
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"I think a jail that collects 10 percent of its fees is doing very well," Mr. Leach said.