Friday, January 28, 2000
Inmate comes to court via TV
Warren 1st county to use video to hear Ohio prisoner's case
BY DAVID ECK
Enquirer Contributor
LEBANON — When Steven Sherrill pleaded guilty in Warren County Court on Thursday to driving under the influence, he became a slice of Ohio law-enforcement history.
Mr. Sherrill, who is in the Chillicothe Correctional Institution for gross sexual imposition, appeared in Warren County via video. It was the first time videoconferencing was used to hear a county case against a defendant in a state prison, state and Warren officials said.
Mr. Sherrill, 39, remained at the Chillicothe prison while at torneys and County Court Judge Dallas Powers convened in Lebanon. Mr. Sherrill appeared on a TV screen.
“He saw the judge and the two attorneys,” Warren County Court Clerk Terry Smith said. “I'm not going to be afraid to try it if the opportunity presents itself again.”
County and state prison officials say videoconferencing decreases public safety risks, is more efficient and eliminates transportation costs.
The community is safer because inmates do not leave prison to appear in court, they add.
Warren County has been using the technology to arraign inmates in the county jail since November.
The county's system cost $245,000 and is expected to save the sheriff's office $41,000 annually in transportation and security costs, officials have said. The sheriff's office and the various courts in Warren County each helped pay for the system, Mrs. Smith said.
The Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction has been using videoconferencing about five years for medical examinations, hearings on motions in federal courts, mental health services and long-distance learning.
The state has invested $1.5 million, and all state prisons will have the technology in place by spring, said Chris Lizza, videoconferencing administrator for the department.
He expects more counties to follow Warren's lead and use videoconferencing for arraignments and uncomplicated appearances.
“Warren County is the first county that has chosen to take this step,” Mr. Lizza said. “Warren County has kind of broken the ice here. That gets passed around, formally and informally, to other counties.”
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