Part Three: Howell County Sheriff’s First Year in Office

This conclusion of a three-part series focuses on how Howell County Sheriff Matt Roberts is managing the long-standing problem of the conditions at Howell County Jail and his plans for security at the courthouse. Conversations and questions about funding a new jail facility for Howell County hang in the air. Presiding Commissioner Ralph Riggs distributed a press release last week pointing out that funding for a jail facility is NOT on April’s ballot, saying, “As discussion continued around Proposition 1, some public confusion has emerged about what the measure would actually allow. It is important for voters to understand that nothing in the current ballot language authorizes any funds to be used for a new justice center, jail, or courthouse facilities."

 

That full release appears on the opinion page as a letter from the Commissioner. 

 

County officials are not ready to talk about the money piece of the problem. Before the sheriff, commission, and courthouse can talk about funding, these parties are meeting with architects and contractors in pursuit of a solution.

 

The need for jail facility updates is nothing new in Howell County. Yearly grand jury reports have described the facility in bleak terms – a place unfit both to house inmates and an unfit work environment for jail employees. 

 

The most recent grand jury report was published in December 2025. It calls the facility, “run down,” “tiny,” with a “nasty/deplorable kitchen.” It notes, “lack of employee workspace,” and a “broken glass window.”

 

The recommendation is, “the building of a new justice center with the building having a designated space for employees with ample space for working.”

 

Roberts was a lieutenant in the jail division before his successful campaign to become sheriff. His first year in office was 2025, maintenance and repair projects on the facility, which was built in the 90s, remain a constant expense and logistical challenge – just as they were for his predecessor, Sheriff Brent Campbell. 

 

Sheriff Roberts told Howell County News in a Feb. 13 interview that average daily jail population is down in 2025 versus the previous year, from 47 to 44. 

 

“Groceries for three people for a year is a lot of money,” Roberts said. 

 

Bookings were up by one: 1,273 versus 1,272 in the same time period, but Roberts credits the increased frequency of writ returns and prison transports to the lower daily population. 

 

Circumstances involving inmate transportation highlighted flaws in courthouse security. In December, an inmate escaped from deputies into a waiting getaway car during transport for a court appearance. The resulting chase led to a broken leg for a sheriff’s deputy, a battery of new felony charges for the escapee and the driver, and renewed conversations about improving courthouse security.

 

An architect has toured the courthouse, and a local contractor has also made a site visit. Roberts is waiting on an estimate of these costs, noting that his goal is an, “aesthetically pleasing solution that is functional on a budget.”

 

The county commission has also committed funds to the Sheriff’s Fund 13 to fund additional bailiff salaries. 

 

Additional updates on plans to build or update jail and/or courthouse facilities will be published as they become available.