GREENSBORO, N.C. — Guilford County detention officer shortages are impacting the amount of time inmates spend in their cells. The sheriff's office said shortages occasionally force the jail into lockdown.
WFMY News 2 started looking into this story following a call from a concerned viewer. Within the call, a viewer told WFMY News 2 she was worried about her son who she said is an inmate at the detention center.
She said she hadn't heard from him in over two weeks. Which she claimed is unusual because he typically calls often.
In response to our viewer's concern, we reached out to the sheriff's office. The Guilford County Sheriff's Office said there are over 100 vacancies within the sheriff's office and most of them are at the detention center. Due to these shortages, the office said it's had to implement mandatory overtime.
"Each individual is required to work an extra day each pay period, which is a two-week pay period, and so that gives the shifts an additional body or bodies whenever they are short-staffed. So far, the safety and security of our residents as well as staff has not been placed in jeopardy," said Guilford County Sheriff's Office, Major Rodney Beasley.
Major Beasley said when not enough people come to work, they occasionally have to lock the facility down, which limits the time inmates are out of their cells. He explained during that time the inmates had access to a tablet that could be used to communicate with family and friends. He said the lockdowns happen occasionally.
"I really couldn't tell you a specific number of times, but it's not like again we have mandatory overtime, and a lot of times we have officers staying over after their shift in addition to the mandatory overtime," said Major Beasley.
The Forsyth County detention center has also seen staffing challenges, yet they say it hasn't affected day-to-day operations for inmates. FCSO said in cases of sickness or holidays when more people are off, command staff will come and work inside the detention center.
As for the concerned viewer, WFMY News 2 reached out to her on Wednesday, she said she has heard from her son this week.