WILKES-BARRE — Imagine designing a seating plan for dinner guests when some don't like each other.

Now imagine those dinner guests are actually prison inmates. Someone has talked to police, others are from rival gangs and some just don't like each other.

That's one challenge officials at the Luzerne County Correctional Facility deal with each day as they try to juggle inmate housing, often in a prison that has exceeded capacity.

The problem is reflected in the budget request that Division of Corrections leader Mark Rockovich presented to county council Monday.

He asked for $547,500 for outside inmate housing, a number that council members questioned during a budget work session.

"It's a large amount of money. I won't say it's not, but if we are crowded, I can't wait for council to pass a resolution to give me more money," Rockovich said. "We are working hard to keep that amount as low as we possibly can. That is a fair figure in case we have problems, the population rises and we're in trouble and have to move people out."

That cost was one of the higher line items in the expenses for the corrections division, which has the highest expenses in the county's budget and the equivalent of more than 320 full-time employees.

So far this year, the division has used only about $99,000 for the same expense.

"I'm just looking for a little realism," said council Chairwoman Linda McClosky Houck. "In two years, you have not come close to the $500,000 mark. If there's an emergency situation, I think the manager will find a way to transfer money in there to make it accessible. Right now, 25 inmates out for an entire year is what you are budgeting for."

Next year's corrections budget also includes changes that come after two correctional officers were charged with extortion. In August, federal prosecutors said John Stachokus took bribes — including drugs — in exchange for allowing inmates in the jail's work-release program to take unauthorized furloughs. Lou Elmy, a counselor at the jail's work-release program, also pleaded guilty in July to extortion.

Rockovich proposed hiring two lieutenants with salary and benefits at $65,350 each, which would allow officials to have a lieutenant overseeing each shift at the work-release facility. The two employees indicted were working on the second and third shift at the minimal offenders unit, said County Manager David Pedri.

Rockovich is also requesting $10,000 to reinstate drug testing for employees at the prison. His plan is to randomly test on each shift several times per year.

Another request is for a maintenance technician, with salary and benefits at $49,203. After the death of a correctional officer who was attempting to restrain an inmate when both men fell through a malfunctioning elevator door, Rockovich wanted to have another person to help maintain the facility.

The technician would not work with elevators, but would be an additional worker to help deal with the upkeep of the building, originally built in 1870 and expanded with a tower in 1987.

Coroner

The county coroner's office uses historical averages to plan its budget for the next year.

"In 2016, our averages were blown right out the window," said Coroner Bill Lisman. "We had no rainy day fund, we left the windows open and boy, did it rain."

In 2014, the county ended with 67 drug overdoses. In 2015, the county saw 95 drug overdoses.

This year, it's worse yet. As of Oct. 31, Lisman certified 118 drug overdoses. That number could be even higher, because he is still waiting on results from seven samples.

"Week in, week out, three people are dying because of drug overdoses. I did not figure that into our budget," Lisman said. "The DA's office, the coroner's office, the prison, we're all being affected by the drug culture."

Besides the human cost, the sudden increase in overdoses has wreaked havoc on the parts of county government deal with the aftermath.

Lisman does not expect the overdoses to abate soon.

He is requesting a new deputy coroner position with $52,432 in salary and benefits. He's also asking for $50,000 more for forensic examinations — a total of $160,000 — and $15,000 more for toxicology, for a total of $60,000. A decrease in expenses for views and inquests and an increase in the cost of cremations completed by the coroner's office help make up some of the difference.

The office has a plan to assist prosecutors who want to charge drug dealers whose customers die from overdoses with their drugs. The Lycoming County coroner, for example, began ruling heroin overdose deaths as homicides in March.

Lisman does not plan to conduct an autopsy on every overdose. But if prosecutors think they can prove someone died from drugs, his office's ruling becomes crucial evidence.

"It's not a blank check, but I need some funds if detectives say ‘We have this evidence, this photograph, this and this, and we very likely will prosecute.' Well, unless I do that autopsy, they're not even going to bother," he said.

More departments

Council also heard presentations from other departments in Judicial Services and Records, including the Sheriff's Department, the Prothonotary and Clerk of Courts, the Recorder of Deeds and Register of Wills.

The next budget work session is scheduled for Nov. 15, following a council voting meeting that begins at 6 p.m. Council will inspect the budget for the General Government division, which includes county council and the county manager's office. The Administrative Services division will also present its budget.

bwelllock@citizensvoice.com