JASPER COUNTY, S.C. — The leadership at the Jasper County Detention Center has recently undergone a significant change.

The Jasper County Sheriff’s Office has taken over management of the facility, marking a new chapter for the detention center.

Jasper County Sheriff Chris Malphrus explained the decision, saying, “There were ongoing safety issues, a declining number of officers, and concerns regarding leadership. Considering these factors, I suggested to the county administrator that it might be best for me to take over operations, should they feel comfortable with that arrangement. Eventually, that transition was agreed upon.”

At present, the detention center employs a total of 15 staff members, with six of those being civilians and none serving as detention officers, according to Sheriff Malphrus.

These staffing numbers fall significantly short of the 52 personnel required to adequately manage the 100 to 110 inmates housed at the facility.

This comes after an eight-month long investigation and months of mismanagement, according to the sheriff himself. Mismanagement including a loss of staff.

Malphrus said he was told for months through exit interviews and word of mouth there were problems behind bars.

“I even had one of the staff who was telling me that we know that we’re not running the jail the inmates are,” explained Malphrus. “And that’s alarming because that’s a volatile situation and that’s not a situation I want my employees to be in.”

Those employees include temporary security who are filling the gaps, costing the county between $95,000-$140,000 a month. The cost is significantly more than full-time staff would be, Malphrus said.

In addition to the staffing issues, the sheriff said the jail itself needs updating. The need for more cameras, improved or better facilities and a way to keep the jail from flooding during a storm.

Malphrus said the county is willing to step up and help make a difference.

“So, the money is there,” said Malphrus. “I said maybe not all of it, but a big portion to fix some of the immediate issues. We have some heating and air concerns. We have hot water issue concerns. We have sewage concerns, which is just about every detention center across the country.”

For now, Jasper County Sheriff’s County deputies will be cross trained to help in the facility. Malphrus hopes to get salaries up to match deputies and detention center guards’ compensation. That way he can get a new level of guards back in this new version of the detention center.

“It was a quick, swift move on behalf of the county to make this decision and move forward with it,” said Malphrus. “And I think it was a good move.”

Malphrus said he has a 90-day plan to help fix the issues at the detention center.

He will be presenting the potential changes he is requesting to County Council in the next two months.

He has already hired an interim director for the facility, former Colleton County Detention Center Head Shane Roberts.

“I’ve been very fortunate enough to lead classes for officer development and leadership classes and actually been able to do that, not just nationwide, but worldwide.” said Roberts.  “So, when the sheriff and I started talking and understanding what was taking place here, it was exciting to hear the changes that were coming and being able to be included in an interim phase to be able to help with that.”

Malphrus said he plans to hire a new Detention Center Director. Roberts, who is retired, said he is not interested in the position.

The former director, and former Jasper County Sheriff Donald Hipp, turned in his resignation, according to Malphrus.