Richland County Administrator reports on safety, upgrades at Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WOLO) — After growing concerns of safety and staffing at the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center, Richland County Administrator Leonardo Brown reports that changes are on the way.

Brown held a press conference to discuss safety, staffing, retention, and upgrades at the center.

Recently, five detainees at the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center were charged with the murder of fellow detainee Antonius Randolph. In a separate incident, three detention center officers were arrested due to alleged misconduct. Attorneys for the family of Lason Butler, another detainee who died at the center, are requesting an investigation due to “inhumane conditions and the dangerous culture of apathy and malfeasance at the detention center.”

“To any families of employees, families of detainees, that have been negatively impacted by an experience at the facility, we certainly want to acknowledge and sympathize with their concerns and their experiences,” says Brown.

The Administrator says improvements to the 18 units at the detention center will include more security cameras, lighting and plumbing upgrades, and better locking mechanisms.

“The facility has older security related equipment like doors, and those doors can potentially be compromised. And unfortunately you have had individuals within the facility who have compromised those locks,” Brown says.

He also says additional security and support staff will continue to be hired through a contracting firm called Allied Universal.

It is reported that a new attorney-client visitation center will be established and kitchens at the facility are being renovated as well.

According to Brown, $12 million has already been allocated to these upgrades with additional funding expected.

No specific timeline has been given for all of the changes but Brown says some are already underway.

“Before there was any pressure, there was always care and concern,” Brown says.

Brown says he hopes to build a greater level of trust towards the center within the community going forward, and show everyone these changes in the coming months.