Last week, as the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Texas rose, Collin County Sheriff Jim Skinner urged local police to think twice about who they arrest and bring to his jail.
In his letter to local law enforcement officials, first reported Wednesday by the Dallas Morning News, Skinner noted that more than 50 people a day enter the 1,300-bed county lockup that he oversees. The sheriff, a Republican, suggested that whenever possible, officers should issue citations rather than arresting and booking people, especially for those accused of petty or nonviolent offenses like getting caught with a joint. “I ask you to use your best judgment on arrests and transports to the county jail,” Skinner wrote. “Would you arrest if you and your staff had to take custody of and care for the person?”
