Jail reality TV show sparks county feud

Read the story and then scroll to the bottom of the story to tell us whether putting the Hamilton County jail in the spotlight is a good thing.

Hamilton County's jail is the star of a new reality TV show premiering this week, sort of the Kardashians with blood, death threats, snitches and a guy who stabs people with pencils.

Sheriff Jim Neil is satisfied with how the show turned out, but not everyone in county government is happy.

Several top county officials, including county commissioners and representatives of the prosecutor's office, were consulted about the show last year and warned that it would be a bad idea.

County Administrator Christian Sigman said in an email to county officials last March that allowing camera crews from MSNBC's "Lockup" series into the jail could damage the county's image and create unnecessary safety and liability risks.

"Lockup is dehumanizing and essentially uses the misfortune of others for entertainment purposes," Sigman wrote in the email, which was obtained by The Enquirer through a public records request. "Being party to this reality TV show is not what we want our national reputation to be based on."

Despite those warnings, Neil decided to go ahead with the show anyway. His spokesman, Mike Robison, said the sheriff didn't seek out the show. But after "Lockup" producers contacted him, he decided it would be a good opportunity to share with the public what goes on inside the jail.

Film crews spent about three months filming there last spring and summer. The sheriff hasn't seen the final version of the show, but Robison said the staff is satisfied with the finished product.

"Overall, we believe it's a fair representation of life in the Hamilton County Justice Center and it gives viewers a small glimpse into what we deal with day in and day out," Robison said.

Other county officials say they didn't know the sheriff had agreed to do the show until told about it Thursday by an Enquirer reporter.

"I don't think it's the best idea," said Greg Hartmann, president of the board of county commissioners. "I'm all for transparency, but reality TV probably shouldn't be around our jail."

Hartmann, a Republican, said Neil, a Democrat, asked for the opinion of the county administration and was told in no uncertain terms that doing the show would be a mistake.

"We told him not to do it and he did it anyway," Hartmann said.

Emails obtained by The Enquirer show that the county's risk manager, prosecutor's office and administration all agreed the sheriff should turn down MSNBC's invitation. In Sigman's email to commissioners and staff, he warned of safety risks, legal liabilities and damage to the county's reputation.

"It is highly unlikely that viewers of "Lockup" will visit or invest in our community after watching," Sigman wrote. "In fact, I believe the show would have the opposite effect."

As an independently elected office holder, the sheriff runs his own department and is not required to take advice from other county officials. But county taxpayers own the Justice Center, and the sheriff works with commissioners and county administrators on his budget every year.

Any lawsuits or worker compensation issues that arise from activities at the Justice Center would ultimately go before commissioners, and taxpayers would cover any of those costs.

Commissioner Chris Monzel said he advised against doing the show last year and still thinks it was a mistake that could come back to bite taxpayers.

"I personally wouldn't go off and do it," he said. "To me, it's a risky proposition."

Judging from the trailer on MSNBC, life in the jail is also a risky proposition. Scenes from the show include the aftermath of a bloody fight, bags of contraband tobacco hidden in pillows, and inmates shouting obscenities at each other and corrections officers.

One inmate complains that the jail is so full of informants that the city should be called "Snitch-innati." Another discusses stabbing a man with two long, sharp pencils.

"If they cage you like an animal, you will ... act like an animal," says one prisoner.

The show, called "Lockup: Cincinnati," premiers Saturday at 10 p.m. It's the latest installment of a series that has filmed inside jails across the country and around the world.

Robison said the sheriff's office was not paid for allowing MSNBC inside, but producers of the show did reimburse the department for any additional expenses, such as overtime related to escorting the film crew or doing interviews.

He said the sheriff's staff also reviewed video shot in the jail before allowing the production crew to use it on the show.

MSNBC says no one was paid for interviews and the show is considered a news program, produced by NBC's news group.

"Lockup" isn't the first TV show permitted in the Justice Center, but it appears to have been given more access over a longer period of time than others. In 2007, when Republican Simon Leis was sheriff, the Spike TV show "Jail" featured a segment on the Justice Center that included video of new inmates as they were processed into the facility.

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