There was an column by Rex Huppke in the Chicago Tribune Monday that might suggest a use for the empty cells in the McHenry County Jail.

Sleep and caffeine can make employees more ethical, study shows.

And there are more empty cells than was reported by the Administration in the McHenry County Board packet for the U.S. Marshals offer of $10 more a day for its and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) placements.

The information provided inexplicably stopped in January, 2014, even though the meeting was held in May.

Now, McHenry County Blog has obtained through the Freedom of Information Act the Rederal prisoner census figures through April.

Guess what?

They plunged right before the County Board voted.

Look at the chart below, which is based on the most recent information:

Federal inmates plunged in April as the U.S. Marshals took their prisoners elsewhere.

But, back to the topic of this post.

If employees were allowed short naps during the workday, the study by the Universities of Arizona, North Carolina and Washington says they would tend to make more ethical decisions than “those who are sleep-deprived.”

Everything in the jail cells are indestructible. This one has a view.

Those overly tired are more likely to go along with bosses who are pushing them to do the wrong things.

So,

1. we have an increasing number of empty beds in the jail
2. we want to have ethical employees
3. why not let employees use empty cells for periodic naps?

If those not in the Sheriff’s Department would feel uncomfortable in the confines of the jail, maybe just test it out on the Sheriff’s employees and see if they start making more ethical decisions than they did before.

And, speaking of ethics, the McHenry County Board is still seeking applicants for the McHenry County Ethics Commission.  The details are in last Friday’s article, entitled,

Second Time Around: County Looking for Person Who Knows the Difference Between Right and Wrong for Ethics Commission, No Applicants Yet