Former PV coach Sacks likely to choose city jail

Author: Kristin S. Agostoni

For $145 a night, most visitors would expect to get a pillow along with the flat vinyl mattress, and maybe more than a poor boy sandwich of ham and cheese. The off-white cinder block walls are bare, the floor is cold, and the only seat around is a sterile-smelling metal toilet just beneath the telephone.

Without windows inside the tiny jail cell at the Redondo Beach police station, the outside world couldn't seem any farther away. But consider the options.

"To someone who has to serve time, this is definitely better than the alternative," said jail manager Michelle Mercier. "People fear going to the county jail."

Following in the footsteps of some of its neighbors, Redondo Beach is the latest South Bay city to provide another option to staying at the crowded and often intimidating county lockup.

Redondo Beach is relaunching a pay-to-stay program for adults convicted of misdemeanor crimes, offering a smaller, more intimate place to do time -- and a new potential source of revenue for the city. The cells will be open to paying inmates starting Saturday, although reservations must be made in advance and approved by the sentencing courts.

"This is probably the Hilton of jails," Mercier said. "It's clean. It's quiet. ... We have an excellent janitor here."

Redondo Beach had a similar program in place several years ago, but the city stopped accepting paying inmates because of a state law restricting contact between juveniles and adults. Because the law today provides more flexibility, reinstituting the program seemed like a no-brainer, Mercier said.

The space was available, and no construction work was required.

Though Redondo Beach has not set a monetary goal for the program's first year, neighboring Torrance originally expected to bring in $325,000 from overnight jail stays. Torrance started charging $165 a night for pay-to-stay inmates in January.

Because of a slow start in getting the word out, the city adjusted its projection this fiscal year, estimating the program will generate just $25,000, Finance Director Eric Tsao said.

The number is decidedly smaller, but it's extra revenue, nonetheless.

And it's not far off from the amount of money generated in nearby Hawthorne. By charging $75 a night, Lt. Paul Moreau estimated the city brought in $20,000 during last fiscal year, not to mention free housecleaning help and carwashes.

"We like having trusties here," Moreau said. "I get average Joes. I don't take gang-bangers, I don't take dopers, and I don't take sex offenders. ... What they get is a very nice environment."

Hermosa Beach also rents beds in the city lockup. Its most notable tenant was Grammy award-winning rapper Coolio.

The program hasn't paid off everywhere, however.

El Segundo used to open its jail up to convicts willing to pay a nightly fee -- the most famous, or infamous, detainee was actress Zsa Zsa Gabor , who served three days for slapping a police officer in 1990 -- but the program ended some time ago.

The city provided up to four spaces for overnight visitors but ran into problems because of state rules concerning juveniles, who had to be shuffled to a basement office of City Hall to avoid any contact with adult inmates. That room wasn't secured, so an officer was expected to keep watch, said Sgt. Roger Stephenson.

"It was an officer safety issue and certainly an inconvenience," he said. "I don't think ultimately it was worth it. You take an officer out of service."

Mercier is hoping Redondo Beach's program will start off strong, which is why the city decided to be flexible with a number of rules.

Hand-held televisions and radios are permitted, and inmates can talk on the phone as much as they'd like -- as long as the calls are collect.

For those who don't find the menus appetizing, relatives will be permitted to drop off home-cooked meals. Visitors are encouraged to find their own rides, but parking is free for those who bring cars.

"All the comforts of home," Mercier said.

Almost.