Next week, Kansas City voters will decide whether to renew the city's public safety sales tax for the next 20 years. The renewed tax would fund the construction of a city jail.
Currently, Kansas City sends male inmates 100 miles south to Vernon County, which has faced allegations of abuse and inadequate facilities.
Kansas City Council member Crispin Rea, who supports the sales tax, says the status quo is unsustainable.
"Domestic violence offenders are released prematurely to the threat of safety of their victims, and we don't have have complete control over their care," Rea told KCUR's Up To Date. "This will make sure that we are able to keep those folks in custody and not in our neighborhoods, not impacting our small businesses, and certainly not impacting domestic violence victims."
Pateisha Royal, an organizer with Decarcerate KC, has been campaigning against the new sales tax. She says a new jail would not reduce crime.
"We want to see more money invested into the pre-arrest diversion program. We want to see more money put into our schools. We want to see more money put into housing," Royal says. "When individuals don't have their proper needs met... these things create a perpetual cycle for crime."
The public safety sales tax vote will be held on April 8. Find more info about the election from KCUR.
- Crispin Rea, Kansas City Councilmember
- Pateisha Royal, Decarcerate KC Organizer
