PORT ANGELES – A new computer program at the Clallam County Corrections facility will allow inmates a faster way to pay bail, medical bills and make purchases from the jail’s commissary.
Auto Cash, the new system, will allow family members or friends to transfer money via telephone, Internet or in person to an inmate’s account.
Credit cards, debit cards, money orders, cashier’s checks or cash can be applied, including funds sent through Western Union or Government Payment Service Inc. online services.
The system is already in operation in Ferry County, the only other county in the state to use it.
A small service charge for money sent online or by phone is applied to the individual’s account each time it is used, but there is no cost to the county, Sheriff Bill Benedict said Sunday.
The charge through Government Payment Service Inc. is a small percentage of the amount sent, he said.
The service from Western Union was not up and running on Sunday. Benedict said he would look into the Western Union policy today.
Previously, only in-person payments were allowed and debit or credit cards were not accepted at all.
The new system will help ease overcrowding, and reduce some costs to the jail, by allowing bail money to be processed faster, officials said.
“It will reduce costs for me because a lot of people are put in jail and want to bail out if it is a smaller amount,” he said. “But since we only take cash and can’t take a credit card and some credit cards can’t get cash out of cash machines, they can’t bail out.
“So now they can pay for it with a credit card and I don’t have to pay the $60 a night to keep them in jail.
“It will also help with things like inmates that need money in their accounts; they can have it automatically put in instead of having someone bring cash up.
“This saves time and money.”
Instead of waiting for a friend or family member to bring the bail down to the jail, a person can send the money by phone or Internet from anywhere in the country.
Benedict was unsure of how much it would save the county, since there is no way to know how many people would have bailed out if they could have used credit cards or debit cards versus cash only.
“This is more about the convenience as well as time factor rather than the money,” he said.
Eventually, the goal is for the department to install a kiosk in the jail to allow people to pay by credit card. Currently, they can only do so by Internet or phone, Benedict said.
Benedict was not sure Sunday of how much the system cost to install.
The money can also be used for approved goods from the jail’s commissary or to pay medical costs, a news release said.
Anyone may apply funds to an inmate’s account by paying cash at the jail lobby – cash is not accepted by mail.
Money orders and cashier’s checks may be sent by U.S. mail or in person at the jail lobby.
Credit cards or debit cards can be used through Western Union or Government Payment Service Inc. either by phone or online.
The inmate jacket number will be required to add money to the inmate’s account.
For more information on what data are needed and how to apply money to an inmate’s account, visit www.clallam.net/LawEnforcement/html/correctional_facility.htm and click on the link under “New Options” toward the bottom of the page.
