WARREN, Ark. – Saline River News sat down with Bradley County Sheriff Herschel Tillman this week to discuss the November 18 sales tax proposals that could determine whether the county moves forward with constructing a new jail facility.
The plan calls for a 19,000-square-foot building that would house around 80 inmates. In addition to serving as the county jail, the facility would relocate the sheriff’s office and operate as a new county-run 911 call center. Currently, the City of Warren oversees 911 services through its Emergency Services Center. The county has already begun dirt work at the planned site, located along the U.S. Highway 278 bypass southeast of Warren, just north of Bradley Road 24. A sign marking the future facility is visible from the highway.
“It’s important for people to understand we are not talking about building a prison,” Tillman said. The facility will not be housing murders there for a 40 year of life-long stay. “This jail will house people awaiting trial,” he continued.
Bradley County has relied on out-of-county facilities for years due to the lack of a local jail. There is a 24-hour holding cell at the Warren Police Department, but it is not at the scale or properly suited for stays in the way the proposed new County Jail is planned. Tillman said that over the past nine to 10 years, the cost of housing inmates elsewhere has nearly doubled. “If the costs double again over the next 10 years, we could really be in bad shape,” he said. County records show that between 2021 and 2024, Bradley County spent $871,755.75 on inmate housing. Current costs average $50 to $55 per day for male inmates, while housing for female inmates is more expensive and harder to secure. Those totals do not include the additional expense of transportation, such as fuel and the labor costs that go along.
According to Sheriff Tillman, when inmates must be transported, Bradley County deputies often drive to Dallas or Ouachita counties, provided there is space available. When those facilities were recently full, an inmate had to be transported to Pike County, near Murfreesboro, a two-and-a-half-hour drive from Warren. Since 2015, 18 new county jails and 10 jail expansions have been completed in Arkansas, but finding bed space remains a challenge across the state. Asked about grant opportunities from a community member, Tillman said, “There are no grants for jails.”
Two sales tax measures will appear on the November 18 ballot. The first is a permanent 0.625 percent county sales and use tax, restricted to jail operations, law enforcement, and other county needs. The second is a temporary 1 percent county sales and use tax dedicated to repaying construction bonds for the jail and communications center. That tax would expire once the bonds are retired, which estimates place at about 23 years. Together, the measures are structured to fund a project capped at $19 million, with roughly $15 million expected to cover construction and the rest designated for furnishings and contingencies. Both proposals must pass in order for the project to move forward.
County Judge Klay McKinney has called the package “the best chance we’ve had” to secure a county jail, emphasizing that the 1 percent tax would end once the bonds are paid off. “We’ve been dealing with this issue a long time,” McKinney said.
Tillman said the proposed facility would add at least 13 new jobs and would contract with a doctor and nurse for care of inmates. He pointed to current challenges in law enforcement, noting that with the inability to guarantee an inmate is held in jail due to space and cost issues, that there tends to be no consequences for some offenders.
Staffing constraints have further complicated matters. The sheriff’s department has five full-time deputies and two part-time deputies. When one or more deputies are on the road transporting inmates, fewer are available to patrol the county. Tillman said a local jail would relieve that burden and improve efficiency.
He also stressed that the new facility would be designed with modern security systems. “It will be one of the most secure jails in the state of Arkansas,” he said.
Voters will have the final say on November 18. Saline River News will continue following this story as the election approaches.
